Trump’s Reported Push to Dela Hemp Ban Draws Scrutiny Over Chief of Staff’s Family Connection

(Photo: AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Outlets have reported that the Trump Administration is privately urging Republican senators to delay a hemp ban scheduled to take effect in November. The moratorium would benefit stakeholders across the hemp-derived THC industry, among them the son-in-law of Susie Wiles, President Trump’s chief of staff.

A Senate funding bill released over the weekend would delay the hemp prohibition until Dec. 11, allowing hemp-derived gummies, flower, beverages and vapes to remain on shelves for an additional month. The window would give officials extra time to finalize a comprehensive hemp legalization framework, several of which have already been proposed by lawmakers including Andy Barr and Angie Craig.

Not everyone is on board. Earlier this week, Republican Senator Ted Budd filed an amendment that would keep the original Nov. 12 deadline intact. Budd vowed to close the “life-threatening loophole” in a speech to fellow lawmakers, citing the risks of lookalike name-brand products and pediatric cannabis poisoning.

The following day, Politico reports that Budd received a phone call from President Trump. An anonymous source claims that the President discussed the creation of a federal regulatory framework, but did not ask Budd outright to withdraw his amendment.

A similar conversation reportedly happened behind closed doors on Thursday, when Vice President Vance implored GOP senators to vote yes on the hemp ban extension. Dr Mehmet Oz, the administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, has also lent his support, voicing “grave concerns” about senior citizens who rely on clinically appropriate, full-spectrum CBD products.

The hemp-derived THC market is valued at approximately $28.4 billion and currently supports an estimated 328,000 jobs across various industries, according to advocates.

Records suggest that lobbyists have joined the battle. Nonprofit group Team Hemp has paid $300,000 since the beginning of the year to the lobbying firm of Marty Obst, a longtime Republican strategist who worked on the 2016 and 2020 Trump presidential campaigns. Hemp Industry & Farmers of America has spent $415,000 on lobbyists in the same time frame, and claims to have “participated in substantative meetings with White House officials” on its website.

A connection between the Trump cabinet and the hemp industry has also drawn scrutiny. The New York Times reports that the moratorium campaign was led in part by Bret Worley, who married Caroline Wiles, daughter of Trump chief of staff Susie Wiles, in June.

Worley is the CEO of MC Nutraceuticals, a Denver-based company that claims to the single largest global supplier of cannabinoids. Its website offers wholesale solutions for distillate, concentrates, disposable vapes, edibles and pre-rolls, all made with hemp-derived THC.

When asked for comment, White House spokesman Kush Desai told the New York Times that Worley has “nothing to do” with the Trump administration’s stance, insisting that the hemp extension push is intended to help veterans and patients.