Puff, Puff, Pass: No Comment Ken Paxton Under Fire for “Turning and Bolting” Away from Questions on Texas THC Ban
San Antonio Current: “Ken Paxton says he doesn’t know ‘details’ of Texas’ THC ban — even though he’s the state’s top legal office”
Marijuana Moment: “Paxton, in fact, has sued to overturn local voter-approved marijuana decriminalization laws in several cities across Texas.”
AUSTIN, TX — No Comment Ken Paxton is under fire for refusing to answer questions on Texas’ new THC ban before “turning and bolting” from a constituent. In a now viral video, Paxton claimed he did not “know the details of” the Texas ban, despite being the state’s chief law enforcement officer and calling for some of the strictest marijuana penalties in the country.
The awkward dodge prompted advocates to point out that “Ken Paxton’s office has been responsible for litigating every hemp lawsuit since 2019 [...] With this resume, we’d run away from this question too!” Texas journalists also pointed out the hypocrisy calling it, “wild” and saying they have “sat through countless hours of his employees explaining why a judge needs to let them ban THCA.”
Read for yourself:
San Antonio Current: Ken Paxton says he doesn’t know ‘details’ of Texas’ THC ban — even though he’s the state’s top legal officer
August 17, 2026
By Michael Karlis
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who’s running for U.S. Senate, is catching fresh flak this week for failing to answer questions about the state’s new THC ban — even though he’s the Lone Star State’s chief legal officer.
Over the weekend, a clip posted on X by independent political journalist Aaron Rupar shows a young man asking Paxton to share his thoughts on Texas’ controversial ban on hemp products that contain THC, the compound in cannabis that gets people high.
“Um, I don’t know the details of it, but let’s talk about it later,” Paxton responds before scurrying away from the unidentified man.
Last month, a Texas Supreme Court ruling enabled the Texas Department of State Health Services to enforce a Schedule I drug classification on THC-derived products including Delta-8 and Delta-10 products, as well as smokable Delta-9 products.
Under that reclassification, Texas can treat possession of the products as a state jail felony, which carries a punishment of 180 days to two years in prison along with fines of up to $10,000.
Even so, some ingestible Delta-9 products, including beverages and gummies, can still be purchased legally in Texas.
Paxton’s office has been responsible for litigating every hemp-related lawsuit in Texas since 2019 and sued five Texas cities in 2024 that locally decriminalized marijuana possession through ballot referendums.
That wasn’t lost on X users, who ridiculed the attorney general for claiming he didn’t know much about the state’s latest THC ban.
“Uhhh… you don’t know the details of a law in the state where you are in charge of enforcing the laws?” Texas Democratic House nominee Sara McGee fired back. “And this particular law is currently involved in litigation involving YOUR office.”
Paxton’s latest flub comes with Election Day less than three months away. His campaign’s fundraising lags behind that of his opponent, Democratic State Rep. James Talarico. What’s more, RealClearPolitics shows Talarico with an average 46% to 44.8% lead in polls.
Earlier this month, right-wing podcaster Joe Rogan warned Republicans that Texas’ THC ban could further hurt Paxton’s chances of winning the general election.
“Kids will turn on you if you tell them they can’t smoke weed,” Rogan said. “You will fuck this place up, and you will turn the whole fucking thing blue.”
Meanwhile, Talarico, in a recent interview with El Paso-based NBC affiliate KTSM-TV, accused Paxton of supporting Texas’ THC ban to enrich donors in the alcohol and tobacco industries.
“It doesn’t make sense until you follow the money and realize that it is big beer and big tobacco that are funding the politicians like Ken Paxton, who turned around and banned these safe THC products in order to enrich the big beer and big tobacco lobby,” Talarico told the TV station.
Marijuana Moment: Texas Democrats Call Out Paxton For Dodging Cannabis Question As Joe Rogan Warns THC Ban Could Turn The State Blue
August 17, 2026
By Tom Angell
The Texas Democratic Party is calling out the Republican candidate in a high-stakes election for a seat to represent the state in the U.S. Senate over his refusal to answer a question about cannabis policy.
The party is also pointing to a warning that podcaster Joe Rogan issued to Republicans, saying they will turn the state blue by pushing too hard to crack down on the availability of THC products.
