[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 88 (Wednesday, May 24, 2023)]
[House]
[Pages H2591-H2592]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     FENTANYL EPIDEMIC WREAKS HAVOC

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of 
January 9, 2023, the gentleman from Alabama (Mr. Strong) is recognized 
for 60 minutes as the designee of the majority leader.


                             General Leave

  Mr. STRONG. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to 
include extraneous material on the subject of this Special Order.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Burlison). Is there objection to the 
request of the gentleman from Alabama?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. STRONG. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today because fentanyl is an epidemic in America. 
In counties and cities across America, families are being destroyed by 
fentanyl overdoses. Doctors and nurses in emergency departments 
throughout our country see it every day. Paramedics, emergency medical 
technicians, police officers, and deputy sheriffs see it on the front 
line.
  China provides precursors to Mexico, who, in turn, produces this 
deadly drug. We have seen what happens next. Every day mules illegally 
cross the U.S. border by the thousands, bringing fentanyl to 
communities across our country. It is killing 300 people every day.
  The Secretary of Homeland Security has testified before Members of 
this body that we have operational control of the southern border. 
Americans know the truth. At this rate, fentanyl is on track to steal 
an entire generation from our country.
  As a first responder, licensed emergency medical technician for more 
than 34 years, I have seen it up close. I have personally had to shoot 
Narcan up the noses of children in an effort to save their lives. That 
is something that no child should have to experience and no parent 
should have to witness.
  According to the CDC, fentanyl is 50 times stronger than heroin and 
100 times stronger than morphine. So far in fiscal year 2023, Customs 
and Border Patrol have seized over 17,000 pounds of fentanyl coming 
across the southern border. Again, in 2023, Customs and Border Patrol 
have seized 17,000 pounds of fentanyl coming across the southern 
border.
  This year Madison County, Alabama, which I represent, is reporting 25 
confirmed fentanyl overdoses through the coroner's office with 35 
suspected overdose cases pending.
  The devastation this drug is leaving as it infects the United States 
is something to be mourned. I can say this gruesome nature of fentanyl 
is destroying lives, families, and communities. It does not 
discriminate.
  More and more often we see other dangerous drugs such as 
methamphetamine, heroin, cocaine, and even marijuana, being laced with 
fentanyl without the knowledge of the user.
  In the wake of surge in illegal immigration and drug smuggling at the 
southern border, we are at risk to witness unprecedented spikes in 
fentanyl overdoses. Fentanyl is already running rampant in our country, 
and we must take action. My concerns reflect those of my own 
constituents and countless others around the United States, especially 
those who live and have been forever changed by fentanyl.
  To solve problems, you must first admit you have one. We have gotten 
here because of this administration's reckless border policies. I am 
proud of the legislation that we have come together to advance in the 
House this Congress. We must continue to look for ways to equip law 
enforcement with essential tools to stop the spread of fentanyl and 
give us the support we need on more research of this vicious drug.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Utah (Mr. Owens).
  Mr. OWENS. Mr. Speaker, I am proud to join my friend, Representative 
Dale Strong, and many of my Republican colleagues today in full support 
of the HALT Fentanyl Act.
  Last year, the Drug Enforcement Administration seized 379 million 
deadly doses of fentanyl. This week 30,000 fentanyl pills, enough to 
kill 1.8 million people, were recovered in Utah during a routine 
traffic stop.
  This deadly drug is pouring across our southern border and wreaking 
havoc in communities across the country.
  Fentanyl is now the number one cause of death for young people aged 
18 to 45 and poses more danger to young Americans than COVID, car 
accidents, and suicide combined.
  The Biden administration and open-border Democrats have for 2 years 
ignored the border security crisis and the surge in drug trafficking. 
America's misery has become the Democrats' political strategy.
  The HALT Fentanyl Act delivers on one of the House Republicans' 
pledges under our Commitment to America, a Nation that is safe.
  The HALT Fentanyl Act will permanently classify fentanyl-related 
substances into schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act and close 
the criminal code loophole to apply the current minimum sentencing for 
illicit drugs to fentanyl.
  It also empowers law enforcement with the tools needed to keep these 
dangerous drugs off our streets.
  It will support research efforts to understand the effects of 
fentanyl-related substances on the health of Americans.
  The House GOP recently passed Secure the Border Act--the strongest 
border security legislative package in America's history--to address 
the border security crisis, increase Border Patrol agents, and to end 
the flow of deadly fentanyl.
  These two landmark pieces of legislation will finally tackle the 
ever-worsening catastrophe at the border, save American lives from 
deadly drugs, and support our law enforcement officers who risk their 
lives to protect and serve our communities.
  I urge the Biden administration and my colleagues across the aisle to 
support these commonsense, innovative solutions to our Nation's most 
pressing challenges.
  Mr. STRONG. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. 
Cloud).

