A Democratic congressman is pleading President Donald Trump has just been confirmed in the Senate as the White House drug czar following the science and proactively advocating for the full legalization of marijuana, beyond the additional cannabis rescheduling the president recently signed.

Rep. Dina Titus (D-NV), co-chair of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus, shared a link to a Marihuana Moment article on Tuesday about Sara Carter Bailey’s Senate confirmation vote as director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP).

Titus said Carter “must commit to common sense and evidence-based cannabis policy.”

“This includes descheduling marijuana and fully implementing my Evidence-Based Drug Policy Act so that federal decisions are guided by science, not stigma,” he said.

Titus and Cannabis Caucus Co-Chair Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) announced in April that they had introduced the Evidence-Based Drug Policy Act, aiming to remove the legal restriction that prevents the drug czar from supporting the legalization of marijuana or other Schedule I drugs. The legislation has yet to advance in the GOP-controlled Congress, however.

Here is the text of the current law that would be repealed under the proposal:

“The Director . . . shall ensure that federal funds appropriated to the Office of National Drug Control Policy shall not be expended for any study or contract related to the legalization (for medical use or any other use) of a substance listed in section I of section 812 of this title and shall take such measures as may be necessary to oppose any attempt to legalize the use (in any form) of a substance not listed in subparagraph (I)(B) of section 8 of section (I). The purpose of the Food and Drug Administration approved for medical use.

Carter, for his part, has previously spoken out in favor of access to medical marijuana, saying he has “no problem” with legalization, even though he may not personally agree with the policy.

A former journalist known for his coverage of drug cartels, the ONDCP director had previously informed senators that the administration. keeping “all options” on the table as he considered a proposal to reorganize marijuanawhile describing cannabis reform as a “bipartisan issue.”

Despite his personal ambivalence about the redistricting issue, Trump last month signed an executive order directing the attorney general to quickly complete the process of moving cannabis from Schedule I to III of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA).

Given the ONDCP director’s role in setting and carrying out the administration’s agenda on drug policy issues, Carter’s enthusiastic endorsement of medical cannabis in the past is welcome to advocates.

Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) raised the issue of cannabis reform with the then-candidate in September, saying the additional reform would be a “step in the right direction.”

“It would open the door to more scientific research, so if you were to be confirmed, how would you advise the American president on the reprogramming process going on?” he asked.

Carter said he shares Booker’s passion for the issue, which he described as “bipartisan.”

“If confirmed as director, I will comply with all federal laws and meet all legal responsibilities of ONDCP,” he said. “However, we will continue to work in depth with research and data. We will continue to do so and explore all options.”

Tuesday’s vote on confirmation was largely along party lines, with Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) joining all Democrats in opposition, and all other Republicans in support.

While Carter has spoken often on a variety of marijuana policy issues (focusing on illegal trafficking and illegal growing operations on US soil, for example), his public comments have been limited about how he personally feels about the issue. In a 2024 episode of her podcast The Sara Carter Show, she noted that she makes a distinction between legally regulated and illegally supplied marijuana.

“I don’t have a problem if it’s legalized and controlled,” he said. “I mean, maybe I have my own issues with how I feel about it, but I think it’s a wonderful way to handle cannabis for medicine and medical reasons — especially for people with cancer and other diseases, you know — to manage the disease and the side effects of those drugs and diseases. So I’m not saying we should make it illegal.”

Last month, a Democratic senator temporarily he resisted the Republican majority’s attempt to advance Carter’s confirmationsaying he is among many “unqualified” candidates who threaten to “undermine the rule of law and our national security.”

Carter will be the second White House drug czar in a row to voice his support for medical marijuana Former President Joe Biden’s ONDCP Director Rahul Guptaworked as a consultant to cannabis businesses and oversaw the implementation of West Virginia’s medical marijuana program.

On his social media, Carter has previously shared links (without comment) to news on various marijuana-related topics. In addition to his increased focus on illegal billboards, he has also published on congressional and state legalization votes, Biden administration staffers fired for cannabis use, Democratic presidential candidates’ support for legalization, progress on cannabis banking legislation in Congress, and state policy developments such as the legalization of cannabis cafes in Alaska.

Carter has separately sounded the alarm about the dangers of pesticides and other contaminants in the marijuana grown and sold by Chinese cartels…last year a House committee took up the matter.

Also last year, the ONDCP director discussed the issue with Derek Maltz, a then-retired Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) official who served as the agency’s interim administrator before being confirmed. Trump’s perennial pick, Terrance Cole.

In an X post about his interview with Maltz, Carter said how “Chinese marijuana growing operations are using dangerous chemicals as pesticides.”

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In 2022, U.S. Rep. Mike Garcia (R-CA) praised Carter, who worked with his office to draw attention to illegal grow operations in his district, leading to an investigation by local law enforcement.

Carter credited Congress, saying, “Your work to take down illegal marijuana seeds has prevented the cartels from exploiting your community, the people forced to work in it, and the (money).

In a 2021 interview with Fox News’ Sean Hannity, he also talked about his work with Garcia, including accompanying him on a helicopter, “a lot of sophisticated illegal farms worth billions of dollars.”

The posters “have become much bolder. They are not afraid to hide,” he said. “They don’t hide it because they don’t feel like they’ll ever be held accountable for it.”

In a sense, Carter seems to be implicitly suggesting that he supports regulated access to cannabis as a means to promote public safety and health. Whether and how this implied position will affect federal policy, now that it has been confirmed, remains to be seen.

On his social media, he has previously shared links (without comment) to news on various marijuana-related topics. In addition to his increased focus on illegal billboards, he has also published on congressional and state legalization votes, Biden administration staffers fired for cannabis use, Democratic presidential candidates’ support for legalization, progress on cannabis banking legislation in Congress, and state policy developments such as the legalization of cannabis cafes in Alaska.