Trump’s foray into CBD hype shows how far the hemp brand has been tarnished

In another unpleasant passage for industrial hemp, Donald Trump again popped up this week in the cannabis conversation, with a social repost of a three-minute video promoting Medicaid coverage of CBD products.

Just a few weeks ago, in August, Trump told reporters his administration is “looking at” reclassifying marijuana, as he extolled the benefits of cannabis use for seniors. Monday’s three-minute video appeared with no context, and no comment from the President – not even a mangled attempt at pronouncing “cannabidiol.”

Like the August announcement, Trump’s Sunday CBD re-post gave cannabis stocks a nice bump. Canopy Growth jumped 18 percent. Tilray shot up 42 percent. Cronos added 15 percent, and Aurora climbed 25 percent. Exchange-traded funds surged as well. Investors heard “Trump” and “CBD” in the same breath and bought like crazy.

What CBD?

Yet NONE of the cannabis companies Reuters and other outlets breathlessly cited are actually CBD players. They grow and sell marijuana. Canopy dabbled with Martha Stewart CBD gummies. Tilray owns hemp food brand Manitoba Harvest, but that’s about hemp grain. Cronos and Aurora? Almost nothing of substance in CBD. That’s because CBD comes from industrial hemp, not from marijuana.

Ironically, the share price of CV Sciences and Charlotte’s Web, bona fide CBD companies, did not move on Trump’s stunt.

The disconnect is glaring. Marijuana stocks rallied on news about hemp-derived CBD. Hemp and marijuana remain distinct under law and in the marketplace. Confusion persists, as Wall Street continues to trade on buzzwords rather than fundamentals.

Trump’s ear

The enticing question is: Who walked Trump into the CBD narrative? Who whispered in his ear the bullshit about the size of the “hemp” business, and how much does The Great Expert on Everything really know about hemp?

He’s likely not been down at the corner bodega recently, where kids can pick up “hemp” products next to Oreos and gummy worms with yummy delta-8, delta-10, THC-O, and other fun concoctions — all cooked up from hemp-derived CBD, and sold with little oversight. That’s where the real billions are sloshing around.

Somebody obviously whispered into Dear Leader’s fuzzy ear: (“Billions, sir. Billions. Let the boys know.”) But who? Here are our three prime suspects:

Howard Kessler, The Commonwealth Project: Kessler is a longtime Palm Beach financier, a reported member of Mar-a-Lago, and was officially listed by OpenSecrets as a bundler for Trump’s 2016 campaign, credited with raising more than $2.5 million through his network. The Commonwealth Project produced the CBD video.

Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY): Paul earlier this year helped strip Senate language that would have broadly banned many hemp cannabinoids, protecting the very intoxicating hemp loophole fueling today’s market. Paul positions himself as the libertarian defender of hemp, even as the industry spirals into a free-for-all.

Former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL): This is the unorthodox guess. Gaetz, a staunch cannabis advocate when he was a House Republican, remains in a close orbit with Trump. He recently pressed Trump to move on rescheduling marijuana. However, ironically, he opposes Florida’s recreational cannabis initiative and has sided with Gov. Ron DeSantis and Florida’s hemp lobby against adult-use marijuana, a stance that conveniently protects the CBD-to-intoxicating hemp trade.

Grifters celebrate

Meanwhile, the intoxicating hemp market, unregulated and kid-friendly, just got a wink from the top. CBD hustlers — the labs cranking out bathtub THC from processed CBD — must be thrilled. Trump’s uninformed amplification helps them cloak a substance that is mostly being turned into intoxicants under the respectable sheen of “senior healthcare.” The narrative blurs distinctions and legitimizes the grift (while regulators remain three steps behind).

The real work remains in industrial hemp: grain, hurd, fiber. Building processing capacity. Developing markets for food, biocomposites, hempcrete, textiles, and regenerative agriculture. Those are tough rows to hoe, but investment now will pay off later.

How low?

CBD hype won’t build decorticators or insulation factories. A social media repost won’t replace the serious policy and infrastructure work required for hemp to deliver climate solutions and new rural economies.

The bigger regret is watching “hemp” sink further in the public mind — now tethered to Donald Trump, whose administration gutted federal hemp support and branded sustainability programs a “scam”?

After years of confusion over CBD and intoxicating hemp products, the industry’s reputation is at a modern-day low. How much lower can it go than into Donald Trump’s arms?