Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) grilled Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas over the epidemic of fentanyl deaths in the U.S.
Greene took aim at Mayorkas while focusing on the fentanyl smuggled into the country.
“China is poisoning America’s children, poisoning our teenagers, poisoning our young people. How long are you going to let this go on?” she asked.
Mayorkas responded, “Congresswoman, let me assure you that we’re not letting it go on. We are fighting this scourge…”
The congresswoman interrupted, “No, I reclaim my time. You’re a liar! You are letting this go on and the numbers prove it.”
“You can’t lie about the facts, Secretary Mayorkas. While you live in denial and sit over there with this attitude that you’re doing every right, you are killing Americans with your policies. And that is a fact. Your policies are killing over 300 Americans a day, over 300, and it’s outrageous,” she added.
Watch the video below:
"You are killing Americans with your policies!" — Marjorie Taylor Greene tries to craft the perfect Hannity clip while berating Mayorkas pic.twitter.com/Yeztgr9SSW
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) April 19, 2023
Greene’s comments focused on fentanyl overdoses in the U.S.
The New York Post noted, “The potent synthetic opioid has been linked to about 196,000 U.S. deaths between 2018 and 2021.”
“In the last of those years, the National Institutes of Health reported 70,601 fatal overdoses of non-methadone synthetic opioids — an average of 193 per day, though many fear that average will rise when 2022’s drug death toll is calculated,” it added.
Speaking to reporters in March, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) blasted Democrats for skipping a series of hearings about the border.
“You know, today, almost 300 young people will die from fentanyl overdoses,” he said, adding, “Yesterday, nearly 300 died. Tomorrow, nearly 300 young people will die every single day in America because Biden opened the border.”
In February, Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) Administrator Anne Milgram said during a Senate hearing, “Fentanyl is the single deadliest drug threat our nation has ever encountered.”
Axios noted the amount of fentanyl seized at the border has reached record highs. The DEA has said the “vast majority” of fentanyl is smuggled across the border. U.S. officials say the chemicals used in the production of the synthetic opioid are shipped from China to Mexico where it is produced.
Mexican officials have denied the drug is produced there and Chinese officials have denied China has any role in its trafficking.
Axios also pointed out, “Most seizures happen at legal points of entry and often involve U.S. citizens rather than migrants, as they face less intense security checks.”
