The Gaetz of Hell

Confirmation confusion continues.

Daily Recap

President-elect Trump is personally calling senators to press them to confirm former Rep. Matt Gaetz to be his Attorney General, according to senators who have spoken with Trump. He is digging in on his embattled nominee and sending an unmistakable message to Senate Republicans that he expects him to be confirmed.

"One thing about Donald Trump, people should never confuse his support for one of his nominees as a tactical or strategic tool for somebody else. He's putting his own political capital behind it; he's a pretty persuasive guy." Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.)

There is a strong push on both side of this process, and we likely won’t know what the cabinet looks like until the beginning of next year.

Reform Minded

Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) says marijuana rescheduling and industry banking legislation are “half-assed measures,” and lawmakers should instead focus on legalizing cannabis under a federal regulatory framework similar to alcohol and tobacco.

He also argued hemp-derived products that are available in states across the country are “more harmful” than marijuana itself, offering “I think we’re reaching a point to where we’ve got to take a look” at comprehensive reform.

Don’t Bank on It

Democratic senators say the path to passing a bipartisan marijuana banking bill in the final weeks of the year is narrow but not impossible, with one member identifying a potential vehicle and another saying supporters are lining up a vote.

SAFER Banking Act sponsor Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) and Senate Banking Committee Chairman Sherrod Brown (D-OH) weighed in on the measure’s prospects in separate interviews with Marijuana Moment.

Merkley said he has “no idea” whether the legislation will move during the lame duck session, but that it’s possible if there’s “momentum” to insert the reform into the must-pass National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).

Heroes Zeroed

A DEA judge has rejected a veterans group’s petition to participate in an upcoming hearing on the Biden administration’s cannabis rescheduling proposal, which the organization called a “travesty of justice” that excludes key voices affected by the potential policy change.

After it was reported that Veterans Action Council was omitted from the list of 25 witnesses selected by DEA Administrator Anne Milgram, the group submitted a petition to Administrative Law Judge John Mulrooney last week, urging the agency’s judicial body to reconsider given the impact of rescheduling on veterans.

Stocks & Stuff

It was another soft session in Cannaland as towels continue to toss and tax-losses are taken. U.S cannabis ETF MSOS was off 4% when the dust settled, and is -33% YTD.

Below, we’ll top-line the landscape, digest the crosscurrents, and explore the potential pathways that could to take us from here to there.

All that and more, just scroll down.

SPY 0.00%↑ QQQ 0.00%↑ IWM 0.00%↑ MSOS 0.00%↑ ETF Notional: $55M

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