                              {time}  1930

  Mr. CLOUD. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Alabama for 
putting this Special Order hour together and for the great work he is 
doing to represent Alabama.
  Mr. Speaker, everyone knows that our government spending is 
completely out of control and that Congress has too often prioritized 
wants over needs while American families continue to struggle. It needs 
to stop now.
  House Republicans are prioritizing good governance and are actively 
working to put this country back on the path of fiscal responsibility.
  We did our job when we passed the Limit, Save, Grow Act weeks ago to 
responsibly raise the debt ceiling and, far more importantly, to cut 
out-of-control spending and burdensome regulations on American workers, 
industries, and the creative industry that this Nation has.
  We are fighting for policies that put more money back in the pockets 
of hardworking Americans. We want to save the American people money by 
cutting funding for woke, weaponized spending and cutting inflationary 
spending by $1 trillion in the first year and almost $5 trillion over 
the next 10 years.
  We want to protect the American people from being the target of 
87,000 new agents hired by the IRS.
  We want to ensure that the American people have reliable energy.
  Just a couple of years ago, we were energy dominant. We do not want 
to enter the world where because of the green new delusion that 
benefits China, the leftist elite, and big corporations--we do not want 
to live in that world where the American people have to wonder if they 
have a reliable source of energy.

[[Page H2592]]

