Former President Donald Trump has chosen Ohio Senator J.D. Vance as his vice president running mate for the 2024 presidential election.
Trump announced the choice today at the Republican National Convention. J.D. Vance, a Republican known for his conservative values, has shown skepticism about fully legalizing marijuana at the federal level, citing concerns about potential societal impacts and the need for careful consideration to avoid unintended consequences. This aligns with his general conservative stance on drug policy in general.
On the matter of the SAFER Banking Act, which would allow banks to provide services to state-legal marijuana businesses, Vance has shown some openness to it, but voted against advancing the bill in the Senate Banking Committee in September, “due to several public safety-related concerns.” He has also indicated that the upsides of the SAFER Banking Act are “overstated”, and said “I am worried that this could open the door for other illicit activities, like the trafficking of fentanyl and methamphetamines, to access depository insurance.”
Regarding marijuana rescheduling, as proposed by the DEA, Vance told Ask a Pol in May “My view on weed is, like, we have to strike a balance between, you don’t want people thrown in prison for having a dime bag. That mercifully doesn’t happen most of the time in this country. I also think we haven’t quite figured out how this new regime coexists with not polluting our public spaces, right?”
He continued by saying “This is, like, a big frustration that I have, you take your kids downtown Cincinnati to go to a restaurant, and you walk by, like, five people who are stoned. It smells terrible. I don’t want that.”
Vance has indicated support for states’ rights when it comes to marijuana legalization laws, indicating that he would support a hands-off approach, similar to the one Trump took while he was in office.
Vance, 39, first took office in January 2023.
