Ross Ulbricht—who was serving a life sentence over a conviction for running a dark web illicit drug market before being pardoned by President Donald Trump—is making the case that legalizing all drugs is a superior policy to prohibition, telling a roomful of conservatives at a conference that criminalization should end even if it’s “not necessarily what you want to hear.”
During a speech before Turning Point USA’s Student Action Summit (SAS) on Saturday, Ulbricht gave a forceful argument in support of legalization, referencing the failures of alcohol prohibition and the criminal activity that policy created and explaining the need for personal accountability over government-sanctioned criminalization.
Ulbricht said that while many would like to eliminate illicit drugs from the society entirely, it’s not a realistic option. “Making drugs illegal isn’t going to solve anything. Nor is putting people behind bars for them.”
“We’ve been trying it for a long time—getting it wrong,” he said.
So what are our options? It’s complicated, right? “I’ll show you an example,” said the ex-federal prisoner. There is an addictive, harmful drug which most of you already use. Alcohol is the drug. Alcohol is legal. It’s sold in bars and grocery stores—and as a society, we leave it up to the owners of those stores to decide whether or not they’re going to sell it, and we leave it up to individuals to decide whether or not they’re going to buy it and consume it.”
“It does not matter if it is illegal.” We know, however, that it won’t disappear if it becomes illegal. He said that it only made things worse. Look what happened when alcohol was banned in the early 20th century. People kept drinking. However, it led to violence and organized crime. The things you’ve described are horrible. “Those are awful things.”
This “would remove the legs from all those [cartel] He told the audience that drug use would be legalized in his country if it were to become so. “I’m here to tell you the truth—not necessarily what you want to hear.”
Ulbricht stressed that he can see “both sides” in the debate. Many “want it to go away”, and many want “to push the button” which eradicates the illegal drug market.
By pressing this button repeatedly, the sad truth is you’re just creating more bad stuff. The problem is complex. The problem is not simple,” said he.
“I just served over 10 years in prison for drug offenses.” One hand I say I would do anything to get rid of drugs. But on the flip side, I say that legalizing drugs would be a better option for us all. Remember: the government does not have that button. The government isn’t a magic genie who will grant your wishes as long as you have control over it. Sorry, it just doesn’t happen that way.”
Ulbricht’s event came about a year after he made his case for more clemency for those in prison because of drugs. Ulbricht argued that “more than half” of the prisoners he had met in prison, did not belong in the cages.
Trump’s pardon of Ulbricht was something of a surprise, as he made repeated pledges on the campaign trail to take extreme, punitive actions—including capital punishment—against people who sell drugs. President Trump had announced plans for the pardon in May 2024. However, it was a week later than he originally promised to free Ulbricht on his first day as president.
Ulbricht has been sentenced life imprisonment for running the Silk Road, a dark-web marketplace that operated from 2011 to 2013,
Trump’s pardon is a departure from his previous position. In 2023, he defended the idea that drug dealers should be swiftly convicted and put to death, praising countries such as China and Singapore who enforced lethal penalties against offenders. Trump claimed that the capital punishment is “the only way to stop” drug addiction.
Image courtesy Wikimedia
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