James Comer mocked for alleged Chinese hemp trade deal

Rep. James Comer is being ridiculed over a new report alleging he engaged in a “failed Chinese trade deal” involving hemp seeds while serving as Kentucky agriculture commissioner.

Comer, a Kentucky Republican who chairs the House Oversight Committee, championed an industrial hemp pilot program while agriculture commissioner but accidentally imported marijuana from China around 2014, a The Daily Beast reported Wednesday, citing emails released as part of a records request.

Comer's office intended to import legal hemp seeds from China under the program on behalf of the Caudill Seed Company, a program partner that had also hosted a fundraiser for Comer's gubernatorial campaign , according to the report. Comer has not released a statement on the matter or confirmed the details of the report.

However, the shipment was mislabeled, and company employees quickly suspected the product could be considered marijuana. Tests found the hemp seed to have THC contents of 1.87 and 2.74 percent, much higher than 0.3 percent. Anything with a THC content greater than 0.3 percent is considered marijuana — at the time illegal for all uses in Kentucky — by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The company planned to destroy the product. According to the report, Comer's office urged the company to wait until the state Department of Agriculture can handle its destruction, but the documents do not confirm when that will be completed.

The program itself was well known, as Comer touted it as one of his major accomplishments and has long been an advocate for hemp legalization. However, the Daily Beast said reports at the time did not mention the Chinese shipments.

News week contacted Comer's office for comment via email.

The incident was not reported at the time and the posting appeared to be an error. But the report raised eyebrows because of Comer's work on the oversight committee.

Comer gained national prominence for his work leading the committee, which investigated the Biden family, including an alleged failed business deal that President Joe Biden's son, Hunter Biden, had with a Chinese company.

The Daily Beast report drew mockery from Comer's critics, including several Democratic members of Congress.

“He was truly resourceful,” Rep. Jared Moskowitz, a Florida Democrat, wrote in a post on X (formerly Twitter).

Rep. Sean Casten, an Illinois Democrat, wrote: “This whole story reads like a minor subplot on Justified — but without the charm and wit of Elmore Leonard. A simpleton Kentucky politician with ties to a small local businessman ends up importing Chinese drugs because he wants to be governor. »

Ron Filipkowski, editor-in-chief of MeidasTouch, a progressive news site, posted: “James Comer smuggling marijuana from China, then covered it up when he was Kentucky agriculture commissioner? No, not shocked.”

Jennifer Horn, a political commentator and former Republican politician, wrote: “Politics is full of hypocrites. MAGA GOP is full of corrupt hypocrites. »

Ben Wikler, chairman of the Wisconsin Democratic Party, wrote: “Womp womp.”