One of the most high-profile retired athletes threw his considerable weight behind marijuana legalization on Monday, and that helped Curaleaf Holdings (CURLF -0.97%) and other pot stocks move higher. In that day's trading session, Curaleaf's stock price improved by more than 5%, a rate that far outpaced the bellwether S&P 500 index's 0.5% increase.
A powerful punch for pot
That sports star was former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson, and he strongly advocated for de facto marijuana legalization on one of the most influential media platforms possible.
Image source: Getty Images.
In an appearance on Fox's hugely popular Fox News channel, Tyson criticized current federal cannabis law in no uncertain terms. He was particularly stinging about marijuana's inclusion on Schedule I, the Drug Enforcement Agency's (DEA) list of most harmful substances.
"Cannabis is in the same category as heroin. How do you categorize it with heroin?" he asked rhetorically in an appearance on the Fox & Friends show. "Anybody that ever smoked cannabis knows there's no comparison and that it's just ridiculous."
The boxer, who owns a privately held pot company called Tyson 2.0, advocated for moving weed from Schedule I to the far more lenient Schedule III. He also decried the current lack of access to basic financial services for such businesses.
An impressive pro-reform team
Tyson is not the only well-known athlete, now or formerly active, currently pushing for pot law reform. On Friday, a new political advocacy group composed of well-known entertainers and sports stars, the Coalition of Athletes and Entertainers Supporting President Trump's Policy Objectives, sent a formal letter to the president pushing him to reschedule marijuana.
Those moves might just have some effect, as Trump is known to be a frequent viewer of Fox News and over the years has appeared numerous times on some of its programs. Over the coming days and weeks, pot industry-watchers should keep an eye on any potential shift in his administration's pot policy.
