{"id":81638,"date":"2025-06-11T05:10:52","date_gmt":"2025-06-11T13:10:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2025\/06\/11\/texas-gop-lieutenant-governors-push-to-ban-thc-hemp-products-spurs-rare-backlash-from-the-right\/"},"modified":"2025-06-11T19:49:02","modified_gmt":"2025-06-12T03:49:02","slug":"texas-gop-lieutenant-governors-push-to-ban-thc-hemp-products-spurs-rare-backlash-from-the-right","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2025\/06\/11\/texas-gop-lieutenant-governors-push-to-ban-thc-hemp-products-spurs-rare-backlash-from-the-right\/","title":{"rendered":"Texas GOP Lieutenant Governor\u2019s Push To Ban THC Hemp Products Spurs Rare Backlash From The Right"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have a mad king surrounded by courtiers and yes men afraid to tell him he\u2019s making a fool of himself.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n

By Alejandro Serrano, The Texas Tribune<\/strong><\/p>\n

Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick<\/a> (R) was clear from the start.<\/p>\n

Weeks before this year\u2019s legislative session began, and before he announced any other priorities, the Republican Senate leader said he wanted lawmakers to ban<\/a>, at any cost, products that contain the psychoactive compound in weed. His target was the multibillion-dollar hemp industry that had sprouted up thanks to a loophole in a 2019 state law that legalized products providing a similar high to marijuana.<\/p>\n

Patrick justified his conviction by contending that retailers had abused that loophole to sell products with dangerous amounts of tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC. He accused the retailers of preying on the state\u2019s young people with shops posted near schools and marketing aimed at children.<\/p>\n

\u201cI couldn\u2019t, in good conscience, leave here knowing if we don\u2019t do something about it in the next two years\u2014how many kids get sick?\u201d Patrick said in March<\/a>, talking about his willingness to force a special legislative session by blocking must-pass legislation from making it through the Texas Senate.<\/p>\n

And ultimately, Patrick got his way<\/a>\u2014and an explosion of backlash.<\/p>\n

As pressure mounts on the governor<\/a> to veto a THC ban sent to his desk, Patrick finds himself in the unfamiliar position of taking flak from conservative activists and media personalities outside the Capitol, many of whom typically march in political lockstep with a man who has long been a darling of the right and done more than perhaps any other elected official to drive Texas rightward.<\/p>\n

After spearheading the THC ban, Patrick has been accused by some on the right of creating a nanny state and giving Mexican drug cartels a business opportunity to fill demand in the black market. He has been labeled<\/a> a booze lobby shill for beer distributors who stand to benefit. A hardline conservative state lawmaker who voted against the ban said<\/a> it contradicted \u201cthe Texas mantra of being pro-business, pro-farmer and pro-veteran.\u201d<\/p>\n

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STATE REPRESENTATIVE BRISCOE CAIN STATEMENT ON VOTING NO ON SB 3 pic.twitter.com\/rjkfHKtBi3<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 State Representative Briscoe Cain (@RepBriscoeCain) May 23, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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A Patrick spokesperson did not respond to requests for comment.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is stupid,\u201d Dana Loesch, the former National Rifle Association spokesperson who is now the host of a nationally syndicated conservative talk radio show, wrote on social media<\/a> in response to Patrick\u2019s argument that the ban would keep THC away from children. \u201cIt\u2019s like the gun ban argument with a different variable. Kids aren\u2019t buying it anymore than any other controlled product (alcohol, cigarettes, et al [sic<\/em>]) and if they are, do your job as a parent and parent instead of idiotically expanding government.\u201d<\/p>\n

Before the blowback erupted from inside his house, Patrick courted Republicans in both chambers of the Legislature to pass Senate Bill 3<\/a>. The law bans products containing THC\u2014and would eradicate the state\u2019s $8 billion hemp industry and its estimated 50,000 jobs if it survives Gov. Greg Abbott\u2019s veto pen and expected legal challenges.<\/p>\n

Abbott, whose office has been inundated with calls to veto SB 3, has not revealed his intentions for the proposed law. The governor could sign SB 3 into law, veto it or do nothing and let it become law without his signature.<\/p>\n

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This is stupid. It’s like the gun ban argument with a different variable. Kids aren’t buying it anymore than any other controlled product (alcohol, cigarettes, et al) and if they are, do your job as a parent and parent instead of idiotically expanding government. https:\/\/t.co\/48BrU448gh<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Dana Loesch (@DLoesch) May 29, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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Proponents of the ban have argued it is needed to rein in a wild west industry that\u2019s selling products with dangerously high levels of THC and without proper oversight. Patrick has argued<\/a> it would be unrealistic to regulate the industry under tighter guardrails\u2014as hemp business leaders and others proposed\u2014because doing so would require an impossible amount of manpower.<\/p>\n

