By Ray Cardello for February 19, 2024, Season 1 / Post 13

Maine is the “whitest” state in the country, but the demographics of The Pine Tree State have been changing significantly in the last thirty years. Legal and illegal immigration is driving this change, and the percentage of foreign borns in Maine has increased by 20,000 in those three decades. Asians account for 20% of the 56,000 immigrant residents. Unfortunately, not all those folks calling Maine home are here for the state’s beauty but more for the opportunities afforded by a Progressive environment and understaffed law enforcement. Many are fueling the growth of the illegal marijuana farming industry, which is threatening the safety of all Mainers.

There are close to 300 illegal Chinese-owned pot farms known in Central and Northern Maine. The rural regions of the state are conducive to these clandestine operations. The Local and State Police are ill-equipped to combat the scope of this problem, and the Federal officials of Maine have been asking for help from Merrick Garland, the DOJ, and DHS since last August. Their efforts, including the letter below, have gone unanswered.

The text of the letter sent by Senators Susan Collins and Angus King, and Representatives Chellie Pingree and Jared Golden:

Dear Attorney General Garland:

We write to express our concerns about recent reports of a memo produced and circulated by Border Patrol officials regarding alleged illegal Chinese marijuana growing operations in the state of Maine.1 According to that memo, law enforcement in the state have identified 270 suspected properties that have been used as illegal Chinese growing operations, producing an estimated $4.37 billion in revenue. These illegal growing operations are detrimental to Maine businesses that comply with State laws, and we urge the Department of Justice (DOJ) to shut them down.

Maine state law permits marijuana use in certain circumstances, and the Maine Office of Cannabis Policy (OCP) provides oversight. OCP is responsible for licensing, compliance, and general oversight of both medical marijuana use and recreational use, and it consults with other state agencies—including the Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry; the Department of Health and Human Services; the Department of Labor; and the Department of Public Safety—on rulemaking related to their areas of expertise.

These reports of illegal growing operations within the state are alarming, and we are writing to request additional information about what the DOJ is doing to address this situation. We request answers to the following questions:

1. What is the DOJ doing to address illegal growing operations, including illegal growing operations that are run by foreign governments or entities?
2. How are the profits from these illegal operations being returned to the country of origin?
3. These reports identify Chinese ownership. Is the DOJ aware of this alleged Chinese ownership or any other foreign involvement in these operations?
4. Please provide any additional information about the memo identified in these reports, including who produced it, when the information contained in the memo was first obtained, and what actions have been taken in response?
5. What action is the DOJ taking to swiftly shutdown any illegal marijuana growing operations in the state of Maine?

Thank you for your attention to this important matter.

Sincerely,

It seems like an appropriate letter that will evoke a response from the Attorney General, and help will be heading northeast to save the day. But you would be wrong. The Attorney General has yet to respond to this letter or the next from 51 Federal officers. The AG seems unconcerned with the Chinese Cartel setting up business in Maine, the Dakotas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, or California. Can we assume, at this point, six months from the first letter, that because the illegal pot farming situation is connected to the CCP and Joe Biden is in the pocket of the Chinese, the Chinese have free reign in Maine or anywhere else they want to operate?

Nobody in China leaves without the CCP knowing their intent or destination. The 30,000 Chinese Nationals who have crossed our southern border illegally are here at the direction of the CCP. Setting up illegal pot farms, human and sex trafficking, and using American tax dollars to bankroll them is on the CCP. The results of what these people do is on Joe Biden. The President is either directing the DOJ to disregard the situation, or he is complicit. Joe Biden is selling out rural America, which is key to China’s takeover of America. Too simplistic? Then, give another hypothesis.