Modern Era2018
Sessions Rescinds the Cole Memo: The 2018 Enforcement Crisis
How Attorney General Jeff Sessions' rescission of the Cole Memo in January 2018 rocked the cannabis industry and ultimately revealed the political impossibility of a federal crackdown.
2018
Time Period
Historical era
4
Key Figures
Historical actors
6
Sections
In-depth coverage
3
FAQs
Common questions
00
Overview
On January 4, 2018, Attorney General Jeff Sessions rescinded the Cole Memorandum, returning marijuana enforcement decisions to individual U.S. Attorneys. The timing was deliberate — California had begun legal recreational sales just four days earlier, and Sessions, a long-standing marijuana opponent, intended to signal that the federal government would not passively accept the expansion of legal cannabis.
The rescission sent shockwaves through the cannabis industry. Stock prices plunged, investment deals stalled, and industry executives braced for potential federal prosecutions. Cannabis banking relationships, already fragile, faced new uncertainty as compliance officers questioned whether the FinCEN guidance — which had relied on the Cole Memo's framework — remained valid.
The anticipated crackdown never materialized. No U.S. Attorney in a legalization state initiated significant new prosecutions against state-compliant marijuana businesses. Congressional appropriations riders (the Rohrabacher-Blumenauer amendment) continued to block the DOJ from spending money to interfere with state medical marijuana laws. The episode ultimately demonstrated that the cannabis industry had grown too large, too popular, and too economically significant to be rolled back through prosecutorial action alone.
01
Jeff Sessions had made his opposition to marijuana abundantly clear throughout his career. As an Alabama senator, he once stated that he thought the Ku Klux Klan 'were okay until I found out they smoked pot' — a comment he later described as a joke. During his confirmation hearings for Attorney General, he acknowledged that he was 'not a fan of expanded use of marijuana' but hedged on whether he would enforce federal law against state-legal operations.
02
The rescission memo, formally titled the 'Marijuana Enforcement Memorandum,' was a one-page document that withdrew the Cole Memo and related guidance. It directed U.S. Attorneys to follow 'well-established principles' of federal prosecution in deciding whether to pursue marijuana cases, considering factors such as the seriousness of the offense, deterrent effect, and the cumulative impact on communities. In practice, this returned enormous discretion to individual prosecutors.
03
The cannabis industry's reaction was immediate and severe. Publicly traded cannabis stocks fell sharply, with some companies losing 10-20% of their market value in a single day. Private investment deals in progress were paused or renegotiated. Cannabis companies reported that banking partners contacted them to reassess relationships. The uncertainty was particularly damaging because the industry had spent the previous five years building infrastructure, hiring employees, and signing leases based on the assumption of continued federal tolerance.
04
Congressional response was swift and bipartisan. Colorado Senator Cory Gardner, a Republican, took to the Senate floor to denounce Sessions' action and threatened to hold up DOJ nominations until the administration provided assurances that Colorado's marijuana industry would not be targeted. Gardner secured a commitment from President Trump that the administration would support a federalism-based approach to marijuana policy, though this promise was never formalized into legislation or executive order.
05
The most telling aspect of the Sessions rescission was what did not happen. Despite removing the policy framework that protected state-legal marijuana operations, no U.S. Attorney in a legalization state launched a significant enforcement campaign against compliant businesses. Andrew Lelling, the U.S. Attorney in Massachusetts, stated he would not make 'going after small marijuana cases' a priority. Other prosecutors followed suit. The lack of action revealed that the political costs of a crackdown outweighed any prosecutorial appetite for enforcement.
06
Sessions was forced to resign in November 2018. His successor, William Barr, testified during his confirmation hearings that he would not pursue marijuana enforcement in states that had legalized cannabis. The episode was widely viewed as a turning point that demonstrated the political impossibility of reversing state-level legalization. If an Attorney General as openly hostile to marijuana as Jeff Sessions could not trigger a federal crackdown, it seemed unlikely that any future administration would attempt one.
Key Figures
Jeff Sessions
Attorney General who rescinded the Cole Memo
Cory Gardner
Republican Senator who fought Sessions on marijuana policy
Andrew Lelling
U.S. Attorney in Massachusetts who declined to target state-legal cannabis
William Barr
Sessions' successor who pledged not to pursue state-legal marijuana
Historical Significance
Sessions' rescission of the Cole Memo in 2018 initially panicked the cannabis industry but ultimately demonstrated that the political, economic, and public opinion landscape had shifted too far for a federal crackdown to succeed.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why did Jeff Sessions rescind the Cole Memo?
Sessions was a longtime marijuana opponent who believed federal law should be enforced regardless of state legalization. His rescission came just days after California began recreational sales, signaling opposition to cannabis expansion. He returned enforcement decisions to individual U.S. Attorneys.
Did the Cole Memo rescission lead to federal prosecutions?
No. Despite removing the protective framework, no U.S. Attorney in a legalization state launched significant new prosecutions against state-compliant marijuana businesses. Congressional appropriations riders and political pressure prevented a crackdown.
How did Congress respond to the Cole Memo rescission?
The response was bipartisan. Republican Senator Cory Gardner of Colorado blocked DOJ nominations and secured a commitment from President Trump to support state marijuana sovereignty. Congress continued renewing the Rohrabacher-Blumenauer amendment protecting state medical marijuana programs from DOJ interference.