Mr. Sessions is one of the most vocal anti-legalization advocates in Congress, and he is joined by other opponents of legalization, including senators. mike roundes (RD) and james lankford (Republican, Okla.). However, the letter was also signed by members of the U.S. Senate and other legal recreational and medical states that support some of the marijuana bills. kevin kramer (RN.D.) and ben ray lujan (D.N.M.), Congressman Golden; josh gottheimer (DN.J.).
Notably, while Maine’s entire delegation in the Senate and House of Representatives signed the letter, none of the co-chairs of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus were involved.
detail: Letter to the Attorney General merrick garlandhas expressed serious concerns about the involvement of Chinese organized crime groups in the illegal cultivation of cannabis in the United States and is requesting more information from the Department of Justice about these activities.
The letter details what resources the Justice Department is dedicating to investigating Chinese Communist Party involvement in unlicensed marijuana farms, how many farms the Justice Department is aware of, and how many states are legalizing such operations. and whether there is any income from farms funded by the Chinese Communist Party. Sent back to China. There are seven questions in total, and the letter gives the Justice Department a February 23 deadline to gather information and respond.
background: There are two major marijuana industries in the United States. One is licensed and regulated by the state, and the other operates outside state law. Both are illegal under federal law. Many states that have legalized recreational or medical marijuana, including California, Oklahoma, New Mexico and Oregon, continue to have unlicensed markets. Law enforcement officials say the unlicensed market is operated and employed by people of various nationalities, including but not limited to Mexican, Bulgarian, Israeli and Chinese nationals.
In recent years, the number of infectious diseases associated with Chinese people has increased significantly. Some of these have also recently occurred in states such as Oklahoma and Maine, but the regulatory and enforcement structure makes it easy to fly under the radar completely or to abuse state licenses. . In California, the Cannabis Enforcement Agency told POLITICO in March 2023 that some, but not all, Chinese-funded cultivation is run by Chinese triads. .
The Department of Homeland Security memo, first reported by the Daily Caller and received as part of a Freedom of Information Act request, says more than 270 unlicensed marijuana cultivation sites in Maine are operated by Chinese nationals. said.with main senator king susan collins and a member of parliament. shelly pingree And Golden previously urged the Justice Department to address the issue.
Vanda Felbab Brown, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and director of the Nonstate Armed Actors Initiative, previously told POLITICO that the relationship between the Chinese Communist Party and China’s drug operations is complex. Triads are allowed to operate by the Chinese Communist Party, often in exchange for serving as enforcers in other countries, but the Communist Party does not control the triads, Felbab-Brown said. he added.