A GOP congressman says it’s “definitely” time to have a talk with President Donald Trump’s pick for head of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to convince him that “marijuana is harmful” and that the way to make Americans healthy is by “limiting” its use.
After Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was cleared in an initial confirmation vote in the Senate Finance Committee, Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD) told Marijuana Moment that he wanted to have a chat with the potential HHS secretary, who has previously voiced support for cannabis legalization prior to being selected for the top federal health role by Trump.
“Marijuana is harmful,” Harris said in an interview at the Capitol on Wednesday. “We should definitely have a talk with RFK Jr. I mean, the bottom line is: We should keep Americans healthy by limiting the use of marijuana.”
But Harris—a staunchly anti-cannabis lawmaker who has championed legislation to block adult-use marijuana sales in Washington, D.C.—expressed a softer tone when asked about the therapeutic potential of psychedelics, which is another issue that Kennedy has pushed.
The congressman said it “might be possible” that psychedelics could be used in the treatment of conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
“We may want to do some more research, but we don’t want to do what D.C. did, which is just make them widely available,” he said, referencing a voter-approved initiative to decriminalize certain psychedelics—which would not inherently increase availability given the lack of any regulated sales component of the reform.
Meanwhile, despite Harris’s apparent concerns about Kennedy’s history of advocating for cannabis legalization, the nominee said last week that he will defer to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) on marijuana rescheduling if confirmed.
That could complicate rescheduling given the fact that the current acting administrator of DEA, Derek Maltz, has made multiple comments expressing hostility to cannabis reform.
Relatedly, prior to Kennedy’s written responses to the Finance Committee, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) recently pressed Kennedy to reiterate his position on marijuana legalization amid the ongoing effort to federally reschedule cannabis.
Hellbound and Down 