WASHINGTON – White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said Thursday that "there should be greater enforcement" of federal laws prohibiting the use of recreational marijuana.

The comments, the first the new Trump administration has made on the issue, signal a potential conflict with the eight states that have recently legalized marijuana for recreational usage.

Under former president Barack Obama, the Department of Justice instituted a policy in 2013 stating that the federal government would not challenge states that had legalized recreational marijuana usage if those states regulated it strictly.

But Spicer said Thursday the Department of Justice will be "further looking into" the recreational use of marijuana, and directed follow-up questions to the department.

The Justice Department, however, told BuzzFeed News this week that it had "not yet addressed this issue in the new administration, or announced any changes or updates to the 2013 policy."

Asked if the department was in discussions to change the policy, spokesperson Wyn Hornbuckle said: "We’ll decline to comment."

President Donald Trump said during the election campaign that he wasn't a fan of legalizing marijuana for recreational use, but that he would respect states' decisions on the issue.

Tom Angell, founder of the pro-legalization group Marijuana Majority, said in a statement Thursday that Trump "reneging on his promises would be a political disaster and huge distraction from the rest of the president’s agenda."

“If the administration is looking for ways to become less popular, cracking down on voter-approved marijuana laws would be a great way to do it," Angell said, pointing to a recent poll by Quinnipiac University that found that 71% of American voters would oppose the enforcement of federal marijuana laws on states that have legalized it for either medical or recreational use.