Joe Rogan and President Donald Trump looked as thick as thieves as they shook hands at the Oval Office, with the political commentator taking some credit for a recent change to how psychedelics are viewed in the eyes of the law. This seemingly goes against recent whispers that there's a growing rift between the pair, but is there more to the story?
With The Joe Rogan Experience considered the world's most popular podcast, the host has some serious sway. As well as having Donald Trump appear as a guest, Rogan has been praised for helping the POTUS connect with a younger audience in the run-up to the 2024 election. The favor has been returned, as apparently, all it took was a text to the Commander-in-Chief to spur on a recent reevaluation of psychedelics like ibogaine.
As well as being championed by army veterans as a potential treatment for PTSD and depression, Joe Rogan has been a vocal supporter of ibogaine. While it's legal in countries like Australia and New Zealand under prescription, it's available in Mexico through unregulated clinics, and is illegal as a Schedule I-controlled substance in the USA.
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At the time of writing, simple possession of a controlled substance means you could face a minimum fine of $1,000 and a year in prison. That could all be about to change as Trump has instructed the Food and Drug Administration to expedite research into ibogaine and other psychedelics, dropping $50 millon into the cause.
There have been continued rumors that there's trouble in paradise between Trump and Rogan, and speaking on a recent episode of his podcast, the latter claims the president repeatedly called him 'liberal' when they met at the White House.
Rogan explained, "He joked about it, he called me a liberal during the whole thing," then imitated Trump as he said, "He’s very liberal."
We saw this in action, as Trump told reporters at the event: "We all respect Joe. He’s a little bit more liberal than I am. That’s okay, I have a lot of friends that are liberal, but Joe is an amazing guy."
Rogan went on to explain a recent incident at a UFC fight, where the press claimed the two were locked in what looked like an argument.
Claiming this wasn't the case, Rogan maintains the two were having a passionate conversation about the psychedelics effort: "Literally, he sees me at the UFC the next day, shakes my hand, and says it’s done. That’s what he was saying. I said, ‘Thank you, sir.’ It wasn’t like he was mad at me at all. It was the opposite."
While President Trump recently went on the rampage against podcasters like Tucker Carlson, Megyn Kelly, and Candace Owens, Rogan seems to have escaped his ire. Whereas Trump has even called out Pope Leo XVI, Rogan's criticisms of the president have been ignored.
Rogan hasn't been afraid to call out the current administration, recently throwing shade Trump's way as he said: "Look, the Epstein files come out — we go to war with Iran. It’s a good way to get people to stop talking about certain things."
For now, it seems Joe Rogan is still in the president's good books.