State Attorney General Ken Paxton (R), who is the GOP nominee for a Senate seat that’s on the ballot in November, was shown in a video posted to X on Saturday being asked what his thoughts are on the “state’s THC ban.”
“I don’t know the details of it, but let’s talk later,” he replied before quickly stepping away.
Paxton, in fact, has sued to overturn local voter-approved marijuana decriminalization laws in several cities across Texas.
His office has also defended hemp product restrictions in court against lawsuits from the industry. That includes a recently enacted ban on certain hemp-derived THC cannabis products, including those containing delta-8 and delta-10 THC. Now classified as Schedule I drugs under state law, possession is treated as a felony, carrying a punishment of 180 days to two years in prison and fines of up to $10,000.
A judge last week declined hemp companies’ request to impose a temporary restraining order on the THC crackdown while the overall litigation is considered.
The Texas Democratic Party pounced on Paxton’s inability to answer the cannabis question, saying in a press release that he appeared to be “in a panic” when being pressed about the “incredibly unpopular” THC ban before proceeding to “run away” from the questioner.
“They’ve done the THC thing,” [Joe Rogan] said. “Here’s what Texas doesn’t understand. You will fuck this place up and you will turn the whole thing blue.”
“Kids will turn on you if you tell them they can’t smoke weed,” Rogan said. “They know weed’s not killing anybody.”
Meanwhile, the Democrat in the Senate race, James Talarico, supports legalizing marijuana and suggested in a recent interview that that Paxton supports banning cannabis in order to aid his political donors in the alcohol and tobacco industries.
“It doesn’t make any sense until you follow the money and realize that it is big beer and big tobacco that are funding the politicians, like Ken Paxton, who turned around and banned these safe THC products in order to enrich the big beer and a big tobacco lobby,” Talarico, who currently serves as a state representative, said.
In a separate interview earlier this month, the Democratic candidate said that keeping marijuana illegal while also moving to restrict hemp THC products is an “insane” form of “corruption.”
“Think about what industries are most worried about THC products being readily available: Big Beer, Big Tobacco, right? And so they were the ones pushing this THC ban because it hurts their bottom line,” he said. “And a lot of research shows that THC—cannabis—these products are safer and less addictive than than beer or tobacco.”
“And so to me, this is a prime example of what corruption looks like when you’ve got big industries buying politicians and pushing bills that harm people, but benefit them financially,” Talarico said.
Voters in Houston will decide on an initiative to make misdemeanor marijuana possession the “lowest possible enforcement priority” for local police on the November ballot.
August 15, 2026
By Bennito L. Kelty
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who's running for Senate, clammed up when he was asked about his state's THC ban.
In a clip posted on Saturday, he was asked by a young man, who didn't appear to be trying to confront Paxton, what he thought about Texas' marijuana ban. President Donald Trump notably endorsed Paxton, who has the Republican nomination for the Senate.
"Uhm. I don't know the details of it," Paxton said. "Let's talk later," he said before turning and bolting from the young man.
Journalist Aaron Rupar noted that Paxton is currently being sued after trying to enforce Texas' ban to the maximum extent possible, "so this is a lie!" Podcaster Joe Rogan also called out Texas Republicans earlier this week for going after marijuana and said it would hurt Paxton's chances of beating James Talarico in the Senate race.
"Kids will turn on you if you tell them they can't smoke weed," Rogan said. "You will f— this place up, and you will turn the whole thing blue."
Similarly, other online reactions called out Paxton for his response in light of his record and embattled Senate campaign.
"Ken Paxton's office has been responsible for litigating every hemp lawsuit since 2019 and currently ongoing," wrote the Texas Cannabis Collective, an advocacy group, in a reaction on X. "He also sued five Texas cities who locally decriminalized marijuana possession through ballot referendum, overturning hundreds of thousands of Texas votes. Ken Paxton's record on cannabis is absolutely abysmal. With this resume, we'd run away from this question too!"
"Uhhh...you don't know the details of a law in the state where you are in charge of enforcing the laws?" asked Sara McGee, a Democratic nominee for a House seat in Texas. "And this particular law is currently involved in litigation involving YOUR office. Y'all."
"Sounds like an awful Attorney General who would be an awful senator," wrote Russell Foster, a former Democratic congressional candidate from Texas. "We don't need that level of lying or stupidity in Congress. If he lies about something as simple as this, can we trust him at all?"
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