The news of U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ resignation has been met with positivity by the country’s cannabis industry and its investors.
It appears Mr. Sessions’ hand was forced by President Donald Trump – his resignation letter starts out with the words.
“At your request, I am submitting my resignation.”
Mr. Sessions has been a thorn in the side of medical cannabis progress in the USA at a federal level and has put states where it’s legal under pressure.
In 2017, he sent letters to lawmakers, urging them to end protection of legal state medical cannabis programs under the Rohrabacher-Blumenauer amendment – the attempt failed.
In January this year, Sessions rescinded the directives of what’s known as the “Cole Memo”, which directed prosecutors and law enforcement agencies to focus only specific issues related state-legal cannabis operations. However, with the Rohrabacher-Blumenauer amendment still in place, that still prevented the Department of Justice from interfering with state programs.
No-one is suggesting issues relating to cannabis played any major role in Sessions being pushed out the door. Tensions between the AG and President Donald Trump had existed for quite some time over a number of issues.
President Trump tweeted that Matthew G. Whitaker, Chief of Staff to AG Sessions, will be the Acting Attorney General of the United States while a permanent replacement is sought. The question is – who will be next, and what will his/her stance be on medicinal marijuana?
However, the country’s cannabis juggernaut is rumbling on regardless, with residents in Utah and Missouri the latest to vote in support of medicinal cannabis in the midterms this week and bringing the number of states legalising it to 33.
As for the President himself, with Donald Trump’s opinions on various issues sometimes changing like the weather, it’s hard to tell. However, Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA) reportedly stated in October that marijuana reform will likely be on the Trump administration’s agenda after the midterm elections.
U.S markets certainly responded positively to the resignation of Jeff Sessions. Many marijuana stocks experienced a significant lift, with investors seemingly optimistic the AG’s resignation heralds the dawn of a new era.
