¶ Overview
Maine gubernatorial candidate Bobby Charles made fighting drug proliferation a cornerstone of his campaign, but his lobbying firm, The Charles Group, LLC lobbied for a pharmaceutical company that manufactured Zephrex-D, a pseudoephedrine product its makers sought to sell over the counter despite evidence it could be converted into methamphetamine.
From 2013 to 2016, The Charles Group, LLC received more than $30,000 to lobby for Westport Pharmaceuticals while it pushed Zephrex-D as a “meth resistant” drug. After the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency chemists successfully made methamphetamine from Zephrex-D, the DEA challenged Westport’s “meth-resistant” claims. The DEA refused to approve over-the-counter sales of Zephrex-D, and required pseudoephedrine products to be sold behind the counter.
¶ The Charles Group, LLC Received More Than $30,000 To Lobby For Westport Pharmaceuticals As It Promoted Zyphrex-D, A Drug That DEA Chemists Were Able To Make Meth From
¶ The Charles Group, LLC Received More Than $30,000 From Westport Pharmaceuticals While It Pushed Zephrex-D As “Meth Resistant”
Portland Press Herald: From 2013 To 2016, Charles’ Lobbying Firm Collected More Than $30,000 From Westport Pharmaceuticals, Whose “Meth-Resistant” Drug Claims Were Challenged By The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency. According to the Portland Press Herald, "In addition to working in the federal government and serving as an assistant U.S. secretary of state in the George W. Bush administration, Charles founded a consulting firm, the Charles Group, in 1999. In order to gain insight into the relationships he forged during his long career in D.C., the Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram reviewed close to 600 lobbying reports filed by the Charles Group between 2000 and 2026. [...] Between 2013 and 2016, it collected over $30,000 from Westport Pharmaceuticals, a company that at the time was trying to develop a pseudoephedrine product resistant to being broken down into methamphetamine. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency pushed back on the company’s marketing of its decongestant, Zephrex-D, as meth-resistant. The feds said their agents were, in fact, able to synthesize the drug into meth.” [Portland Press Herald, 9/12/26]
- Highland Pharmaceuticals Manufactured Zephrex-D, While Westport Pharmaceuticals Was A Highland Subsidiary. According to Patch, “Zephrex-D is manufactured by Maryland Heights based Highland Pharmaceuticals. Westport Pharmaceuticals is a subsidiary of Highland.” [Patch, 11/15/12]
Charles Said His Firm’s Work With Westport Pharmaceuticals Was Intended To Stop “Mom And Pop” Meth Makers From Accessing Pseudoephedrine That Could Be Broken Down. According to the Portland Press Herald, “Charles said the advisory work his firm did with the company was to try and mitigate the use of over-the-counter pseudoephedrine tabs in meth production. ‘The innovation was specifically to stop the ability of ‘mom and pop’ meth makers from accessing a version of pseudoephedrine that could be chemically broken down,’ he said." [Portland Press Herald, 9/12/26]
¶ Westport Pharmaceuticals Was Charles’ Client When The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Refused To Allow Zephrex-D To Be Sold Over-The-Counter As DEA Agents Were Able To Synthesize The Drug Into Meth
HEADLINE: "DEA Won't Let Zephrex-D Be Sold Over The Counter" [SF Gate, 9/10/13]
Westport Pharmaceuticals Was Charles’ Client When The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency Pushed Back On Westport’s Claim Zephrex-D Was “Meth Resistant” After DEA Agents Were Able To Synthesize The Drug Into Meth. According to the Portland Press Herald, "Between 2013 and 2016, it collected over $30,000 from Westport Pharmaceuticals, a company that at the time was trying to develop a pseudoephedrine product resistant to being broken down into methamphetamine. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency pushed back on the company’s marketing of its decongestant, Zephrex-D, as meth-resistant. The feds said their agents were, in fact, able to synthesize the drug into meth.” [Portland Press Herald, 9/12/26]
