FREEDOM TO HEAL: Why Grunt Style Foundation Stood Against Texas SB3

In a win for liberty, healing, and every veteran who’s fought to stay alive after war, Texas Governor Greg Abbott vetoed Senate Bill 3 (SB3) over the weekend, a bill that would have effectively banned hemp products and crippled the legal cannabinoid industry across the state.

For the Grunt Style Foundation, this wasn’t just politics, it was personal. The proposed legislation didn’t just threaten the bottom line of 8,000 small businesses and 50,000 jobs across Texas. It targeted access to an essential lifeline that thousands of veterans rely on for physical pain, emotional regulation, and alternative paths to healing that don’t come in a pill bottle.

We fought against SB3 because the war doesn’t end when the uniform comes off. For many veterans, it’s just beginning. And hemp-derived products, including CBD, Delta-8, and other non-synthetic cannabinoids, are among the few tools that help them stay in the fight.

Every day, 17 to 22 veterans die by suicide in the United States. That number hasn’t budged in over a decade, not because we lack data or resources, but because we keep doubling down on failed systems and turning a blind eye to better solutions.

For decades, the primary treatment path for veterans dealing with post-traumatic stress, chronic pain, insomnia, and anxiety has been prescription pharmaceuticals, many of them addictive, over-prescribed, and poorly monitored. We’ve created a system that treats the symptoms, not the soul. Veterans are handed pill bottles instead of real options. And when those pills don’t work or do more harm than good, they’re often told it’s their fault.

At the Grunt Style Foundation, we’ve seen firsthand how plant-based medicine offers a different way forward. We’ve listened to veterans who’ve gone from the brink of suicide to stability and purpose, not through SSRIs or opioids, but through safe, consistent use of legal cannabinoids like CBD and Delta-8. We’ve seen warriors who couldn’t sleep through the night finally find peace. We’ve heard stories of chronic pain managed without addiction. And we’ve watched as lives were rebuilt not through sedation, but through restoration.

SB3 Was a Direct Threat to That Progress.

Senate Bill 3, as passed by the Texas legislature, would have effectively outlawed Delta-8, Delta-9, and Delta-10 THC products derived from hemp, including full-spectrum CBD formulations. It was a blunt-force attempt to erase the legal cannabinoid market under the false pretense of public safety.

What it would have actually done is:

• Eliminate access to non-intoxicating, non-addictive, over-the-counter products used by thousands of veterans for pain and PTSD
• Bankrupt hundreds of veteran-owned hemp businesses that form the backbone of a $2+ billion industry in Texas
• Remove patient choice from the healing process and drive desperate individuals back toward addictive or black-market alternatives
• Create a legislative precedent that ignores the growing body of research supporting cannabis as a viable medical and mental health aid

Texas leads the nation in veteran population. We also lead in veteran suicides. That’s not a coincidencE, and it’s not acceptable.

Governor Abbott’s decision to veto SB3 was more than a political move. It was a response to an overwhelming outcry from the people: veterans, small business owners, law enforcement, advocates, doctors, and families all unified in one message, don’t criminalize healing.

The Grunt Style Foundation stood in lockstep with those voices. We used our platforms to inform, engage, and mobilize the community. We coordinated with veteran advocates and wellness professionals. We met with the staffs of the Lt Gov. and Governor.  And we proudly put our name behind every effort to protect access to legal, plant-based medicine in this state.

Because we believe in freedom, not just the kind you fight for overseas, but the kind that lets you choose what goes into your body, how you manage your pain, and what path you take toward healing.

Why We Support Plant-Based Medicine

Our support of cannabinoids is not blind endorsement, it’s informed belief. We advocate for:

• Veteran-led education around safe, therapeutic use of cannabinoids
• Descheduling of cannabis from its current federal classification so it can be studied, regulated, and responsibly implemented
• Access to natural alternatives for chronic pain, sleep issues, and mental health challenges, especially for those failed by conventional treatments
• Policy rooted in data, not fear-mongering

Science continues to show that cannabinoids can reduce opioid dependency, improve mood regulation, and support neuroplasticity in PTSD patients. What we need now isn’t a ban, we need responsible frameworks that support access, oversight, and progress.

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When you take away legal access to hemp and cannabinoids, you don’t eliminate the demand. You push people into darker places: illegal markets, synthetic knockoffs, and back into the arms of the very pharmaceutical systems that caused the crisis in the first place.

Banning a veteran’s right to choose plant-based medicine is a betrayal. It reinforces the message that their experiences don’t matter, their needs don’t count, and their lives are expendable once the uniform is off.

We refuse to accept that. And we will continue to fight against every law, every bill, and every barrier that puts politics ahead of people.

Governor Abbott’s veto was a moment of truth. But the battle for access, education, and reform isn’t over. Texas, and the nation, must take a hard look at the policies that keep veterans sick, sedated, and silent.

Grunt Style Foundation will continue to lead from the front by:

• Launching educational campaigns about cannabis and veteran wellness
• Partnering with alternative healing programs like Warriors Heart, HBOT clinics, and veteran-led co-ops
• Holding policymakers accountable when they try to strip away our rights
• Supporting national reform efforts that treat cannabis as medicine, not a crime

This is our mission. Not because it’s trendy, but because it’s right.

If we believe in freedom, we must believe in the freedom to heal.
If we believe in patriotism, we must protect the patriots who come home broken and still fight every damn day.

And if we believe in this country, we must give its warriors more than empty slogans and expired prescriptions.

The war on cannabis is a war on choice. The veto of SB3 was a win, but the war isn’t over. The Grunt Style Foundation will remain on the frontlines until every veteran has the tools they need to fight for themselves and win.

Cannabis helps. Veterans know it. Texas just remembered.