Former President Donald Trump on Saturday voiced his support for a ballot measure that would legalize recreational marijuana in his adopted home of Florida, but also called on lawmakers to draft a bill that would allow smoking in public.
President Trump said passage of the ballot measure, known as Amendment 3, was a foregone conclusion and questioned the need to criminalize marijuana given its legal status in other countries.
“Whether people like it or not, this is being done with voter approval, so it should be done right,” the Republican presidential candidate wrote in Truth Social.
“We need state legislators to be responsible and pass laws banning marijuana use in public places so we don't have to smell it everywhere we go, like in so many Democrat-run cities.”
The former president said his stance on the Third Amendment was part of his law-and-order campaign platform, and argued that criminalizing marijuana would “ruin lives and waste taxpayer money.” [by] We will arrest adults who are found in possession of a personal possession amount.”
“No one should have to mourn a loved one who died from fentanyl-laced marijuana,” he added.
Trump has not said how he would vote on the ballot, but his support puts him at odds with several other Republicans who oppose marijuana legalization in Florida, including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Governor DeSantis on Wednesday slammed efforts to legalize marijuana, calling it “bad policy and even worse, unconstitutional.”
According to a poll Most of Florida Voters support legalizing marijuana, but under state law a ballot measure would need at least 60 percent support to pass.
The bill would make it legal for adults 21 and over to possess and purchase up to three ounces of marijuana for recreational purposes.
