Oklahoma! Crossroads of the nation!
Interstates 35 and 40, two major U.S. arteries cross at right angles in OKC, also intersecting there with I-44, which veers northeast into the heart of the Midwest and southwest back to Texas. This is a great state for producers wanting to reach the rest of the country.
Among those taking advantage of this central location are black market marijuana growers. Oops!
During the first week of January, KFOR-TV’s Lauren Henry cited the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics in reporting that “Since Oklahoma voters made medical marijuana legal in 2018 … law enforcement agencies in other states have alleged that at one point, 40% of America’s black-market marijuana comes from here.”
OBN spokesman Mark Woodward said, “Just about every other state in the United States, at some point, was receiving large amounts, semi-trucks of black-market marijuana that was grown in Oklahoma.”
How much illicit weed are we talking about? Woodward elaborated:
“From 2023 to 2024, in a 12-month period, there were 87 million pounds of marijuana that were tagged in metric, and only 1.9 million were actually sold. So, you’re talking about over 85 million pounds that’s unaccounted for.”
“Unaccounted for,” but counting up to high, tax-free profits for those in the business.
Woodward said the current situation is a reversal from the old pattern of marijuana crossing from Mexico into Texas and points north. Now, “unaccounted for” Oklahoma grass heads back to Texas as well as the rest of the nation.
Henry reported the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority has been trying to tighten its regulatory process. OMMA’s actual numbers do not agree with OBN, but, addressing the problem, an OMMA statement said that since 2021, the agency “has implemented multiple measures to combat straw ownership and significantly strengthen the licensing review process; every application submitted undergoes a thorough evaluation to ensure compliance with state law.”
Among those “straw” owners, Woodward says are, “criminal groups from Mexico and now China [that] moved their operations into the U.S.”
The state’s ineffectual efforts to control the marijuana black market, “represents a serious threat to public safety in both states,” according to Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond. “Oklahoma has been a prime target for criminal organizations seeking to exploit our lax medical marijuana laws and flood the black market across state lines.”
Hmmm. Maybe someone should check campaign donations for Oklahoma government officials to see if the lack of stronger regulations is benefitting more than the cartels.
As with OBN and OMMA, Drummond says his office has been responsible for confiscations and arrests, but those efforts are included in the dire report from the OBN.
“There’s also a lot of these farms that half of their plants are not tagged,” Woodward said, “and we’ll never know exactly how much millions of pounds is leaving this state untaxed, untraceable, onto the black market at the peak of this.”
Maybe more drastic enforcement measures are required.
With no evidence whatsoever, President Donald Trump blows “alleged drug boats” out of the water, killing those on board. He cites Venezuela’s inability or unwillingness to curb drug trafficking. He has accused kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro of running the drug operations. He has bombed harbor buildings.
At the time of Maduro’s capture, Oklahoma Sen. James Lankford opined:
“When you funnel drugs and chaos into American streets, you should face justice. Today the very long and powerful arm of justice grabbed Nicolás Maduro and will put him in front of an American court.”
Oklahoma’s black-market marijuana is reaching those same streets.
The state’s junior senator, Markwayne Mullin said: “President Trump is 100% focused on protecting the American people. Nicolas Maduro was the leader of a criminal narco-terrorist organization that actively targets Americans.”
Oklahoma’s black market marijuana growers are targeting those same folks.
Of course, Trump himself refuted the anti-drug claim shortly after Maduro’s arrest, admitting what everyone with the sense of turnip knew already: It’s all about the oil.
But our Republicans like talking tough on drugs. Logic says that lax drug enforcement on the state level involving foreign gangs merits equal treatment. In their eyes, we are dealing with a gateway drug.
Nip it in the bud. Trump’s private army needs to start blowing up random semis as they cruise our drug-channel highways. Maybe one of them will contain marijuana. Maybe not. Just lie about it; that’s the norm.
For good measure, our planes – we have them in state – could blow up some random barns and farm out buildings.
Since he is the person of ultimate responsibility for the welfare of the people of this state, it might be time to shuffle Gov. Kevin Stitt – and his wife, of course – off to Leavenworth. [Must get them out of state.] It is under Stitt’s negligent watch that 40% of the country’s illegal marijuana is grown here and distributed elsewhere.
It couldn’t happen here? Well, last time around, Stitt endorsed Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and not Commander Bonespurs, whose ability to hold grudges is matched only by his vindictiveness.