Lawmakers also passed a bill<\/a> to expand<\/a> the state\u2019s medical marijuana program by offering more products and adding more qualifying conditions, an olive branch extension to vets and THC users with chronic conditions who opposed the retail ban.<\/p>\n

Patrick said<\/a> the medical expansion \u201cwill help those in true need of relief.\u201d But he and his allies have remained steadfast behind the THC ban, even amid pushback from the right.<\/p>\n

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Rep. @TomOliverson<\/a> and I have come to an agreement to add chronic pain as a qualifying medical condition to TCUP (compassionate use program) for those who suffer chronic pain as currently defined by the Texas Medical Board rules. Dr. Oliverson and I have spoken with the author of\u2026<\/p>\n

\u2014 Office of the Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick (@LtGovTX) May 26, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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\u201cRetailers across Texas have exploited a state agriculture law to sell life-threatening, unregulated forms of tetrahydrocannabinol to Texans,\u201d said Sen. Charles Perry<\/a>, the Lubbock Republican who carried SB 3, when the upper chamber approved the bill<\/a>. \u201cThese rogue retailers are selling THC products containing several times more THC content than marijuana purchased from a drug dealer off the street. These dangerous products must not be allowed to permeate our communities and endanger Texas children.\u201d<\/p>\n

Criticism on the right has come from veterans who say they use the products as alternatives to opioid painkillers to help with a variety of ails, industry leaders who say the Republican-controlled state is turning its back on small businesses, and conservative politicos who have no shortage of arrows they have been aiming at Patrick.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat lives were destroyed by low grade THC shops, Dan? Can you name one?\u201d Kenny Webster, a Houston conservative talk radio host, posted on social media<\/a>. \u201cJust one. Go ahead.\u201d<\/p>\n

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What lives were destroyed by low grade THC shops, Dan? Can you name one? Just one. Go ahead. https:\/\/t.co\/QlwpOuKUTP<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Kenny Webster (@KennethRWebster) May 25, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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Some recent scrutiny was driven by a news conference Patrick called to push back on criticism of the ban, even after it had already cleared both chambers and was on its way to Abbott\u2019s desk. Flanked by senators and law enforcement officials, Patrick stood in front of a variety of THC products laid out on a table and made his case.<\/p>\n

The lieutenant governor said he wanted to encourage the news media to write about the dangers of THC. He also said he had \u201ctotal confidence in the governor.\u2026 I\u2019m not worried about the governor understanding it. I\u2019m worried about you all understanding it.\u201d<\/p>\n

At one point Patrick lobbed a bag of edibles at a reporter. He later asked another reporter<\/a> if he was \u201ccrazy\u201d for inquiring about the move to limit adults\u2019 access to the products.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf he was trying to make a case for a THC ban, I can\u2019t think of a more bizarre and counterproductive spectacle than yesterday\u2019s press conference,\u201d said Rolando Garcia<\/a>, a member of the State Republican Executive Committee who routinely criticizes GOP lawmakers for perceived breaches of conservative orthodoxy. \u201cWe have a mad king surrounded by courtiers and yes men afraid to tell him he\u2019s making a fool of himself.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some opponents of the total ban have vowed retribution against Patrick, who is running for reelection in 2026 armed with an endorsement from President Donald Trump and more than $33 million in his campaign coffers. Those factors\u2014and Patrick\u2019s long history of promoting policies that most primary voters see as higher priorities than preserving THC access\u2014mean it is unlikely the blowback will cost Patrick much, according to political observers.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s hard to imagine given Patrick\u2019s position and where he is now that somehow this is going to be in and of itself the source of some fundamental political threat,\u201d said Jim Henson, director of the Texas Politics Project at the University of Texas at Austin. \u201cHonestly I think we\u2019re not used to seeing Dan Patrick criticized very much from within his own party and so it\u2019s really sticking out, and that\u2019s fair.\u201d<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, another member of the SREC, Morgan Eakin, on social media questioned<\/a> Patrick\u2019s conservative bona fides by pointing to when Patrick came under fire from his own party over gun rights.<\/p>\n

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Anybody remember how @DanPatrick<\/a> was pro gun control and requiring permits and government lists to the degree he would ensure constitution carry wouldn\u2019t pass in the senate\u2026.and @DadePhelan<\/a> was more *pro* 2nd Amendment and it passed the House?<\/p>\n

We have to ask ourselves how so\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/CKMaKF7MHJ<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Morgan Eakin (@Morganisms7) June 8, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

