Trump VP pick Vance opposed marijuana banking but silent on legalization

U.S. Sen. JD Vance, the Ohio Republican whom Donald Trump picked as his running mate for the November presidential election, is no supporter of federal marijuana reform.

Nor did the 39-year-old former investment banker and “Hillbilly Elegy” author support adult-use marijuana legalization in Ohio last year.

But Vance doesn’t appear to be much of a cannabis-culture warrior, either, preferring instead to spend his political capital elsewhere.

No ‘friend’ of marijuana industry

“Is Vance a friend of the industry? Absolutely not,” Steve Schain, a Philadelphia-based attorney who specializes in cannabis banking and taxation issues, told MJBizDaily by phone on Tuesday.

“His first and only concern is fortifying and furthering his federal role.

“That being said, like most classic libertarians, he doesn’t want to disturb states’ rights or expand the federal government.”

A Yale Law School graduate and financier, Vance first catapulted to national fame as the author of “Hillbilly Elegy,” a memoir of his modest Appalachian roots that was later adapted for film.

A recent profile in Politico revealed that Vance is a proponent of New Right conservative politics, which include skepticism of foreign intervention and embracing “economic populism.”

It’s unclear exactly where the $36 billion state-regulated marijuana industry fits into that puzzle, if at all.

In 2022, while campaigning for his Senate seat, Vance said that marijuana should be a “state’s issue,” but he then seemed to hint at a connection between marijuana use and violent crime.

“A lot of times … look at the underlying charge,” he said in a debate with Democratic Rep. Tim Ryan, whom Vance defeated for his Senate seat.

“It wasn’t just that they smoked a joint, it’s that they smoked a joint and then beat an elderly woman over the head with a pistol.”

States rights, but no SAFER

After taking his seat in Washington, D.C., in early 2023, Vance ventured into marijuana policy only to differentiate himself from Democratic rivals, including Ohio’s senior U.S. senator, Democrat Sherrod Brown.

Brown, the chair of the Senate Banking Committee, called for a markup hearing – a first – for marijuana banking reform in September 2023.

He also is a supporter of the SAFER Banking Act, which would offer protections for financial institutions doing business with plant-touching cannabis businesses.

Vance, by contrast, voted against advancing the SAFER Banking Act for a potential full Senate vote  “due to several public safety-related concerns,” he explained later.

Silent on Ohio legalization

But when Ohio voters went to the polls in November 2023 to decide Issue 2, the adult-use marijuana legalization ballot initiative in Ohio, Vance was nowhere to be found.

Issue 2 won handily, with nearly 56% of voters in favor.

While Brown endorsed the measure, Vance refused to endorse or reject Issue 2 despite the Ohio Republican Party’s strong opposition, Columbus broadcast outlet WOSU reported.

Later, Vance said that the will of the voters should be respected.

Vance also distanced himself from Brown over federal marijuana legalization, saying last December the question is better left up to the states.

Vice presidential viewpoint?

How Vance’s measured neutrality as a senator would inform his influence on federal marijuana reform as vice president remains to be seen.

Given Vance’s New Right skepticism of Democratic Party values such as diversity, equity and inclusion, any marijuana stakeholders seeking help on social equity from a potential Trump-Vance administration likely would be disappointed, observers told MJBizDaily.

And, notably, the words “marijuana” and “cannabis” do not appear in the Republican National Committee’s official platform document circulated ahead of this week’s convention in Milwaukee.

The committee is also silent on the issue of intoxicating hemp-derived cannabinoids, which some lawmakers, such as Republican Rep. Mary Miller, have moved to ban.

That suggests a sort of situational neutrality.

With polling showing marijuana reform is a bipartisan issue, a pliable Vance – keen to advancing his interests over maintaining political orthodoxy – could prove to be an advantage for  the cannabis industry, Schain predicted.

“If the authority is afforded to him,” Schain said, “he could be slightly helpful to us.”

Chris Roberts can be reached at chris.roberts@mjbizdaily.com.