Reefer Report Card Vol. 23:

_{Filed Under: The Week in Weed}

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The week felt rigged from the start. Reform whispered promises, politicians loaded traps, and hemp farmers braced for another blow from people who swear they support agriculture. Congress swung at hemp-derived THC with more energy than they ever showed for veterans or health care. Power moved in quiet rooms, and the plant took the beating.

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STATEHOUSE HEADLINER

Federal pressure poured into state politics the moment word spread that Congress was trying to slip a nationwide hemp-derived THC ban into a must-pass spending bill. Governors who once bragged about hemp farming went silent. State agricultural agencies scrambled to decide what becomes legal and what becomes evidence. Lobby groups in Kentucky, Tennessee, Michigan, and Texas held emergency calls because a twenty-eight billion dollar sector can vanish with one signature.
Grade: C

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GOVERNMENT CLOWN CAR AWARD

Congress did not even pretend to care. The spending bill language rewrites hemp legality by redefining what counts as THC. If it contains more than a trace amount, it becomes criminal. Lawmakers who campaign on supporting farmers are now trying to crush small operators, veterans who rely on delta-eight for pain, and rural communities that kept the crop alive when nobody else wanted it. The ban does not even start immediately. They gave the industry a full year before enforcement. If these products were truly dangerous, they would be banned today. This is theater. Everyone sees it.

Grade: F

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REGULATOR ROULETTE

State regulators are watching the federal mess with the dread of people standing on a porch while the neighbor’s house burns. Licensing offices in the Midwest reported frantic calls from growers who fear their crop is about to turn into evidence. Western states that rely on hemp for rotational farming are calculating losses that could reach millions. Federal rule changes always create confusion, but this one feels built for maximum damage.
Grade: D

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PATIENT RIGHTS WATCH

Veterans and chronic pain patients who depend on hemp-derived products felt the shock instantly. Clinics reported a surge of calls from people who fear their sleep aids or anxiety tinctures are about to become illegal overnight. Many patients cannot tolerate full-potency cannabis. Others live in prohibition states where hemp products are the only relief they can legally access. Congress did not include medical exemptions, patient protections, or even acknowledgment. Patients were an afterthought.
Grade: C minus

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INTERNATIONAL HEAT CHECK

The American crisis echoed around the world. Industry analysts in Europe and South America are questioning whether the United States is abandoning its own hemp revival. Nations that modeled their programs after the American farm boom no longer know if hemp is a crop or a crime. Germany and Colombia both expressed concern that sudden shifts in American policy disrupt global supply chains. The shockwave traveled fast.
Grade: C

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FINAL GRADE

This week belonged to confusion, fear, and political sleight of hand. Congress reignited prohibition logic and tried to bury it inside a bill no one can oppose. Farmers lost confidence. Patients lost stability. The hemp economy lost oxygen. This was not a week of progress. It was a week of extraction, and not the kind that fills cartridges.
Final Grade: C minus

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