Was it this or that he saw asserting dominance over youth culture as a political winner? Judging from the present moment, bullying the less powerful seems to have a lot of political juice. People want to keep the uppities down.
The medication is taken in a very controlled environment with a highly trained mental health professional.
There are also pre- and post-sessions to help people prepare for the experience and come out from it with positive outcomes.
Agreed that children probably shouldn't be given such strong drugs. I don't think you'd find a professional advocating for that.
As for the elderly, the drugs have been used in near-death therapy with elderly terminal patients. It has helped people overcome their fear and anxiety around dying and come to terms with their situation in a peaceful way.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6767816/
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-022-01744-z
Go search it before being rude