Trump promises to combat cartel and fentanyl crisis if re-elected

Former President Donald Trump greets supporters (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)
Former President Donald Trump greets supporters. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

OAN’s Noah Herring
3:10 PM – Thursday, June 1, 2023

According to FOX News, former President Donald Trump said that he would utilize military assets to fight the fentanyl crisis and “inflict maximum damage” on the drug cartel if elected in 2024, seeking the death penalty for convicted drug dealers and human traffickers.

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“For three decades before my election, drug overdose deaths increased every single year. Under my leadership, we took the drug and fentanyl crisis head on, and we achieved the first reduction in overdose deaths in more than 30 years,” Trump said in a new campaign video.

“Sadly, under Joe Biden, our hard-won progress has been surrendered, along with the surrender of our southern border — such a shame,” Trump said. “Now, fentanyl and other ultra-deadly poisons are pouring into our country unchecked — stealing more than 100,000 American lives every single year.”

Trump criticized Biden, pointing out that his record is “one of death, destruction and misery in communities across our nation.”

“When I am back in the White House, I will take action on day one to end this horrific plague and save American lives,” he said. “Joe Biden will never solve the drug overdose crisis because he is actively destroying our border.”

Trump communicated that he will utilize a full naval embargo and would also deploy military assets on cartel operations. He insisted on the “full cooperation” of neighboring governments to “dismantle” trafficking networks in the region. 

Besides pushing for the death penalty on drug dealers and human traffickers, Trump also said that he would take charge in directing U.S. federal law enforcement to take down gangs and organized street crime groups who distribute deadly narcotics at the local level. 

The former president also pledged that he would permanently designate fentanyl as a federally-controlled substance, and warned that China would “pay a steep price” if the country does not crack down on the export of fentanyl chemical precursors.

“I had a deal worked out with President Xi,” Trump said. “They weren’t going to be sending any more, and they were going to impose the death penalty on those that made it in China.”

Part of Trump’s proposal also includes an expansion of faith-based counseling and recovery programs for drug users, saying “…We are going to need God’s help to steer our country out of the crisis.” 

Another part of this proposal would be that any parent, child, spouse or relative who needs to take time to care for a family member fighting addiction can “take advantage” of a family leave program.

“When I am president, we will not rest until we have ended the drug addiction crisis in America,” he said. “We will win. It will happen. We have to win, though, in 2024, because our country is going to hell.”

The amount of fentanyl caught at the border has tripled from 2020 to 2022 with fentanyl deaths increasing 94% since 2019, having been the leading cause of death for Americans aged 18 to 45, according to officials. 


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