<\/div>\n

As the Legislature in 2021 contemplated letting most Texans carry a handgun without a license or training, Patrick at first said the Senate did not have the votes to pass the measure<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Lawmakers ultimately passed the bill, often referred to by Republicans as constitutional carry because of their belief that it is an American\u2019s constitutional right to pack heat without involving the government.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have to ask ourselves how so many were gaslit into believing the Senate and Dan Patrick were consistently more in line with basic constitutional principles and that [former House Speaker Dade Phelan] and the House were unequivocally liberal,\u201d Eakin wrote.<\/p>\n

Phelan, a Beaumont Republican who clashed with Patrick during his time as speaker, weighed in on SB 3 Monday, writing on social media<\/a> that \u201cTexans do not want a total ban.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Texans do not want a total ban. They do want a reasonable, regulated hemp market free of dangerous products \u2013 especially those advertised and sold to minors. The gas station garbage must go while Texans enjoy the freedom they expect from conservative governance. #txlege<\/a> #SB3<\/a> https:\/\/t.co\/5YeOQgh9A4<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Dade Phelan (@DadePhelan) June 9, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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\u201cThey do want a reasonable, regulated hemp market free of dangerous products\u2014especially those advertised and sold to minors,\u201d wrote Phelan, who ultimately voted for SB 3 but earlier opposed an amendment that changed it from a regulatory bill to a full-on ban. \u201cThe gas station garbage must go while Texans enjoy the freedom they expect from conservative governance.\u201d<\/p>\n

Despite the blowback, Patrick remains a champion of conservative policies and key player in GOP victories. This session alone, state lawmakers passed stiffer bail laws<\/a>, required that most sheriffs work with federal immigration authorities<\/a> and approved measures<\/a> allowing time for prayer in public schools and requiring classrooms to display the Ten Commandments.<\/p>\n

Patrick has rarely taken much heat from his own party. One notable instance was also related to guns after a pair of mass shootings.<\/p>\n

In 2019, a gunman wanting to quell an \u201cinvasion\u201d of Hispanic immigrants went to a Walmart in El Paso, where he opened fire and murdered 23 people and wounded 22 others. Shortly after that attack, a gunman terrorized Midland and Odessa with a shooting spree that resulted in the deaths of eight people.<\/p>\n

Patrick said it was high time the state required background checks on gun sales between strangers.<\/p>\n

\u201cSomeone in the Republican Party has to take the lead on this,\u201d he said at the time<\/a>, adding that he was \u201cwilling to take an arrow\u201d for the stance.<\/p>\n

The backlash, once again, was swift. His conservatism was called into question and some on the right even painted him as a bigger threat to guns<\/a> than Democrat Beto O\u2019Rourke, who had infamously said during a presidential debate the same year, \u201cHell yes, we are going to take your AR-15.\u201d<\/p>\n

Patrick withstood the pushback. And lawmakers never approved legislation he called for regulating private stranger-to-stranger gun sales. Since allowing permitless carry in 2021, lawmakers have expanded access to firearms, including with a bill this year to legalize sawed-off shotguns<\/a>, among other victories for gun rights advocates.<\/p>\n

The lack of fallout from Patrick\u2019s push to regulate private gun sales may offer a clue about how the SB 3 situation will shake out. Patrick received 77 percent of the 2022 GOP primary vote against only token opposition, and he was easily reelected in November.<\/p>\n

Disclosure: University of Texas at Austin has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune\u2019s journalism. Find a complete list of them here<\/a>.<\/i><\/p>\n

This article originally appeared in The Texas Tribune<\/a> at https:\/\/www.texastribune.org\/2025\/06\/10\/dan-patrick-texas-thc-ban-republican-gop-backlash\/<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

The Texas Tribune is a member-supported, nonpartisan newsroom informing and engaging Texans on state politics and policy. Learn more at texastribune.org.<\/em><\/p>\n

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Texas Governor Refuses To Say Whether He\u2019ll Sign Or Veto Hemp Ban Bill Amid Intense Pushback<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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Photo courtesy of Brendan Cleak.<\/em><\/p>\n

The post Texas GOP Lieutenant Governor\u2019s Push To Ban THC Hemp Products Spurs Rare Backlash From The Right<\/a> appeared first on Marijuana Moment<\/a>.<\/p>\n


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\u201cWe have a mad king surrounded by courtiers and yes men afraid to tell him he\u2019s making a fool of himself.\u201d By Alejandro Serrano, The Texas Tribune Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick (R) was clear from the start. Weeks before this year\u2019s legislative session began, and before he announced any otherContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":457,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[81],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81638"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/457"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=81638"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81638\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":81639,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81638\/revisions\/81639"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=81638"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=81638"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=81638"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}