The president of Colombia says U.S. President Donald Trump should replace the policy of marijuana prohibition with a regulatory framework allowing for adult use and international cannabis exports.

In an post on X last week, Colombian President Gustavo Petro addressed broader drug policy issues amid a broader feud between the two leaders over the Trump administration’s military strikes against boats alleged to be trafficking narcotics.

“Colombia actually provides the money and the deaths in the struggle, while the U.S. provides the consumption,” Petro said, according to a translation. “Consumption in the U.S. and the growing consumption in Europe are responsible for 300,000 murders in Colombia and a million deaths in Latin America.”

But he also said he proposed to Trump “the opposite” of what the administration is currently doing—by removing tariffs on Colombian agriculture goods and legalizing the “export of cannabis” like “any good,” for example. Petro said that reform could be justified by the United Nations’s decision to reschedule cannabis under international treaties to which both countries are parties.

Trump should also “strengthen the policy of prevention of consumption in the U.S.” and “scientifically study whether prohibition is necessary, or rather responsible and state-regulated consumption build a more effective treaty for the pursuit of narcos’ capital and assets in the world,” the Colombian president said, as High Times first reported.

Trump last week called Petro an “illegal drug leader” and the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned the Colombian president, members of his family and his advisors for alleged involvement in drug trafficking.

This comes months after Colombian lawmakers gave initial approval to a bill that would nationally legalize marijuana—with a House committee in August taking the first step in an extensive legislative process to enact the reform.

Petro has consistently supported legalizing cannabis—and he’s put pressure on legislators to advance the issue. He said in late 2023 that lawmakers who voted to shelve a legalization bill that year only helped to perpetuate illegal drug trafficking and the violence associated with the unregulated trade.

After a visit to the U.S. in 2023, the Colombian president recalled smelling the odor of marijuana wafting through the streets of New York City, remarking on the “enormous hypocrisy” of legal cannabis sales now taking place in the nation that launched the global drug war decades ago.

Petro also took a lead role at the Latin American and Caribbean Conference on Drugs in 2023, noting Colombia and Mexico “are the biggest victims of this policy,” likening the drug war to “a genocide.”

In 2022, Petro delivered a speech at a meeting of the UN, urging member nations to fundamentally change their approaches to drug policy and disband with prohibition.

He’s also talked about  the prospects of legalizing marijuana in Colombia as one means of reducing the influence of the illicit market. And he has signaled that the policy change should be followed by releasing people who are currently in prison over cannabis.

Trump, for his part, has not embraced federal legalization, though he said in late August that a decision on a pending marijuana rescheduling proposal would come within weeks. Much of his drug policy actions of late have focused on cartels, with controversial extrajudicial attacks on boats in international waters that were allegedly transporting drugs to the U.S.

Image element courtesy of Bryan Pocius.

A bipartisan coalition of 39 state and territory attorneys general is calling on Congress to clarify the federal definition of hemp and impose regulations preventing the sale of intoxicating cannabinoid products.

In a letter sent to the Republican chairs of the House and Senate Appropriations and Agriculture Committees on Friday, members of the National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG) expressed concerns with provisions of the 2018 Farm Bill that legalized hemp, which they said has been “wrongly exploited by bad actors to sell recreational synthetic THC products across the country.”

They’re asking that lawmakers leverage the appropriations process, or the next iteration of the Farm Bill, to enact policy changes that “leave no doubt that these harmful products are illegal and that their sale and manufacture are criminal acts.”

Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin (R), Connecticut Attorney General William Tong (D), Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita (R) and Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison (D) led the letter, underscoring the bipartisan sentiment driving the call for congressional action.

“Intoxicating hemp-derived THC products have inundated communities throughout our states due to a grievously mistaken interpretation of the 2018 Farm Bill’s definition of ‘hemp’ that companies are leveraging to pursue profits at the expense of public safety and health,” they wrote. “Many of these products—created by manufacturers by manipulating hemp to produce synthetic THC—are more intoxicating and psychoactive than marijuana a Schedule I controlled substance and are often marketed to minors.”

While the debate over revising federal hemp laws has been a consistent talking point this year, with attempts in both chambers to enact a ban on products containing THC, so far such restrictions have only been implemented at the state level.

“Unless Congress acts, this gross distortion of the 2018 Farm Bill’s hemp provision will continue to fuel the rapid growth of an under-regulated industry that threatens public health and safety and undermines law enforcement nationwide,” the letter says.

