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Major Marijuana Company Donated $250,000 To Trump’s Inauguration As Industry Works To Earn President’s Favor To Advance Reform

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A major marijuana company donated $250,000 to President Donald Trump’s inaugural committee with a contribution filtered through a leading cannabis industry association—one of the latest examples of how stakeholders are working to ingratiate theirselves with the new administration in the hopes of advancing federal reform.

A lobbying contribution report filed with Congress shows that the multi-state cannabis operator Curaleaf, via the U.S. Cannabis Council (USCC), contributed a quarter million dollars to the president following his election victory last November.

“I was proud to stand alongside cannabis industry leaders at President Trump’s inauguration,” David Culver, senior vice president of public affairs at USCC, told Marijuana Moment.

“We face a wide range of challenges—including addressing debanking and finishing rescheduling—that our leaders in Washington can address,” he said. “President Trump has embraced federal cannabis reform and voiced support for the right of states to set their own cannabis laws. We look forward to working with him and his administration to meaningfully move cannabis policy forward.”

NOTUS first reported the USCC contribution to Trump’s inaugural committee. It’s not currently publicly known to what extent additional cannabis businesses may have donated to the inaugural committee. Such contributions must be disclosed within 90 days of the inauguration.

Meanwhile, another top marijuana executive—Trulieve CEO Kim Rivers—has also been making inroads within Trump circles.

Not only did she meet with the then-candidate last year prior to his endorsement of a Florida cannabis legalization ballot initiative that Rivers’s company largely funded, but she also attended two pre-inauguration events: a dinner celebrating Vice President J.D. Vance and a separate candlelight dinner.

The cost for two tickets to the vice president’s event was $1 million, or attendees could separately raise $2 million from others, according to The Guardian. Two tickets to the candlelight dinner ran guests $250,000.

Marijuana Moment reached out to Rivers and Trulieve for comment, but representatives were not immediately available.

The contributions and eagerness to engage the president in his second term indicates that there’s a sense among certain cannabis industry movers that Trump may be inclined to act on his stated support for key reform proposals. On the campaign trail after meeting with Rivers, he also endorsed federal rescheduling and allowing marijuana businesses to access the banking system.

As far as his support for the Florida legalization initiative that ultimately fell short of support to pass, a GOP state senator said recently that he felt the campaign behind the reform proposal “tricked” Trump into endorsing it, misleading people about certain provisions such as public consumption rules.

So far, at least publicly, Trump has been silent on marijuana policy issues since taking office—and for now it is unclear whether the big dollar donations will translate into administrative attention to cannabis industry stakeholders’ policy goals.

For what it’s worth, the Congressional Research Service (CRS) said in a recent report that it “remains to be seen” how Trump will navigate marijuana policy in his second term, and it’s “unknown” whether the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) will finalize a proposed rule to reschedule cannabis.

The president’s cabinet choices also have mixed records on marijuana policy.

For example, Trump’s pick for attorney general, former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi (R) is declining to say how she plans to navigate key marijuana policy issues—including the ongoing rescheduling process and renewing federal enforcement guidance—if she’s ultimately confirmed.

The official named to run the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) as acting administrator, meanwhile, subscribes to the “gateway drug” theory for marijuana and believes most people living in states that have legalized cannabis will continue to obtain it from illicit sources such as cartels due to high taxes in regulated markets.

On the other end, the president’s choice to run the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Robert F. Kennedy Jr., had advocated for legalizing marijuana, as well as psychedelics for the treatment of serious mental health conditions. That said, Kennedy dodged senators’ questions about his position on cannabis legalization last week, saying he would “defer” to DEA on rescheduling.

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Kyle Jaeger is Marijuana Moment's Sacramento-based managing editor. His work has also appeared in High Times, VICE and attn.

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