Political Quotes

“this week is National Hemp History Week, and to help celebrate I thought I would show a few Oregon-made hemp products to highlight the many uses and opportunities for industrial hemp in my State and across the country. In the basket I brought, I have food, soap, clothes, and even deck sealant, all made in Oregon, bought and sold in American stores and used by Americans. Oregon companies such as Bob's Red Mill, Fiddlebumps, and Hemp Shield contribute to our economy in unique ways. Industrial hemp supports a $620 million industry in America, and our companies have found innovative ways of incorporating it into everyday products. However, the full growth potential of this industry is being cut down before it can fully bloom because a single ingredient that links all of these products--the hemp itself--cannot be grown in America. The unfortunate reality is that current Federal rules prohibit our farmers from growing industrial hemp on American soil. This means 100 percent of the hemp used in these products is imported from other nations. The Federal ban on hemp amounts, in my view, to a restriction on free enterprise, and it doesn't accomplish anything but stifles job creation and economic growth. We are the world's largest consumers of hemp products, but we are the only major industrialized nation to ban hemp farming. This hasn't always been the case, and it doesn't have to continue to be the case.…”