  We want to guarantee that the American people who either choose not 
to attend college--they go into a field of their choosing--and people 
who responsibly have paid off their student loans won't be footing the 
bill for those who go to elite universities and often take career paths 
that don't lead to good jobs or a sustainable future.
  What do Biden and the left want? More government, more spending, more 
inflation, more corporate subsidies, and less freedom.
  We have made it clear that cutting woke, weaponized spending is a 
must to govern our Nation responsibly. Our Nation cannot afford it.
  There are so many examples. We want to strengthen our border. We want 
safe communities. We want to solve the fentanyl crisis.
  We just heard a lot of talking from the left that the sky will fall 
if we get back to fiscal responsibility. Just today, the U.S. Embassy 
in Brazil put out this tweet of a video of our Embassy teaching people 
how to say their proper pronouns. That is not the role of the State 
Department.
  The State Department helps to ensure that we have strong national 
security and that we have strong allies, and in the words of one of the 
people who responded to it: I identify as a U.S. taxpayer, and I would 
like you to stop funding this craziness.
  Mr. Speaker, we are focused on getting back to good governance. We 
are focused on putting this country back on the path of responsibility. 
I urge the administration to come to the table sooner rather than later 
to address this debt ceiling and issue the beginning steps of getting 
this country back in order.
  This is our moment. This country's fiscal future is on the brink, and 
the success of the American worker is on the brink. We need to hold the 
line.
  Mr. STRONG. Mr. Speaker, I thank the Congressman for his remarks.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield to the distinguished gentleman from Texas (Mr. 
Babin).
  Mr. BABIN. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate and thank the gentleman from 
Alabama for having this Special Order hour.
  Mr. Speaker, we are here tonight to shed light on the fentanyl crisis 
that continues ravaging communities nationwide. I must say, I am 
infuriated when I think about this.
  More than 100,000 Americans overdose each year, most dying from 
fentanyl poisoning and fentanyl-laced drugs. It is estimated that China 
is fully responsible for nearly all the illicit fentanyl in the United 
States. Beijing has literally launched a chemical war on the United 
States of America.
  Instead of demanding accountability, the administration under Biden 
continues promoting policies that actually increase our dependency on 
China, the very nation working tirelessly to ensure our annihilation.
  Wait, there is more. Not only do we know where the drug comes from, 
but we know how it is getting into the country. About 90 percent of 
fentanyl flows across and through our open southern border, the same 
border that President Biden has gone out of his way to destroy and 
erase.
  Who is in control of our border now, bringing this poison into our 
people? The Mexican drug cartels, that is who.
  It only takes 1-16th of a teaspoon of fentanyl to kill a person, an 
amount so minuscule that it can fit into Abraham Lincoln's ear on a 
U.S. penny.
  I am a healthcare provider, a dentist. I have done hospital dentistry 
in my career. Fentanyl does not belong on the streets. It belongs in 
the operating room.
  Border Patrol has already seized enough fentanyl this fiscal year 
alone to kill over 3.1 billion people. So ask yourselves, what kind of 
President knows this information and continues to look the other way?
  We are already witnessing a death toll equivalent to 9/11 every 15 
days because of this deadly drug. How many more stories must we hear 
from parents who are mourning a child who has overdosed on a 
counterfeit pill that had fentanyl in it? How many more Americans must 
die for this President to finally act?
  Every single Member of Congress should be outraged by Joe Biden's 
inaction and exacerbation of this horrible crisis. It truly is 
despicable.
  Mr. President, hold China accountable, secure our southern border, 
and save American lives.
  Mr. STRONG. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. 
Moran).
  Mr. MORAN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Alabama for 
yielding.
  Every year, Mr. Speaker, thousands of Americans lose their lives as a 
result of fentanyl-related overdoses.
  I rise today to bring added attention to the fentanyl crisis, a 
crisis that has affected every corner of America, including the 17 
counties in east Texas that I represent.
  Since the introduction of this drug in our Nation almost a decade 
ago, thousands of kids and teenagers have overdosed on this dangerous 
substance.
  Since 2020, over 3,300 Texans have lost their lives in fentanyl-
related overdoses. That is 3,300 too many lives snuffed out before they 
can fulfill their calling in this life.
  Mr. Speaker, before coming to Congress to combat the opioid crisis in 
Texas, I worked with a small group of other interested parties to help 
negotiate what became known as the Texas Term Sheet, something that 
established a settlement structure for opioid-related claims in the 
State. It worked to ensure that State and local governments, along with 
regional health districts, could work together to reach global 
settlements with bad actors and then use that money specifically for 
activities to combat the expanding causes and effects of opioid 
addictions. Now, as a Congressman, I continue this fight.
  Earlier this year, I introduced legislation that would require the 
President to impose sanctions on Mexican individuals, such as cartel 
members and corrupt Mexican officials who are involved with the 
manufacture, distribution, and transport of illicit fentanyl. It is 
past time that we hold these individuals personally accountable for 
their roles in the deaths of thousands of Americans.
  Today, I am proud to stand here and express my full support for the 
HALT Fentanyl Act, which would classify fentanyl-related substances as 
schedule I narcotics, the most serious and dangerous classification of 
a drug, and establish a refined process for research on these drugs, 
ensuring that companies and researchers entrusted with access to these 
drugs do not abuse this access.
  This is a steady and strong step in the right direction, but it is 
just a small step. There is much more for this Congress to do.
  While these measures do not bring back those we have lost, they are a 
step, as I said, in the right direction to ensure that we do not lose 
any more lives, any more young lives, any more lives of any age to 
these lethal drugs.
  Let us stand together in this fight. Let us work against this demon 
of fentanyl.
  Mr. STRONG. Mr. Speaker, I thank those who have participated in this 
Special Order hour.
  Mr. Speaker, as I said, I speak firsthand as an emergency medical 
technician for 34 years in town. We have seen so many things occur, so 
many families that have been affected.
  I can tell you this, as a member of the House Armed Services 
Committee and also the committees that have gone to the border, you 
start looking at what we saw firsthand and just trying to protect our 
country.
  We were there at the southern border for about 5 minutes at a point 
of entry. In less than 5 minutes, here comes a vehicle. What would you 
imagine? Seventy pounds of cocaine right in front of 12 United States 
Congressmen.
  We went again to McAllen, Texas, and had a full committee hearing--or 
what was supposed to have been a full committee hearing. It was only 
Republicans who showed up.
  Mr. Speaker, the only way that we can solve problems is to admit that 
we have a problem and then work together to solve it. It is obvious 
that we have a problem with thousands of pounds coming across the 
southern border, and we have to act on it.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

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