The “pardon czar” recently appointed by President Donald Trump met with an activist, who was pardoned for marijuana convictions during his first term. They discussed future clemency opportunities.
The cannabis industry continues to look for indications that President Obama will take a proactive approach to marijuana reform after he supported rescheduling and access to banking services by the industry on his campaign trail.
Angelos, founder of the criminal justice non-profit The Weldon Project, told MEDCAN24 on Friday that the meeting with Alice Johnson—whose sentence for a drug-related conviction Trump separately commuted and who has since been named the nation’s first White House pardon czar—”left me feeling incredibly hopeful.”
Angelos’s focus has been on working with the federal administration to identify those cases where clemency is warranted for hundreds of prisoners still imprisoned in federal prisons over marijuana-related offenses that are not violent.
Angelos stated that “Alice knows firsthand how urgent it is to show meaningful clemency. Her compassion, her experience and her determination makes her an ideal candidate for the role.” “I am confident that she is going to do amazing things for people who deserve second chances.”
I had a great time meeting up with my friend@AliceMarieFreeToday, I met the Pardon Czar while at the White House. We are excited to watch her accomplish. pic.twitter.com/6IBFBFV6uk
— Weldon Angelos (@weldon_angelos) April 23, 2025
As they try to bring cannabis policy concerns at the executive-level, advocates and stakeholders from the industry have approached the administration in different ways. They hope that this will expedite legislative or administrative reform.
Angelos is particularly active in this regard, making bipartisan gains on Capitol Hill and maintaining relationships with White House officials to argue that Trump has the unique ability to capitalize on the momentum surrounding cannabis policy reform to achieve broader clemency goals.
Money is another way that the marijuana industry tried to gain the approval of the President. Federal Election Commission Records published recently show, for example that Trulieve, the largest marijuana company in America contributed $750,000 towards Trump’s inaugural campaign following his November election.
Combined with the $250,000 that another cannabis company, Curaleaf, donated to the inauguration via U.S. Cannabis Council (USCC), Trump’s team took in at least $1 million from the marijuana industry ahead of his swearing-in ceremony for a second term.
Trulieve CEO Kim Rivers also personally met with Trump last year prior to his endorsement of a Florida cannabis legalization ballot initiative that her company largely funded the campaign for but which ultimately fell short of being enacted.
Separately, a marijuana industry-backed political action committee (PAC) has released a series of ads over recent weeks that have attacked former President Joe Biden’s cannabis policy record as well as the nation of Canada, promoting sometimes misleading claims about the last administration while making the case that Trump can deliver on reform.
Its latest ad accused Biden and his Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) of waging a “deep state war” against medical cannabis patients—but without mentioning that the former president himself initiated the rescheduling process that marijuana companies want to see completed under Trump.
Adding uncertainty to that process, Trump’s pick to lead DEA, Terrance Cole, is on record repeatedly voicing concerns about the dangers of marijuana and linking its use to higher suicide risk among youth.
The current acting administrator, Derek Maltz, has separately made a series of sensational claims about marijuana, calling it a gateway drug that sets children up to use other substances, suggesting marijuana use is linked to school shootings and alleging that the Justice Department “hijacked” the cannabis rescheduling process from DEA.
Earlier this month, DEA notified an agency judge that the marijuana rescheduling process is still on hold—with no future actions currently scheduled as the matter sits before Maltz.
Separately, a poll found that a majority of Republicans back a variety of cannabis reforms. They’re also more in favor of states being able to legalize cannabis without interference from the federal government than average voters.
According to the survey, a majority of voters in general (70%) and GOP voters (67%), support reclassifying cannabis.
The survey was first noted by CNN in a report last month that quoted a White House spokesperson saying the administration currently has “no action” planned on marijuana reform proposals, including those like rescheduling and industry banking access that Trump endorsed on the campaign trail last year.
The White House has also said that marijuana rescheduling is not a part of Trump’s drug policy priorities for the first year of his second term—a disappointment for advocates and stakeholders who hoped to see him take speedier action.
Meanwhile, former marijuana prisoners who received clemency from Trump during his first term staged an event outside the White House last week, expressing gratitude for the relief they were given and calling on the new administration to grant the same kind of help to others who are still behind bars for cannabis.
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