September 2013: The Drug Enforcement Administration Refused To Approve Over-The-Counter Sales Of Zephrex-D, As Methamphetamine Could Be Manufactured From The Product. According to Medical Xpress, "The Drug Enforcement Administration refuses to allow Zephrex-D to be sold over the counter, saying government chemists were able to manufacture methamphetamine from the product. [...] Nonetheless, the DEA insisted Tuesday that Zephrex-D must be sold from behind the counter like all other pseudoephedrine products." [Medical Xpress, 9/10/13]
¶ The Drug Enforcement Administration Rejected Westport Pharmaceuticals’ “Meth-Resistant” Claims After Its Chemists Successfully Made Methamphetamine From Zephrex-D
2013: The Drug Enforcement Administration Agent James Shroba Said Its Chemists Successfully Made Methamphetamine From Westport Pharmaceuticals’ Zephrex-D Despite The Company’s “Meth-Resistant” Claims. According to the Associated Press via Daily Herald, “James Shroba, the DEA’s acting special agent in charge of the St. Louis office, sent Westport Pharmaceuticals a letter dated May 6 that called the Maryland Heights, Mo., company out on its marketing of the cold and allergy medication. Shroba said claims that Zephrex-D is meth-resistant are wrong since DEA chemists were, in fact, able to make meth from it. Westport Pharmaceuticals began selling Zephrex-D last year, claiming it was the first to come up with a form of pseudoephedrine that couldn’t be used in meth production.” [Associated Press via Daily Herald, 5/29/13]
- 2013: Westport Pharmaceuticals Claimed Zephrex-D’s Patented Tarex Technology Made The Product “Meth Resistant” And Met Food And Drug Administration Over-The-Counter Requirements. According to a press release from Westport Pharmaceuticals, "The meth resistant properties of Zephrex-D® are provided by Tarex®, an innovative, patented technology that delivers pharmaceuticals in a locking formulation that provides 100% pseudoephedrine relief while deterring misuse of the medication. Zephrex-D® meets all Food and Drug Administration (FDA) over-the-counter (OTC) monograph requirements for products containing pseudoephedrine HCl." [Press Release – Westport Pharmaceuticals, 9/5/13]
¶ The Drug Enforcement Administration Denied Westport's Request To Exempt Zephrex-D From The U.S. Combat Meth Act
2012: Westport Pharmaceuticals Applied For An Exemption From The U.S. Combat Methamphetamine Epidemic Act For Zephrex-D, But The Drug Enforcement Administration Denied The Request. According to the Associated Press via Daily Herald, "The U.S. Combat Meth Act requires that pseudoephedrine products be sold behind the counter. Buyers must show identification and their names are entered into a tracking database. [...] In March 2012, Westport applied for an exemption to the federal Combat Meth Act. The DEA informed Westport in December that the exemption was denied." [Associated Press via Daily Herald, 5/29/13]
¶ Charles Made Fighting Meth And Drug Trafficking A Cornerstone Of His Campaign
¶ Charles Campaigned On Removing Meth And Other Illegal Drugs From Maine
April 2026: Charles Claimed Maine Was “Being Flooded” With Fentanyl, Meth, And “Synthetic Poison,” And Promised To “Shut It Down” As Governor. According to Charles’s Twitter, "Maine is being flooded with drugs, fentanyl, meth, and synthetic poison. This is destroying our communities. This didn’t happen by accident. Augusta proactively let it happen. Weak policies. No accountability. I’ll shut it down. Period."
[Twitter, @Bobby4Maine, 4/3/26]
January 2026: Charles Said Maine’s Governor Had A Duty To “Get The Meth Out Of Here” And Drive Drug Traffickers Out Of The State. According to Charles on the George Hale Ric Tyler Show, "But we also have to, you know, honestly, we have to look at it closer to home here, and we have to start understanding that we're here in the state of Maine. The governor's job is to protect the people of the state of Maine, get those who are addicted off the addiction. Get the get the drug traffickers out of here once and for all. The big foreign traffickers. Get the meth out of here. Get the fentanyl out of here. Get the cocaine out of here. Get the heroin out of here, and start thinking about, well, Maine first." [Bobby Charles, George Hale Ric Tyler Show, 1/9/26] (AUDIO)