The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has delivered a recommendation to the Drug Enforcement Administration on marijuana policy, and Senate leaders hailed it Wednesday as a first step toward easing federal restrictions on the drug.

HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra said Wednesday on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, that the agency has responded to President Joe Biden's request "to provide a scheduling recommendation for marijuana to the DEA."

"We’ve worked to ensure that a scientific evaluation be completed and shared expeditiously," he added.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement that HHS had recommended that marijuana be moved from a Schedule I to a Schedule III controlled substance.

"HHS has done the right thing," Schumer, D-N.Y., said. "DEA should now follow through on this important step to greatly reduce the harm caused by draconian marijuana laws."

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Rescheduling the drug would reduce or potentially eliminate criminal penalties for possession. Marijuana is currently classified as a Schedule I drug, alongside heroin and LSD.

According to the DEA, Schedule I drugs "have no currently accepted medical use in the United States, a lack of accepted safety for use under medical supervision, and a high potential for abuse."

Schedule III drugs "have a potential for abuse less than substances in Schedules I or II and abuse may lead to moderate or low physical dependence or high psychological dependence." They currently include ketamine and some anabolic steroids.

Biden requested the review in October 2022 as he pardoned thousands of Americans convicted of "simple possession" of marijuana under federal law.

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden, D-Ore., issued a statement calling for marijuana to be completely descheduled. "However, the recommendation of HHS to reschedule cannabis as a Schedule III drug is not inconsequential," he added. "If HHS’s recommendation is ultimately implemented, it will be a historic step for a nation whose cannabis policies have been out of touch with reality."

Bloomberg News first reported on the HHS recommendation.

In reaction to the Bloomberg report, the nonprofit U.S. Cannabis Council said: "We enthusiastically welcome today’s news. ... Rescheduling will have a broad range of benefits, including signaling to the criminal justice system that cannabis is a lower priority and providing a crucial economic lifeline to the cannabis industry."

Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, N.Y., slammed the Biden administration in a new interview on immigration, saying it was its "weakest issue."

The progressive Democrat and member of "The Squad" also touched on the migrant crisis affecting New York City, urging the federal government to assist the city in giving aid.

The New York Times published the interview with Ocasio-Cortez on Wednesday, delving into her perspective on politics in the five years since she was elected to Congress in 2018. 

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Ocasio-Cortez gave her thoughts on what she sees as the country’s biggest issues right now, the state of the Democratic Party, and the current administration. As she's done before, Ocasio-Cortez did not shy away from offering criticism.

The Times confronted the lawmaker with several points on the topic, stating, "Under Biden, more asylum seekers are being held in private detention centers than under Trump. Families are still being separated. The Biden administration kept Trump-era policies that sped up deportations and made it harder for legitimate claimants to come to the U.S."

It then asked, "So, what grade do you give the administration on immigration?"

Ocasio-Cortez stated, "Immigration is arguably this administration’s weakest issue. This is one area where our policy is dictated by politics, arguably more so than almost any other." 

She claimed that the current administration hasn’t listened to her or other progressive lawmakers’ policy recommendations on the issue because they fear political repercussions.

"There are very clear recommendations and suggestions that we have made to the administration to provide relief on this issue, and it’s my belief that some of the hesitation around this has to do with a fear around just being seen as approving or providing permission structures, or really just the Republican narratives that have surrounded immigration," she said.

When asked why she hasn’t recently visited the southern border like she had during the Trump administration, Ocasio-Cortez said she is planning to but is focusing on the crisis in New York City.

"What I have done is tours of our New York-area facilities. Right now, this crisis is in our own backyard, and we have toured the Roosevelt Hotel, and I think it’s been very important for us to — especially to my constituents, who are demanding accountability on this — to look at that front line that is right here in New York City," she said.

The lawmaker condemned the thinking that the southern border is the main front on the issue. "And I also think that there’s a very, very, very dangerous understanding of the front line of our migration crisis being just our border." 

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"And if we only think of the immigration crisis as a border issue and only understand our border as a southern border and not John F. Kennedy Airport, that constitutes a lack of imagination when it comes to immigration," she declared.

Ocasio-Cortez then slammed Biden for his approach to the New York migrant crisis, claiming, "But what we need is partnership from the federal government. And I have not been shy around criticism of how the Biden administration has handled this issue. New York City is the front line on this, and we have regularly asked the administration for many, many different avenues of relief."

"The Biden administration’s refusal to open up work authorizations or extend temporary protective status really prevents us from doing what we do best, which is allowing and creating an environment where immigrants from all over the world can create a livelihood here," she added.

Democratic New York City Mayor Eric Adams asked the federal government to allow migrants to work in an interview with CBS last week.

Addressing Biden, the mayor said, "The precursor to sleep, to enjoy the American dream, is the right to work. The right to work. Let them work."

The White House did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s questions on Ocasio-Cortez's criticism.

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