Homeland Security will continue to make marijuana a major part of its criminal enforcement efforts, Secretary John F. Kelly said Tuesday, affirming the Trump administration’s policy and dealing a blow to legalization advocates who had hoped for a hands-off approach by federal authorities.

Mr. Kelly, a retired Marine Corps general who as commander of U.S. forces in Latin America got a close-up look at the cartels that smuggle the drug into the U.S., said his department considers marijuana a dangerous drug, both because it feeds the finances of the cartels and is harmful to users in the U.S.

“It is a potentially dangerous gateway drug that frequently leads to the use of harder drugs,” the new secretary said in a speech laying out the top enforcement priorities he’ll pursue.

His stand runs counter to many legalization advocates who say marijuana is a lower-threat drug, and have urged the federal government to take a hands-off policy toward marijuana, particularly in states that have enacted legalization laws. [Read More @ Washington Times]