The Cannabis Freedom Alliance is an advocacy organization founded and funded by organizations affiliated with businessman Charles Koch that support the federal legalization of marijuana and other pro-marijuana measures. The group was formed in 2021 as a coalition of several right-of-center and criminal justice policy groups including Americans for Prosperity, the Reason Foundation, and the Global Alliance for Cannabis and is co-led by Angelos Weldon, a cannabis legalization advocate who spent 13 years in federal prison before being pardoned by then-President Donald Trump in 2020. ^{1 2}

Background

The Cannabis Freedom Alliance was launched in 2021 as a coalition comprised of a variety of libertarian, right-of-center, and marijuana-legalization advocacy organizations to promote the legalization, de-scheduling, and decriminalization of marijuana at the federal level. The coalition is backed by Charles Koch, the chairman and chief executive officer of Koch Industries, who along with his late brother David, is a donor to and founder of several right-leaning and libertarian nonprofit advocacy organizations and think tanks. The coalition is also directly linked to Koch’s network of organizations under the umbrella organization Stand Together, that include the Charles Koch Institute, the Charles Koch Foundation, the Stand Together Foundation, and Americans for Prosperity. ¹

The idea for the coalition originated in the summer of 2020 when marijuana legalization advocate Weldon Angelos, rapper Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. (known by the stage name Snoop Dogg), and Charles Koch held a teleconference to discuss cannabis policy. While Broadus is not officially a part of the coalition, Angelos joined the group at its inception as co-coordinator and a spokesman for the group. Angelos was pardoned by former President Donald Trump in 2020 after serving 13 years of a 55-year sentence on marijuana trafficking charges, and founded the Weldon Project, which provides services to individuals incarcerated on marijuana charges. ¹

The Hill reported that when the alliance was founded in 2021, the group saw “the Democratic majorities in the House and Senate as well as having a Democrat in the White House as an opportunity for the advancement of marijuana legislation.” ¹  A key focus of the group has been to try to sway the votes of ten to 12 Republican U.S. Senators to support marijuana legalization and other legislation relating to marijuana regulation. ¹

Activity

At its founding in 2021, Politico reported that the Cannabis Freedom Alliance claimed to “advocate for removing penalties for marijuana offenses and ensuring people from the illicit market will be able to transition to a regulated market. The group also wants regulatory frameworks that promote free markets and low tax rates.” ³

The group’s website describes its goal to promote “second chances” for former marijuana offenders and current “grey-market operators”; the removal of cannabis from the schedules of the Controlled Substances Act, also known as federal de-scheduling; promoting non-restrictive regulation around legal cannabis sales; and reasonable tax rates on cannabis. The group claims its main goal is to “end the prohibition and criminalization of cannabis in the United States in a manner consistent with helping all Americans achieve their full potential and limiting the number of barriers that inhibit innovation and entrepreneurship in a free and open market.” ²

Members

Listed members of the Cannabis Freedom Alliance coalition include the R Street Institute, Americans for Prosperity, the Weldon Project, End It for Good, the Reason Foundation, the Law Enforcement Action Partnership, Students for Liberty, the Nevada Policy Research Institute, the Taxpayers Protection Alliance, and the Consumer Choice Center. ²

1. Schnell, Mychael. “Group backed by Charles Koch joins in federal marijuana push after Zoom with Snoop” The Hill. April 6, 2021. Accessed October 26, 2024. https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/lobbying/546742-Koch-group-joins-marijuana-Snoop-dogg-coalition/
2. “Home.” Cannabis Freedom Alliance Accessed October 26, 2024. https://www.cannabisfreedomalliance.com/
3. Zhang, Mona. “Koch-backed group joins marijuana push after Zoom with Snoop Dogg.” Politico. April 6, 2021. Accessed October 26, 2024. https://www.politico.com/news/2021/04/06/charles-koch-snoop-dogg-marijuana-legalization-479148