💸 The Tape

In Thai politics, survival often means knowing when to sit tight—and when to bolt. Anutin Charnvirakul, the 58-year-old leader of the Bhumjaithai Party, chose the latter just hours after the leaked phone call that doomed then-Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra in June. By walking out of the ruling coalition, flirting briefly with the opposition, and then biding his time, Anutin positioned himself for a moment decades in the making.

Last week, parliament handed him a decisive victory, voting overwhelmingly to make him Thailand’s next prime minister. True to form, Anutin abstained from voting for himself, preferring instead to pose with lawmakers and field congratulatory phone calls on the House floor.

Anutin’s ascent is the culmination of a political career equal parts resilience and reinvention. He began with Thaksin Shinawatra’s Thai Rak Thai party, was sidelined by a court-ordered ban in 2007, and re-emerged as Bhumjaithai’s leader in 2012. Along the way, he built a reputation as a pragmatist with friends in both farm country and the conservative establishment, a rare feat in Thailand’s fractured politics.

Though he never grabbed the premiership in past elections, he became a household name as health minister, guiding Thailand through COVID-19 and pushing through the country’s historic 2022 cannabis legalization—a move that raised eyebrows abroad and debate at home. Since 2023, he’s served as interior minister in successive Pheu Thai governments, sharpening his image as a deal-maker in the political middle.

Analysts describe him as “cut from the same cloth” as Thaksin—practical, ambitious, and royalist to the core. That balancing act has made Bhumjaithai less a niche party and more a bridge between populist factions and the palace-aligned conservatives who have repeatedly reshaped Thailand’s democracy through coups and courtrooms.

Now, Anutin inherits a daunting agenda: an economy flirting with stagnation, simmering border tensions with Cambodia, and a restless electorate weary of constant political churn. The irony isn’t lost that he takes power just as Thailand debates how to handle the cannabis boom he helped create.

Outside politics, Anutin is known for his collection of Buddhist amulets and his hobby of recreational flying—skills that might come in handy as turbulence looms. Whether his tenure will mean steady cruising or another nosedive in Thailand’s perpetual power struggle remains to be seen. But one thing is clear: after decades of circling the runway, Anutin has finally taken off.

📈 Dog Walkers

The Champ Is Bullish On Reform

Whats Going On Here: Iron Mike isn’t pulling punches when it comes to marijuana reform. On The Katie Miller Podcast, Tyson argued that cannabis is medicine and shouldn’t be shackled under the government’s harshest drug laws. “Afraid of a little flower,” he quipped, calling out politicians for keeping weed on par with heroin while ignoring its benefits. Tyson, who built his Tyson 2.0 brand around the plant, even shrugged off the risks of overindulgence, noting the worst that usually happens is you fall asleep.

While he briefly misstated cannabis’s current status, Tyson is laser-focused on the Biden-initiated, Trump-considered move to shift marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III. That wouldn’t legalize the plant, but it would finally acknowledge medical value, open research doors, and—most critically for cannabis businesses—unlock long-denied federal tax deductions.

Tyson says he hasn’t spoken directly with Trump on the matter but has been in conversations with administration insiders and expects “good news” soon. For the champ, rescheduling isn’t about politics—it’s about common sense, healing, and letting the legal industry fight back against outdated laws.

Full Episode

Mississippi Wants To See Change

What’s Going On Here: Mississippi’s medical cannabis program may be green, but industry advocates say it’s far from mature. The Mississippi Medical Marijuana Association (3MA), which helped push Initiative 65 into law, is now lobbying for changes to make the system more patient-friendly.

At the top of their list? Potency caps. Right now, flower can’t exceed 30% THC and concentrates top out at 60%. According to 3MA director Harry Crissler, those limits don’t protect patients—they just make them burn through more product. “By capping it, you’re not stopping anyone from getting ‘higher,’ you’re just costing them more,” he noted. Worse, growers often have to dilute concentrates with outside substances to comply, which isn’t exactly a win for public health.

The association also wants doctors, not lawmakers, to decide who qualifies. Unlike prescriptions for Xanax or opioids, Mississippi requires a strict condition list, which Crissler argues undermines patient-doctor trust.

Finally, they’re calling for common-sense tweaks: stretching patient card renewals to 24 months instead of one year, and scrapping the mandatory six-month follow-up appointment. In short, 3MA’s message to lawmakers is simple: let patients and practitioners, not politics, lead the way.

🗞️ The News

📺 YouTube

Jerome Powell's Next Move: Will Cannabis Reform Drop with Rate Cut? I TTB Powered by Dutchie

What we will cover:

✅ Could cannabis rescheduling be timed with a Federal Reserve rate cut? With Jerome Powell expected to announce lower interest rates at next week’s Fed meeting, questions are mounting about whether the Trump administration could use the moment to roll out cannabis reform. The timing would be significant—rescheduling has the potential to instantly create close to 500,000 jobs, aligning with a narrative of economic growth and stability.

In today’s TDR Trade to Black podcast, host Shadd Dales and co-host Anthony Varrell break down the latest news and developments involving cannabis reform on both the federal and state levels.

We’ll also look at how Smart Approaches to Marijuana (SAM) has shifted its messaging, now leaning into the “Make America Healthy Again” theme instead of outright opposition. Does this signal an acknowledgment that rescheduling is on its way—or is it just politics?

Beyond policy, we’ll cover Curaleaf Holdings (TSX: CURA, OTCQX: CURLF) being added to the S&P/TSX Index, a milestone that underscores its global credibility and growing recognition among Canadian investors.