Four Republican Senators who oppose marijuana legalization have admitted that a policy change would disrupt illegal cartel sales. This acknowledgement was made in a letter to the Food and Drug Administration, asking them to reconsider their plans to ban menthol cigarette and to set nicotine content limitations.
In a letter sent to FDA commissioner Robert Califf, Sens. Bill Cassidy, Marco Rubio, Ted Budd and Bill Hagerty unwittingly argued for the regulation and legalization of controlled substances.
The letter’s main purpose is to express concerns about the FDA’s proposed menthol-cigarette ban. According to the senators, this could “empower” transnational criminal groups (TCOs) and “allow them to exploit black market opportunities created by such policies.”
They may not be in favor of legalizing cannabis, but inadvertently they have made the case for it.
They said that while the Mexican TCOs are primarily concerned with trafficking illicit drugs, they have expanded their activities to adapt to changing circumstances. As it became easier to sell marijuana in the U.S. Mexican TCOs prioritized trafficking synthetic drugs like fentanyl, which are easier to manufacture, transport and make more money.
The GOP senators acknowledge that, as Americans are able to purchase legal cannabis through licensed retailers in more states, the cartels’ market share of unregulated marijuana is decreasing. As a result, they have to scramble for other substances to compensate for their losses.
This is also the conclusion reached by federal law enforcement agencies and the Congressional Research Service, which published a report on the trend of trafficking in the past year.
In 2020 , the head of the union representing U.S. Border Patrol Agents acknowledged that states legalizing marijuana disrupt cartel activity.
The senators, in light of the marijuana prohibition, are warning against a federal ban on menthol cigarettes, thereby tacitly acknowledging its failures and the consequences.
wrote: “We are worried that possible FDA actions to prevent the sale of popular tobacco product may expand the black market opportunities for TCOs from Mexico or other countries to sell illegal tobacco in the U.S.” The FDA must consider the impact of these actions on criminal elements and Mexican TCOs who are able to take advantage of black markets to sell tobacco products.
They continued, “There is a significant risk that Mexican TCOs could combine their existing tobacco businesses with their extensive distribution network to traffic into the United States products that FDA may deem illegal.” “We urge FDA to address any concerns it has with its current enforcement strategy, as well as with future rules. We also encourage FDA to work closely and collaboratively with other federal agencies that have a deep understanding of TCOs in enacting policies related to tobacco.”
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FDA will also be subjected to harsh criticism at a hearing of a congressional committee scheduled for Thursday. This is due to its earlier decision not to adopt regulations that would have allowed for the legal marketing of CBD-derived hemp products.
Separately, the agency has been praised by both parties for its first-ever guidelines on developing psychedelic drugs. In addition, the FDA is working actively to revise the federal scheduling for marijuana in response to a directive issued by President Joe Biden.
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