President Donald Trump “endorses it.” He proposed banning THC-containing hemp products included in the Senate spending billA White House spokesman says cannabis, alcohol and other interests are continuing efforts to influence the final deal.

A day after the Senate passed the debt relief package – with provisions that would effectively wipe out the market for hemp operators – a White House staffer told NBC News that the president “supports the current language in the hemp bill.”

While Trump endorsed cannabis reform on the campaign trail (including a pending marijuana redistricting proposal), he has also expressed concern about the non-medical use of cannabis. In his first term, he signed the 2018 Farm Bill that federally legalized hemp and its derivatives, but has been less vocal on issues related to cannabis’ cousin.

Now, eager for a plan to reopen the government amid a historic shutdown, the White House says it stands by the controversial ban, which is just one part of a larger legislative package.

Marijuana Moments reached out to the White House for additional comment, but a representative was not immediately available.

Meanwhile, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) hasn’t thrown in the towel yet, introducing an amendment calling for the leader to crack down on hemp language altogether.

But there are many competing voices on the issue, including a coalition of alcohol companies that sent a letter to senators Monday urging them to back the current language.

The American Distilled Spirits Alliance (ADSA), the Beer Institute (BI), the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States (DISCUS), Wine America and the Wine Institute said in the letter that Paul’s “short-sighted actions could threaten the delicately balanced deal to reopen the federal government.”

“Producers of alcoholic beverages, one of the most highly regulated consumer products, are calling on the Senate to reject Senator Paul’s attempts to allow hemp-derived THC products to be sold across the country without federal regulation and oversight,” it says. “We stand ready to work with Congress and the Administration to enact meaningful regulations that protect consumers and ensure a safe and orderly marketplace for these toxic products when this loophole is addressed.”

The alcohol companies individually pushed the Congress stand on the hemp ban in a letter to the leader last week.

Under current law, cannabis products are considered legal hemp if they contain less than 0.3 percent delta-9 THC by dry weight.

The new legislation specifies that, within a year of taking effect, the weight will be applied to all THC—including delta-8 and other isomers. Also, “as tetrahydrocannabinol (or any other marketed cannabinoid) with similar effects in humans or animals (as determined by the Secretary of Health and Human Services).”

The new definition of legal hemp would also prohibit “any hemp-derived cannabinoid intermediate product marketed or sold as an end product or directly to an end consumer for personal or household use,” as well as products containing cannabinoids that are synthesized or manufactured outside of the cannabis plant or that cannot be produced naturally by the plant.

Legal hemp products would be limited to a total of 0.4 milligrams of total THC or any other cannabinoid with similar effects per container.

Within 90 days of the bill’s passage, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and other agencies would be required to “publish a list of all cannabinoids known to FDA to be naturally produced by a Cannabis sativa L. plant, as reflected in the peer-reviewed literature,” “all tetrahydrocannabinol classes known to be plants of the cannabinoid class known” and “all cannabinoids” known to occur naturally. Cannabinoids that have or are marketed as having effects similar to cannabinoids of the tetrahydrocannabinol class.”

The language differs slightly from provisions in legislation advanced out of the House and Senate Appropriations panels, which would have banned products with “quantifiable” amounts of THC, to be determined by the HHS secretary and the agriculture secretary.

Separately, the newly released appropriations legislation omits language passed by the House earlier this year. let VA doctors recommend medical cannabis to their military veteran patients in states where it is legal.

The appropriations bill’s progress comes amid a push by parties on both sides of the hemp debate as they negotiate a deal to influence Congress.

For example, last week more than 50 alcohol distributors have come together Oppose efforts in Congress to ban hemp products containing THCinsisting to lawmakers that as demand for alcohol has “declined”, the cannabis market has helped sustain their industry.

It is interesting that there is a special distribution among the agents of alcohol, many of them have reported lobbying on hemp issues this year. There seems to be disagreement on the way forward between the wholesalers that distribute alcohol and hemp products and the big brands that market their drinks.

A major consumer trade association, its member corporations include Coca-Cola, General Mills, Kraft Heinz and Nestlé. Pressuring Congress to ban THC-containing hemp products.

Meanwhile, a bipartisan group of 39 state and territory attorneys general recently petitioned Congress. clarifying the federal definition of hemp and imposing regulations preventing the sale of intoxicating cannabinoid products.

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison (D), who helped write that letter to congressional leaders last month, he defended his decision amid criticism from industry players and advocates He questioned why attorneys general in states with strong hemp markets like Minnesota would promote federal recriminalization of those products.

Two GOP lawmakers—Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD)—has committed to a complete ban on THC-containing hemp products. But others like Paul have insisted that such a policy change would destroy the industry. And Paul had warned before that he would go far stick to large-scale spending legislation if the entire ban is kept intact.

The senator also pushed back against a recent letter from state and territory attorneys general imploring Republican leaders to completely prevent the marketing of intoxicating hemp products.

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As for legislative opportunities, Paul recently ran for the legislature This requires a study and report on the state’s regulatory models for hemp It could inform future revisions to the federal law—rather than outright banning sales, as McConnell wanted.

In August, McConnell – who pushed for federal hemp legalization under the 2018 Farm Bill – took to the Senate floor. criticized those who opposed the ban, including Paul.

Meanwhile, Paul recently introduced a stand-alone bill that would go in the opposite direction of the hemp ban, proposing to triple the concentration of THC that the crop could legally containaddressing several other concerns expressed by industry about federal regulations.

The senator introduced legislation in June called the Hemp Economic Mobilization Plan (HEMP) Act. It reflects versions backed up in recent sessions.

read it the letter Alcohol companies below on the proposed hemp ban: