The former head of the Department of Homeland Security under the first Trump administration is warning lawmakers against keeping hemp THC products legal, claiming that reversing a ban that is set to take effect later this year would “undermine public health” and “embolden foreign criminal actors.”
Chad Wolf, who served as acting secretary of homeland security from late 2019 to early 2021, sent a letter urging leaders of the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party to investigate the “growing role that Chinese-linked actors and foreign criminal organizations are playing in the proliferation of hemp-derived tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) products and illegal marijuana operations” in the U.S., saying they are “putting our youth and adults at risk.”
“What began as a narrowly tailored effort to legalize industrial hemp and non-intoxicating cannabidiol (CBD) products has evolved into a dangerous and unregulated market for high-potency THC hemp products that are being sold across the country with little to no oversight,” the letter says. “These products are frequently marketed as gummies, candies, beverages and vapes, often packaged and promoted in ways that appeal to children. They lack acceptable age restrictions, labeling requirements and safety standards.”
Hemp derivatives with less than 0.3 percent delta-9 THC on a dry-weight basis were federally legalized under the 2018 Farm Bill that President Donald Trump signed during his first term in office. But late last year, he signed new legislation containing provisions that will redefine hemp to make it so only products with 0.4 milligrams of total THC per container will remain legal after November 12.
In recent weeks, however, the White House and lawmakers from both parties have been pushing congressional leadership to delay, alter or reverse the ban.
In a letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) last month, White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Russell Vought said the administration wants lawmakers to “ensure the fair treatment of hemp products”—specifically citing legislation that would keep many hemp products legal that are currently set to be recriminalized this year, add labeling requirements and institute new taxes on sales, among other regulatory reforms.
But Wolf argues that would be a mistake.
“Congress acted last year, with bipartisan support and President Trump’s signature, to close loopholes involving intoxicating THC hemp products and restore the original intent of federal hemp legislation,” he wrote in the letter, which was first reported by Fox News. “However, efforts are now underway to weaken, delay or roll back those protections before they fully take effect. This would not only undermine public health and law enforcement objectives, but could further embolden foreign criminal actors seeking to exploit the American marketplace and harm American families.”
“Beyond the serious public health implications, there is mounting evidence that this issue also presents a significant national security concern,” the former acting homeland security secretary wrote to Reps. John Moolenaar (R-MI) and Ro Khanna (D-CA), who are, respectively, the chair and tanking member of the China-focused committee.
Wolf, whose appointment as acting homeland security secretary was ruled unlawful by a federal court and now serves as executive director for the America First Policy Institute, said that China “has been linked to the export of fentanyl, synthetic narcotics and illicit supply chain materials that have devastated American communities,” adding that “the intoxicating THC hemp market now risks becoming another avenue through which Chinese-linked actors exploit regulatory loopholes and weak enforcement mechanisms to profit at the expense of the health and safety of the American people.”
He is asking the House panel to “investigate China’s involvement in the intoxicating THC hemp supply chain, including financing, chemical manufacturing, illegal cultivation operations, money laundering activity and ties to the array of criminal organizations operating within the United States.”
The Trump administration, meanwhile, “welcomes the opportunity to work with the Congress to, at a minimum, update the statutory definition of final hemp-derived cannabinoid products to allow Americans to benefit from access to appropriate full-spectrum CBD products,” OMB separately said last month, “while preserving the Congress’s intent to restrict the sale of products that pose serious health risks.”
The call to avert a broad prohibition on hemp CBD products was included in a statement of administration policy about an annual agriculture spending bill that passed the House of Representatives.
Several lawmakers had filed amendments to that legislation to keep hemp products legal, but each was either blocked by the House Rules Committee from advancing to a floor vote or withdrawn by its sponsor.
“The Administration supports advancement of this legislation, but looks forward to addressing its concerns prior to enactment,” OMB said in its statement of administration policy. “The Administration looks forward to working with the Congress to provide more input as the bill’s legislative process unfolds.”
In April, the president himself urged congressional lawmakers to again redefine hemp to avoid recriminalization of full-spectrum CBD products.
“I am calling on Congress to update the Law to ensure that Americans can continue to access the full-spectrum CBD products they have come to rely on, and that help them, while preserving Congress’s intent to restrict the sale of products that pose Health risks,” Trump said in a Truth Social post on the same day his administration announced it is moving forward with rescheduling marijuana.
“We must get this done RIGHT and FAST, especially for those who saw that CBD helps them,” he said. “Plus, I am told it will also help our GREAT FARMERS, who we love, and will always be there for.”
Industry advocates say that the law as enacted last year not only threatens to prohibit intoxicating and synthetic cannabinoid products but also stands to remove popular full-spectrum CBD products that many Americans use therapeutically from the market.
“ONE in FIVE adults used it in the past year, and many say it improved their chronic pain enormously,” the president said in his social media post, adding that hemp-derived CBD “has made a HUGE difference for so many people.”
He also referenced a new initiative the administration launched in April to cover up to $500 worth of hemp-derived products each year for eligible Medicare patients. The program being implemented by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) focuses largely on CBD but also allows products to have up to 3 milligrams of total THC per serving.
“In December, I signed a very important Executive Order calling for Research and Innovation for Hemp-derived CBD,” Trump said. “Our wonderful Dr. Mehmet Oz moved fast to follow the directive in the Executive Order, and launched a model for some Seniors earlier this month. But more must be done!”
“Please get it done, and SOON,” the president said in reference to a congressional fix for the broad recriminalization set to take effect in November. “Thank you for your attention to this matter!”
It’s not clear how far Trump wants to scale back the scope of the scheduled federal restrictions on hemp products and what kinds of revised THC rules and limitations he would prefer to sign into law.
As Marijuana Moment reported last month, a Republican congresswoman is circulating draft legislation that would keep hemp THC beverages legal under federal law, creating a carve-out from the broad recriminalization of products derived from the crop that is set to take effect later this year.
The Hemp-Derived Beverage Regulatory Clarity Act from Rep. Beth Van Duyne (R-TX), in its current form, would allow adults over 21 to purchase and consume hemp THC drinks with up to 5 milligrams of delta-9 THC per serving. It would also impose a federal tax of 10 cents per milligram of any hemp-derived cannabinoid contained within such beverages.
The National Restaurant Association, which represents the industry, recently sent a letter urging congressional leaders to delay the federal recriminalization of hemp THC beverages that is scheduled to take effect later this year and replace it with a regulatory framework that “ensures consumer safety while meeting growing market demand” for the products as an alternative to alcohol.
A U.S. Department of Agriculture report published in April shows that farmers in the U.S. grew three-quarters of a billion dollars worth of hemp crops in 2025—a 64 percent increase from the prior year.
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