Washington, DC…Senator Cory Gardner (R-CO) today released the below statement regarding the current status of the Administration’s policy toward legal marijuana. In response to the Department of Justice’s January 4th announcement that Attorney General Jeff Sessions had rescinded the Cole Memorandum, Senator Gardner placed a hold on all DOJ nominees until he received a commitment that Colorado’s rights would not be infringed. After positive discussions with DOJ, Gardner lifted some of his holds but kept the rest in place until he received a full commitment that the guidelines of the Cole Memo would be respected.

“Since the campaign, President Trump has consistently supported states’ rights to decide for themselves how best to approach marijuana,” said Gardner. “Late Wednesday, I received a commitment from the President that the Department of Justice’s rescission of the Cole memo will not impact Colorado’s legal marijuana industry. Furthermore, President Trump has assured me that he will support a federalism-based legislative solution to fix this states’ rights issue once and for all.

“Because of these commitments, I have informed the Administration that I will be lifting my remaining holds on Department of Justice nominees. My colleagues and I are continuing to work diligently on a bipartisan legislative solution that can pass Congress and head to the President’s desk to deliver on his campaign position.”

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Cory Gardner is a member of the U.S. Senate serving Colorado. He sits on the Energy & Natural Resources Committee, the Foreign Relations Committee, the Commerce, Science, & Transportation Committee, and the Budget Committee, and is the Chairman of the Subcommittee on East Asia, the Pacific, and International Cybersecurity Policy.