The Irony That Hits Close to Home
You really can’t make this up.
Minnesota — the state that pioneered responsible hemp regulation and low-dose THC innovation — is now watching its own Attorney General, Keith Ellison, join a national crusade to shut it all down.
According to Marijuana Moment, Ellison helped co-lead a letter signed by 39 attorneys general urging Congress to ban “intoxicating hemp products” nationwide.
The letter calls these products “Frankenstein THC compounds” and claims they’re harming children, deceiving consumers, and threatening public safety.
And while we agree there are bad actors in the hemp space, one thing is painfully clear: Keith Ellison is swinging at the wrong target.
“It’s incredibly disappointing,” said Steven Brown, founder of Nothing But Hemp. “Minnesota already solved this problem responsibly — through regulation, education, and compliance. Now our own AG is pushing to punish everyone, including the companies doing it right.”
From Hemp Hero to Hemp Hypocrite
This part’s rich: Minnesota is one of the few states that actually fixed hemp.
Back in 2022, when low-dose THC edibles became legal here, Minnesota didn’t just open the floodgates. Lawmakers, regulators, and responsible businesses came together to craft a model that made sense — clear potency limits, child-proof packaging, lab testing, and strict labeling.
That’s the blueprint the rest of the country should have followed.
But now, instead of promoting Minnesota’s model as a national example, Keith Ellison is teaming up with other attorneys general to scare Congress into blanket prohibition.
“It’s sad,” Brown said. “Our state was the first to prove that responsible hemp regulation works. And now the same AG who should be defending that success story is trying to kill it nationally.”
We fixed it at home — and now we’re watching our own Attorney General help dismantle it everywhere else.
The Frankenstein Myth and the Fear Factory
The AGs’ letter makes for dramatic reading. It warns that “legal, non-intoxicating hemp is being used to make Frankenstein THC products that get adults high and harm children.”
Frankenstein? That’s a cute soundbite, but it’s lazy science.
Sure, there are some sketchy “kitchen chemists” cooking up untested synthetic THC. But that’s not hemp’s fault — and it’s definitely not the fault of the thousands of compliant, transparent, and responsible companies who test every batch and label every milligram.
“We get it — there are real concerns,” Brown said. “But the solution isn’t to destroy the industry that’s actually following the rules. The solution is enforcement, not extinction.”
Let’s call it what it is: political panic wrapped in moral outrage. “Frankenstein hemp” is a talking point designed to grab headlines, not fix problems.
Keith Ellison’s Logic: Legalize Marijuana, Ban Hemp
Now here’s where things go full Twilight Zone.
Minnesota legalized adult-use marijuana in 2023 — something Ellison supported. The rollout has been slow but steady, and the state is now licensing cannabis dispensaries and building a taxable, regulated market.
So, naturally, you’d think Minnesota’s top cop would celebrate hemp’s role in paving the way for that success.
But instead, Ellison’s letter supports a nationwide crackdown that could wipe out the very hemp companies that helped make cannabis legalization politically possible.
“It’s ironic,” Brown said. “Hemp introduced millions of people to safe, low-dose THC — it normalized responsible consumption. Without hemp, marijuana legalization in Minnesota wouldn’t have happened this fast. And now the AG is turning his back on the industry that built the bridge.”
Talk about biting the hand that fed you.
How Minnesota Already Fixed the Problem
Here’s what everyone in Washington seems to forget: Minnesota already wrote the playbook on how to regulate hemp safely.
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Potency limits: 5mg THC per serving, 50mg per package.
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Age restrictions: 21+ only.
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Testing requirements: Every batch tested for potency, solvents, and contaminants.
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Packaging rules: Child-resistant, plain labeling, no cartoon characters or marketing to minors.
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Transparency: Licensed businesses, not mystery products from gas stations.
That’s what Nothing But Hemp and other responsible Minnesota brands have been doing since day one.
“We self-regulate beyond what’s required,” Brown explained. “We test, we label, we train retailers, and we educate consumers. We’ve built trust because we care about the plant — not just the profit.”
So why is Keith Ellison — a Minnesota AG — siding with other states that didn’t regulate properly, and using their chaos as an excuse to crush ours?
Because panic is easier than policy.
What a Nationwide Ban Would Actually Do
Let’s be clear: if Ellison and his 38 friends get their way, the fallout would be massive.
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Thousands of hemp retailers and small businesses would close.
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Farmers would lose one of their biggest cash crops.
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Millions of consumers would lose access to products that help them sleep, relax, and feel better — legally.
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The black market would explode overnight.
And here’s the kicker — a national ban wouldn’t even stop the bad actors. It would just drive them underground, where there’s zero oversight, zero testing, and zero safety.
“You can’t legislate away chemistry,” Brown said. “If you outlaw hemp cannabinoids, people will still make them — just without the lab tests, the age checks, or the regulations that keep consumers safe.”
In other words, this isn’t a ban to protect people — it’s a ban to protect politics.
The Real Motivation: Big Marijuana and Big Government
Follow the money.
As the regulated marijuana industry struggles to compete with affordable hemp products, lobbyists have started whispering in lawmakers’ ears: “If you can’t beat ‘em, ban ‘em.”
And now, thanks to Ellison and company, that message has gone national.
“This isn’t about safety,” Brown said. “It’s about market control. They want to eliminate competition under the guise of protecting the public. Meanwhile, responsible hemp businesses like ours are being treated like criminals for doing it right.”
Consumers deserve choice. Farmers deserve markets. Entrepreneurs deserve a fair shot.
But if Ellison and his allies get their wish, all that goes up in smoke — pun intended.
Minnesota Set the Example. Washington Should Follow It, Not Fear It.
We should be exporting Minnesota’s hemp model to the rest of the country, not erasing it.
Our system works. It’s proof that hemp and THC can coexist responsibly, with oversight and safety.
“Minnesota’s hemp industry has been a model for the nation,” Brown said. “We created rules, we followed them, and consumers trusted us. That’s what real leadership looks like. What Keith Ellison is doing now isn’t leadership — it’s a retreat.”
It’s like building a bridge that works perfectly — and then watching someone blow it up because another state forgot to build theirs right.
A Message to Congress: Don’t Let Fear Kill an American Industry
If Congress listens to Ellison’s “Frankenstein” fearmongering and enacts a broad national ban, it won’t just hurt hemp — it’ll set back the entire cannabis reform movement.
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It will punish states that did things right.
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It will drive innovation out of the U.S.
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It will hurt small business owners who played by the rules.
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And it will erase years of progress toward safe, responsible cannabinoid access.
Nothing But Hemp is calling on Congress to work with responsible hemp businesses, not against them.
“We’re not anti-regulation,” Brown said. “We’re pro-smart regulation. We support safety testing, age limits, transparency — all of it. What we don’t support is lazy blanket bans that punish the good with the bad.”
Final Thoughts: Keith, Come Home
We’ll end with this: Keith Ellison should know better.
Minnesota led the nation in hemp innovation. We proved that a well-regulated, low-dose THC system can work safely, legally, and responsibly.
But instead of championing that model, Ellison decided to join a national panic attack that could destroy it.
“We respect Keith,” Brown said. “He’s done great work for consumers and for fairness. But this? This is a mistake. Minnesota solved this problem years ago — we should be leading the nation with our model, not following a mob of attorneys general who don’t understand hemp.”
So to the AGs across America — and especially our own — here’s our message:
Stop trying to ban hemp. Start trying to understand it.
Because the real monster here isn’t the hemp plant.
It’s fear, misinformation, and bad policy.
And that’s something Nothing But Hemp refuses to let win.
