Trump shows support for Florida’s recreational marijuana amendment

TAMPA, Fla. — Former President Donald Trump in a Saturday social media post seemingly showed his support for elements of a Florida amendment that would legalize marijuana for recreational use.

As a Florida voter, Trump will be able to cast his vote on Amendment 3 in November. The amendment would allow people 21 and older to legally buy and use marijuana without a medical card.

In a post Saturday, Trump said that in Florida “personal amounts of marijuana will be legalized for adults with Amendment 3.”

Trump said that this would happen “whether people like it or not,” and that it should be done correctly with state laws to prohibit use of marijuana in public spaces.

Trump first hinted at his possible support for the amendment at a news conference at Mar-a-Lago this month. He said, as more states legalize marijuana throughout the country, it’s “awfully hard to have people all over the jails” for marijuana charges.

On social media Saturday, he echoed that, saying “we do not need to ruin lives & waste Taxpayer Dollars arresting adults with personal amounts of it on them.” Trump also expressed concern about laced marijuana, and said, “We will make America SAFE again!”

Trump’s campaign did not immediately return comment on whether Trump’s statement represented an official endorsement.

Smart & Safe Florida, the group that put the amendment on the November ballot, said in a news release that “former President Trump agrees with the majority of Floridians that to truly be the Free State of Florida, we must have the same individual freedoms as the majority of Americans and put an end to the arrest and incarceration of adults for simple possession of marijuana.”

By expressing favorability toward the amendment, Trump undercut Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has repeatedly spoken against Amendment 3. The two Republicans, once allies, have had a more friction-filled relationship since they ran against each other for the GOP presidential nomination, although tensions seemed to have eased in the past few months as DeSantis started fundraising for Trump’s race.

DeSantis has said that if Amendment 3 passes, it could lead to people smoking marijuana anywhere and everywhere, devaluing the public’s quality of life. Vote No on 3, a political committee started in July that’s staffed with DeSantis allies, has said it has the “full support of the Governor.”

Sen. Joe Gruters, R-Sarasota, the former chairperson of the Florida Republican Party, has endorsed the marijuana amendment, and he celebrated Trump’s post on Saturday. Gruters has said he would file a bill to create a ban on smoking in public places in anticipation of the amendment passing.

The amendment needs 60% voter support to pass.