A Proclamation on Granting Pardon for the Offense of Simple Possession of Marijuana, Attempted Simple Possession of Marijuana, or Use of Marijuana | The White House
whitehouse.gov
I, Joseph R. Biden Jr., do hereby grant a full, complete, and unconditional pardon to all current United States citizens and lawful permanent residents who, on or before the date of this proclamation, committed or were convicted of the offense of simple possession of marijuana, attempted simple possession of marijuana, or use of marijuana, regardless of whether they have been charged with or prosecuted for these offenses on or before the date of this proclamation
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Normally I'd agree but I think in this case descheduling has a different route. I think the president and the DEA can just move it down the made-up list of scientifically inaccurate fear-mongering.
That’s different from legalizing.
It's only illegal because it's scheduled. Unscheduled drugs can be sold OTC.
Well, yeah, but the office of the president does not controlled directly which drug is scheduled, - it is controlled by fda. Nor does it control the existence of the schedule itself - it is controlled by congress. In short, the president is not a king, as Tramp has learned to his surprise.
The FDA has nothing to do with drug scheduling. That's the HHS, DEA, and AG. Congress could just take marijuana off the list if they wanted, but that's not likely to happen any time soon.
OK, one of those three letter agencies, regardless my point stands - the president can't do it.
He can, though. He can issue an executive order to the DoJ telling them to stop prosecuting people for non-violent weed offenses.
That does not legalize it.
If a law isn't enforced, it's not illegal.
For instance, it's illegal for cops to speed if they're not responding to an emergency, but no one enforces it.
There are, for example, random drug testing at work places. And especially if you work for government or for government contractor, you may be fired if the drug is scheduled. Has nothing to do with Justice department.
You can be fired for failing a drug test even if the drugs are legal.
Nicotine is a drug. Never ever heard anyone being fired for that.
And while it is true, there could be other rules that companies may enforce (don't operate heavy machinery while drunk, for example), government contractors have to react simply because the drug is on the list, and the test is positive. BY LAW, even if it has zero impact or positive impact on productivity.
Those are all part of the executive branch, and are subject to the executive.