“Congress never meant to legalize these products in the 2018 Farm Bill. A proper interpretation of the Farm Bill’s hemp provision demonstrates that the entire synthetic THC industry rests on a foundation of illicit conduct,” it continues. “Clear direction from Congress is needed to shut down this industry before it metastasizes further into an even greater threat to public safety than it already is.”

The top state and territory law enforcement officials raised the alarm about the fact that, while hemp is defined as cannabis containing no more than 0.3 percent delta-9 THC by dry weight, the natural cannabinoids in hemp such as CBD can be synthesized into intoxicating compounds such as delta-8 THC, delta-10 THC and HHC.

“In this way, legal, nonintoxicating hemp is used to make Frankenstein THC products that get adults high and harm and even kill children,” they said.

“State efforts to outlaw hemp-derived psychoactive products to protect their citizens cannot solve this problem. Such efforts can only lead to an uneven and ineffectual patchwork of bans and regulations that differ from State to State and will not stop the flood of mail-order THC products from streaming through interstate commerce. Congress must act to salvage the 2018 Farm Bill’s laudable legalization of commercial hemp from the psychoactive hemp industry’s spoliation of the Bill’s hemp provision.”

Other signatories on the letter include the attorneys general of Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, U.S. Virgin Islands, Utah, Vermont, Virginia and Wyoming.

“Importantly, the prohibition on products containing intoxicating levels of THC—of any kind and no matter how it is derived—will not inhibit the cultivation of hemp for industrial and agricultural uses since hemp does not contain intoxicating levels of THC,” they said. “The original goal of the 2018 Farm Bill’s hemp provision can still be effectuated while Congress also eliminates the dangerous and illegal drug market that has been created through incorrect interpretations of the Farm Bill.”

“We commend your commitment to American farmers and your work to create an orderly and well-regulated market for industrial hemp and non-intoxicating hemp-derived products,” the letter concludes. “You should not allow irresponsible corporations to take advantage of your good work to purvey dangerous products in our States. We ask Congress to act decisively to clarify the Farm Bill’s definition of hemp to ensure intoxicating THC products are taken off the market.”

That’s a particularly bold ask that industry stakeholders say could jeopardize the hemp market altogether. While there’s generally consensus around the idea that intoxicating cannabinoid products shouldn’t be accessible to youth or sold in an unregulated manner, businesses feel a middle-ground with age-gating and rules to ensure certain safety and advertising standards are met would be a superior approach.

Meanwhile, a GOP senator is hoping to replace a proposed ban on hemp THC products with alternate appropriations language mandating a study into state regulatory models for consumable cannabinoids. Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) is circulating legislative language that he’s asking to be adopted as part of the final package.

The agriculture appropriations measure the Senate passed as part of a package over the summer initially contained provisions hemp industry stakeholders said would effectively eradicate the market by banning consumable hemp products with any “quantifiable” amount of THC. But after the measure came out of committee, Paul threatened to hold up its passage over the issue, and the language was removed.

Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY), who ushered in the federal legalization of hemp under the 2018 Farm Bill, championed the THC criminalization language and took to the floor to criticize those who opposed the ban, including Paul.

Meanwhile, Paul recently filed a standalone bill that would go in the opposite direction of the hemp ban, proposing to triple the concentration of THC that the crop could legally contain, while addressing multiple other concerns the industry has expressed about federal regulations.

The senator introduced the legislation, titled the Hemp Economic Mobilization Plan (HEMP) Act, in June. It mirrors versions he’s sponsored over the last several sessions.

The Democratic candidate for New Jersey governor previewed her priorities for marijuana policy if voters elect her next week, stressing the need for “better regulations” that prevent youth access to THC products, effectively distribute tax revenue and address the lack of a home grow option.

In an interview with CBS News’s “The Point” that aired on Sunday, U.S. Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-NJ) said that “everyone in New Jersey wants to see the laws changed” around cannabis. And while she support legalization—unlike her Republican opponent, former state Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli (R)—the congresswoman said she sees areas for improvement.

“The legislature feels as if they haven’t really gotten the law right there. The cannabis companies feel as if the law isn’t right,” Sherrill said. “So some of the kind of low-hanging fruit is the THC drinks that are now unregulated and being sold in 7-Elevens, ensuring that young kids don’t have access to cannabis products, making sure we’re doing better enforcement—because I’ve heard from some mayors concerns about, in bodegas, very young kids are getting access to edibles that look like candy, and their parents don’t realize it’s not.”

