An announcement from the White House that would make marijuana more widely available reportedly could come “as soon as this month,” but before the Trump administration does anything, it should review the latest study on fatal car crashes and marijuana use from Wright State University.
Over five years, researchers at Wright State University in central Ohio examined the autopsies of every fatal car crash victim in Montgomery County. They found that 42% of the dead had THC, the main psychoactive compound found in marijuana, in their blood, with the average level of THC far past impairment limits. The coroner in Montgomery County typically draws blood for testing within hours of the crash.
“The messaging over the last few years has been just the push towards recreational legalization,” study author Dr. Akpofure Ekeh said. “From a public health standpoint, there has not been enough emphasis on some of the downsides and the dangers that can occur.”
Unfortunately, millions of dollars have been spent pushing President Donald Trump to make marijuana more widely available, a position he used to oppose. In 2015, Trump told the Conservative Political Action Conference that Colorado’s decision to legalize marijuana was “bad,” an assessment he still held in 2018 when he correctly noted that, “in Colorado, they have more accidents,” adding, “it does cause an IQ problem.”
Not only does marijuana use lead to more crashes and “cause an IQ problem,” but it has also been linked to the onset of schizophrenia and permanent brain damage. Studies show marijuana is far more addictive than legalizers claim, it is three times stronger than it used to be, and its use and abuse have increased everywhere it has been legalized.
Despite the growing evidence supporting Trump’s past intuition that marijuana is a dangerous substance, he endorsed Florida’s ballot measure attempting to legalize the drug last year. Fortunately, that measure failed, thanks to strong leadership from Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL). But the corporate Big Pot lobbyists who financed the Florida ballot initiative have now given millions to Trump’s inauguration and political action committees, and the money seems to be working to change his mind.
The Trump administration is reportedly considering “rescheduling” marijuana from “Schedule 1,” which includes heroin and LSD, to the much more accessible “Schedule 3,” which includes codeine and ketamine. Not only would such a move make it easier for doctors to prescribe marijuana, but more importantly, it would unlock the banking and financial sector to put the already billion-dollar marijuana industry on steroids.
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With Schedule 3 status for marijuana, corporate pushers could deduct normal business expenses, increasing profits, and secure loans from banks. That infusion of cash would go directly into advertising to hook millions more Americans on a substance that research conclusively shows makes us dumber, crazier, and more likely to die in traffic accidents.
Before Trump moves to make marijuana more accessible, he should heed hard evidence, not hard cash. The same data that once led him to oppose legalization now show even greater harm — more crashes, more addiction, and lasting cognitive damage. Moving marijuana to Schedule III would make the nation less safe and less healthy; it would enrich an industry built on deception, denial, and dependency. America already struggles with enough substances that destroy lives and families. The last thing we need is Washington putting its stamp of approval on another drug that clouds minds and costs lives.