The Effect of Trump and the Legal Cannabis Industry
There has been a lot of speculation so far as far as the effect the Trump administration will have on the legal weed industry. So far the first 3 months have been full of questions in regards to his selection of Jeff Sessions, a known anti-cannabis advocate as his attorney general and the effect he will have on a thriving industry. Has Trump done anything else to threaten the legal weed industry? Here’s what we know.
So far, we know that Donald Trump is “a hundred percent” in favor of the use of medical marijuana. During the election, his position on recreational legalization evolved from a firm ‘no’ because he acknowledged that “in some ways” legalizing recreational marijuana “is good”.
If you look at Donald Trump as a businessman, you’ll notice that capital gain is a motivator for his administration. He acknowledges that the cannabis industry is a money maker. The legal cannabis industry is responsible for economic booms in the states that allow recreational sales of marijuana. Colorado, for example, is thriving. We made over a billion dollars in 10 months last year, created thousands of jobs, and have developed a rich cannabis tourism industry. We are also putting our cannabis tax dollars towards our schools, hospitals, roads, and parks. The other recreational states are seeing similar effects.
The only thing Trump has done so far to threaten the legal cannabis industry in any way was appointing Jeff Sessions as the attorney general. In an interview, he said that he is “not a fan” of the expanded use of marijuana in reply to an ominous warning to the cannabis industry by Trump’s press secretary Sean Spicer, who warned that there will be “greater enforcement” of federal laws.
“Most of you probably know I don’t think America is going to be a better place when more people of all ages and particularly young people start smoking pot,” Sessions said, per Politico. “I believe it’s an unhealthy practice and current levels of THC in marijuana are very high compared to what they were a few years ago.”
As for Trump, the man himself has been quiet. Spicer and Sessions, are the ones threatening the industry in their own way, but Trump hasn’t said anything to back their claims. The Trump administration has been mostly all talk in this department.
No need to worry, though. The legal weed industry isn’t going anywhere, even if the feds begin cracking down on the states that allow the recreational cannabis industry.
California was so worried about Trump’s election that it considered seceding from the union to protect their recreational industry. It’s still considering the succession, as a matter of fact. If the feds begin cracking down, it won’t be long before California and the other states become their own independent republics.
Nobody wants that to happen, though. The legal weed industry is so massive that it won’t be going anywhere, no matter how much the Trump Administration talks about it. So far, we are safe. Trump hasn’t done anything to directly threaten the industry, and Sessions and Spicer can’t do anything without his approval. Odds are, they won’t get it.
