Chad’s a bit late to this game, maybe a letter in 2019 might have made sense but that ship has sailed dude.
Methinks he’s doing a bit of political jockeying. Read the blah blah blah here
Marijuana Moment
The former head of the Department of Homeland Security under the first Trump administration is warning lawmakers against keeping hemp THC products legal, claiming that reversing a ban that is set to take effect later this year would “undermine public health” and “embolden foreign criminal actors.”
Chad Wolf, who served as acting secretary of homeland security from late 2019 to early 2021, sent a letter urging leaders of the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party to investigate the “growing role that Chinese-linked actors and foreign criminal organizations are playing in the proliferation of hemp-derived tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) products and illegal marijuana operations” in the U.S., saying they are “putting our youth and adults at risk.”
“What began as a narrowly tailored effort to legalize industrial hemp and non-intoxicating cannabidiol (CBD) products has evolved into a dangerous and unregulated market for high-potency THC hemp products that are being sold across the country with little to no oversight,” the letter says. “These products are frequently marketed as gummies, candies, beverages and vapes, often packaged and promoted in ways that appeal to children. They lack acceptable age restrictions, labeling requirements and safety standards.”
Hemp derivatives with less than 0.3 percent delta-9 THC on a dry-weight basis were federally legalized under the 2018 Farm Bill that President Donald Trump signed during his first term in office. But late last year, he signed new legislation containing provisions that will redefine hemp to make it so only products with 0.4 milligrams of total THC per container will remain legal after November 12.
In recent weeks, however, the White House and lawmakers from both parties have been pushing congressional leadership to delay, alter or reverse the ban.
In a letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) last month, White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Russell Vought said the administration wants lawmakers to “ensure the fair treatment of hemp products”—specifically citing legislation that would keep many hemp products legal that are currently set to be recriminalized this year, add labeling requirements and institute new taxes on sales, among other regulatory reforms.
But Wolf argues that would be a mistake.
“Congress acted last year, with bipartisan support and President Trump’s signature, to close loopholes involving intoxicating THC hemp products and restore the original intent of federal hemp legislation,” he wrote in the letter, which was first reported by Fox News. “However, efforts are now underway to weaken, delay or roll back those protections before they fully take effect. This would not only undermine public health and law enforcement objectives, but could further embolden foreign criminal actors seeking to exploit the American marketplace and harm American families.”
“Beyond the serious public health implications, there is mounting evidence that this issue also presents a significant national security concern,” the former acting homeland security secretary wrote to Reps. John Moolenaar (R-MI) and Ro Khanna (D-CA), who are, respectively, the chair and tanking member of the China-focused committee.
Wolf, whose appointment as acting homeland security secretary was ruled unlawful by a federal court and now serves as executive director for the America First Policy Institute, said that China “has been linked to the export of fentanyl, synthetic narcotics and illicit supply chain materials that have devastated American communities,” adding that “the intoxicating THC hemp market now risks becoming another avenue through which Chinese-linked actors exploit regulatory loopholes and weak enforcement mechanisms to profit at the expense of the health and safety of the American people.”
He is asking the House panel to “investigate China’s involvement in the intoxicating THC hemp supply chain, including financing, chemical manufacturing, illegal cultivation operations, money laundering activity and ties to the array of criminal organizations operating within the United States.”
