Trump’s promise, the new DEA chief, and early signals

During his campaign and since returning to office, Trump publicly stated that he would consider rescheduling cannabis to Schedule III.

Background: The federal “gun ban” on marijuana users

Under U.S. federal law, specifically 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(3), it is illegal for a person who is an “unlawful user of or addicted to any controlled substance” to possess firearms or ammunition. Because marijuana remains classified as a Schedule I controlled substance under the federal Controlled Substances Act, users—even state-legal medical marijuana patients—can run afoul of that prohibition. (This reaches not just people convicted of crimes, but those whose use is merely “unlawful” under federal law.)