Mitch McConnell burns hemp!

Mitch McConnell burns hemp, but why? After all… 

Senator Mitch McConnell did something great in 2018.

He introduced the Hemp Farming Act, and got it passed! That bill enabled hemp farming for commercial purposes and left regulation to the states. Fantastic.

Entrepreneurs then created a hemp industry that employs 375,000 people and produces $37.5 billion in retail business. You see, it’s not all bad news all the time! But, and I know you sensed a “but” coming, something really strange has just happened…

Maybe it’s another mini-stroke. Now, McConnell is trying to undo his own good deed. He has introduced new legislation that would obliterate 95% of hemp’s retail market!

This new McConnell bill also federalizes hemp regulation, instead of leaving it to the states, as his first bill did.

This could destroy the hemp industry overnight.

Why is McConnell burning hemp?

It’s for the children, don’t you know. Some products contain tiny amounts of THC that, under special circumstances, could convert to slightly higher levels, and might end up in youthful hands.

McConnell ignores the fact that most states already have regulations to protect children, while tougher federal regulations could encourage a black market that leaves products less pure and children less protected. Predictably…

The hemp industry has responded by embracing federal involvement.

They hope to influence the resulting regulations.

But this would lead to regulatory capture, where big firms can handle tough regulations, whereas small firms can’t.

What can we do about it?

These kinds of bad bills come and go. Fighting them is a game of whack-a-mole. And industries get on board because they believe they must.

The long-term freedom play is to focus on reforms that could limit all such federal meddling going forward.

You can be sure the McConnell bill won’t seek, let alone receive a stand-alone up-or-down vote in which a quorum of Congress reads and debates the legislation first. You can probably bank on the fact that his latest scheme will be attached to hundreds of pages of unrelated legislation that Congress never reads and then passes in the dead of night.

I believe that making Congress read this bill, aloud, would be enough to keep it – or ANYTHING LIKE IT – from going anywhere.

Pass the Read the Bills Act

This bill would do exactly what its name implies – make Congress read the bill aloud (word-for-word) to a quorum, and then post it online for 7 days before a vote. I encourage you to join or renew your intention to join The 300 in support of it.

Set your own agenda,

Jim Babka, President
Agenda Setters by Downsize DC

Today’s Action: Pass the Read the Bills Act