Follow the money. You could mistake the famous line from the 1976 political thriller All The President’s Men as John Boehner’s acting principle, if you wanted. In a new advertisement, the former Speaker of the House, an infamous anti-marijuana crusader on Capitol Hill, advises would-be investors how to turn a profit in the burgeoning cannabis industry.
The cable news ad asks those interested to text a number onscreen, which then sends viewers a website link for the “American Cannabis Summit” featuring Boehner. Back in April, Boehner joined the board of advisors at Acreage Holdings, a national cannabis company with growing licenses and cultivation facilities across the country. The announcement drew criticism from voices as far ranging as Wu Tang Clan’s Method Man, but also was met with reserved support, with some arguing the need for friends like Boehner in the cannabis industry.
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My God. You HAVE to watch this. The 'national cannabis summit' with John Boehner. Free to join and learn how you too can become a cannabis millionaire! It's like Blunt University from the former Speaker. pic.twitter.com/MoY8qq4Voq
— Josh Marshall (@joshtpm) January 9, 2019
The webpage summit is hosted by the National Institute for Cannabis Investors, a company that describes itself as “a global cannabis-investing news service,” according to Talking Points Memo. An hour-long video breaks down all the opportunities investors can find in the cannabis industry, with Boehner and two others reading what is clearly scripted material.
In a big show, the video addresses the “elephant in the room,” a.k.a. Boehner. Back in 2011, Boehner memorably wrote a letter where he announced he was “unalterably opposed to the legalization of marijuana.”
“Back then—like a lot of folks—I was getting faulty information,” Boehner says.
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So what changed his mind? Learning how cannabis helps soldiers with PTSD and learning America’s forgotten history with cannabis. As a result, Boehner is now “all in. This is the time to go all-in on cannabis.”
Elsewhere in the video, Boehner asserts that when it comes to the federal government legalizing marijuana, it’s a matter of “when,” not “if.”
“Let me just say, I have a strong suspicion we won’t be waiting five years to see the federal government legalize cannabis,” Boehner says.
You can watch the video here, or read the Speaker’s comments via this transcript.