“At the same time, addressing some of the home grow provisions, which I’m supportive of, and then ensuring that we have better regulations around cannabis, where it can be sold,” she said. “The reason the cannabis industry wants it is because they want to legitimize their business.”

Asked about her views on the allocation of tax revenue from legal cannabis sales, Sherrill said that, under the current law, “some of the cannabis money was really supposed to go into more provisions ensuring that kids didn’t have access to it,” but “that hasn’t happened.”

“I’d like to see some of it going where the legislation was saying that it would go to,” she said. “But then, of course, if we can have more revenue to put into a lot of the programs we want to see statewide, I’d welcome that.”

For voters who support marijuana reform, the November 4 gubernatorial election results could meaningfully impact the future of New Jersey’s cannabis market depending whether Sherrill or the GOP candidate Ciattarelli wins office.

In Congress before entering the race, Sherrill in 2019 and 2021 also voted in favor of Democratic-led bills to federally legalize marijuana and promote social equity. That legislation—the Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act—cleared the House both times, but didn’t advance in the Senate.

Before being elected to Congress in 2018, Sherrill endorsed federal rescheduling of marijuana.

Additionally, she’s consistently supported the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act to prevent federal regulators from penalizing financial institutions simply for working with state-licensed cannabis businesses.

In 2023, the congresswoman sponsored an amendment to defense legislation to expedite the waiver process for military recruits and applicants who admit to prior cannabis use by allowing the lowest-level defense employees to issue such waivers.

The prior year, Sherrill proposed an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) to eliminate the federal sentencing disparity between crack and powder cocaine.

Another amendment she filed for the 2025 NDAA, which was blocked from floor consideration, would have expanded eligibility for expungements of non-violent drug convictions by removing an age restriction limiting relief to those who were under 21 at the time of the offense.

In House floor voters, the congresswoman in 2019 and 2020 backed amendments to protect all state marijuana programs from federal intervention. In 2022, she voted in favor of legislation to expand medical cannabis research that was ultimately signed into law by then-President Joe Biden.

This session, meanwhile, the congresswoman filed a bill that would require Elon Musk and other workers at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which Musk has since left, to submit to drug testing to maintain their “special government employee” status.

Outside of marijuana, Sherrill joined other bipartisan congressional lawmakers in 2023 in asking leadership to instruct federal health agencies to include active duty military service members in psychedelic studies.

Ciattarelli, meanwhile, has expressed support for allowing home cultivation for medical cannabis patients, but recently resurfaced comments reveal that he’s historically been hostile to reform, characterizing marijuana as a “gateway drug” during a 2021 town hall event when he previously ran for governor.

He also said at the time that, if New Jersey’s voter-approved recreational legalization law proved to be a “disaster,” he would look into reversing the policy, possibly by putting a measure on the ballot to roll back the law.

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Meanwhile in New Jersey, as the state’s first marijuana consumption lounges started opening, regulators have shared information about where to find the sites and offered tips about how to responsibly use cannabis at the licensed businesses—including classic stoner cultural customs like “puff, puff, pass.”

New Jersey officials also recently completed the curriculum of a no-cost marijuana training academy that’s meant to support entrepreneurs interested in entering the cannabis industry.

Separately, New Jersey Senate President Nick Scutari (D) filed a bill that would re-criminalize purchasing marijuana from unlicensed sources—one of the latest attempts to crack down on the illicit market and steer adults toward licensed retailers.

In March, a former New Jersey Senate leader unsuccessfully ran for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination this year said “it is time” to give medical marijuana patients an option to grow their own cannabis plants for personal use. He also pledged to expand clemency for people impacted by marijuana criminalization if elected, and he expressed support for the establishment of cannabis consumption lounges.

The comments from Steve Sweeney, who was the longest-serving Senate president in the state’s history, on home grow depart from what current Gov. Phil Murphy (D) has said on multiple occasions, arguing that the state’s adult-use marijuana market needs to further mature before home grow is authorized.

Seemingly contradicting that claim, dozens of New Jersey small marijuana businesses and advocacy groups recently called on the legislature to allow adults to cultivate their own cannabis.

Photo courtesy of Max Pixel.