The U.S. Senate confirmed President Donald Trump’s nominee to be the next White House drug czar on Jan. 6, when the chamber voted, 52-48, with all but one Republican in support.
The confirmation clears Sara Carter, a former Fox News contributor from Texas, to be sworn in as the director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP). Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., broke party ties and joined Democrats in opposing her confirmation.
As the ONDCP director, Carter will be responsible for coordinating across 19 federal agencies to develop and implement the country’s $44 billion drug control strategy and budget.
Carter said in a White House statement that she was honored and humbled to join the Trump administration as the 10th ONDCP director and the first woman to serve in that capacity.
“As ONDCP director, I will work tirelessly to achieve a safe and healthy America, where a drug-free life is the prevailing norm,” she said. “This is a turning point for our nation. President Trump is putting the American people first. Under his leadership, we will reassert our fundamental right to live healthy lives. We will hold accountable the narco-terrorists who infringe upon this right, participating in the deliberate poisoning of tens of thousands of Americans each year. They will no longer kill our families, friends, neighbors, and even children with impunity.
“At the same time, I will ensure that every parent, family member, and child have the resources they need to prevent and combat addiction. I will stand with our brave law enforcement officials, and with every family who has lost a loved one to drug overdose. This is my promise to the American people.”
Carter, a mother of six, is married to Marty Bailey, who was wounded in Afghanistan as a member of the U.S. Army Special Forces.
Carter’s confirmation comes nearly four months after she testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee in September, when she called cannabis rescheduling a “bipartisan issue” and said that the Trump administration was “exploring all options” on the matter.
On Dec. 18, Trump signed an executive order, directing U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi to expeditiously loosen restrictions on cannabis by reclassifying the plant from a Schedule I to Schedule III drug under the Controlled Substances Act.
Although Carter avoided providing her stance on cannabis rescheduling in October, likely because federal restrictions prevent the ONDCP from supporting Schedule I substances, the new drug czar has a cannabis-friendly track record.
As a former Fox News contributor who covered the fentanyl and opioid crisis, she hosted the Sara Carter Show, a podcast on which she spoke freely about her opinions on cannabis and other drugs. In November 2023, she said she didn’t “have any problem” with cannabis being legalized and that she believed cannabis was a “fantastic way of handling” certain illnesses and the side effects of the pharmaceutical medications related to those illnesses, such as cancer.
“So, I’m not saying we’ve got to make it illegal,” she said.
Despite these comments, the prohibitionist group Smart Approaches to Marijuana (SAM) congratulated Carter on her confirmation. SAM President and CEO Kevin Sabet served within the White House ONDCP for the George W. Bush, Barack Obama and Bill Clinton administrations (but not as the director).
“Sara is a strong, clear-voiced advocate for sane public health policy,” Sabet said following her confirmation. “She has researched and written about drug issues for years as a prominent journalist and commentator covering key issues ranging from drug cartels to foreign-involved underground marijuana operations here in the U.S.
“The landscape of U.S. drug policy has changed with lightning speed in just the past few months – Congress passed a federal ban on hemp-derived THC; President Trump has moved toward placing marijuana in Schedule III. America still faces a grave drug crisis: tens of thousands of overdoses; rampant drugged driving; marijuana-induced psychosis afflicting the young and vulnerable; millions of Americans suffering from substance-abuse disorder. That’s why we reiterate our call that the director of ONDCP should be elevated to the Cabinet-level status the position once enjoyed: Our drug crisis demands nothing less.”
Sabet also pointed out that Carter is a mother and said that she understands “the many risks drugs pose to children” and their families.
As part of the ONDCP’s role to help address the addiction and overdose epidemic, Carter thanked Trump on Tuesday for putting his confidence in her to “lead the charge to end the scourge of illegal drugs that have killed millions and Americans and have robbed too many families of their children,” she wrote on social media.
“I will work tirelessly to support your vision to put every Narco-terrorist on notice, letting them know their days of killing Americans are over,” she wrote, vowing to build a safer and healthier America that is free of illicit drugs.
