The fentanyl crisis and border security are causing democrats and republicans to pressure the Biden administration to do something about the border crisis as deaths continue to skyrocket.
As fox news reports, a bipartisan bill proposed Thursday would push the Biden administration to strengthen efforts to stop fentanyl from flowing into the U.S. from the southern border, as overdose deaths continue to spike nationwide. Abigail Spanberger, D-Va., and Andrew Garbarino, R-N.Y., introduced the Securing America’s Borders Against Fentanyl Act, which would authorize $20 million for research to target and detect fentanyl coming across the southern border and strengthen data-driven targeting to increase seizure rates.
In April 2022, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration announced a nationwide spike in fentanyl-related mass-overdose events, and fentanyl has become a key focus of the 2022 midterm elections as a community and a southern border issue. As more fentanyl is seized along the southern border, and communities learn how dangerous the substance is, Garbarino said,
“Fentanyl is the leading cause of death among Americans aged 18 to 45. This epidemic has devastated communities across the United States, and Long Island is no exception. We must act decisively to stop gangs and drug traffickers from bringing this poison into our country.”
“These fentanyl shipments pose a threat to every American community, and this threat does not distinguish between Democrats and Republicans. That’s why we need to work together to fight this scourge, save lives, and hold transnational criminal organizations accountable for their crimes,” Spanberger said.
The Virginia Department of Health says an average of four Virginians died of an opioid overdose daily in 2020, and overdose deaths increased 17% since 2019. Particularly in the wake of the pandemic, drugs deaths and crime are up, and voters across the country are blaming what they see as the Biden administration’s lax policy stances on crime and the southern border.
Spanberger’s Republican opponent in the midterms, Police Officer Yesli Vega, has made similar comments on while running, saying that the fentanyl coming across the U.S.-Mexico border feeds “more misery and death to those already struggling with addiction issues.”
You know Biden’s administration has messed up the crisis at the border when you have bipartisan agreement in a bill to force something to be done about the issue. The fentanyl issue is likely to be a major issue in the upcoming Virginia election, so Spanberger’s comments are not surprising, as she will be facing some major competition with Yesli Vega challenging her seat.