A measure sponsored by Georgia Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene would require the execution of anyone caught smuggling fentanyl across the United States’ southern frontier.
Greene tweeted on Tuesday, “Fentanyl murders 300 Americans daily. It is the leading cause of fatality for Americans under 34 years old. Today, I proposed an amendment to H.R. 467 that would impose the death penalty on offenders who intentionally convey fentanyl across our southern frontier.
As a response to the fentanyl epidemic, some Republican legislators have advocated for new legislation that would implement harsher penalties. The timing of Greene’s proposal coincides with their efforts.
As the border crisis worsens, Republicans have proposed life sentences for those convicted of fentanyl trafficking and the death penalty for those convicted of selling or disseminating the dangerous and lethal opioid.
300 Americans are murdered each day by fentanyl.
It’s the leading killer of young people, 18-34, in America.
Today, I introduced an amendment to H.R. 467 to give the death penalty to criminals who intentionally or knowingly import fentanyl across our Southern border. pic.twitter.com/muoHxMvd61
— Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene🇺🇸 (@RepMTG) May 22, 2023
The Death Penalty for Dealing Fentanyl Act of 2022, introduced by Arizona Republican Rep. Paul Gosar in late 2017, would impose the death penalty or life in prison on those convicted of selling or disseminating fentanyl.
“Instead of reducing prison sentences for drug offenders, it is long past time that those responsible for manufacturing or knowingly distributing fentanyl pay a heavy price,” Gosar said. “We must get tough on those criminals that are contributing to this drug crisis.”
“One of the many deeply troubling consequences of Joe Biden’s open border policies is the deadly flow of fentanyl across the southern border. Since Biden assumed office in January 2021, more than 1,000,000 pounds of illegal drugs have been seized, including 7,700 pounds of fentanyl in just the first five months of 2022. The overwhelming majority of fentanyl is smuggled across the border from Mexico,” he said at the time.
In his press release, Gosar noted:
More Americans have died in the last 23 years of drug poisoning than in all combat losses combined since 1775:
Total number of U.S. deaths in World War 2: 406,000
Total number of U.S. deaths in the Korean War: 40,000
Total number of U.S. deaths in the Vietnam War: 58,000
14,000 Americans have died in the War on Terror over the past two decades (Iraq and Afghanistan, including contractors).
Since 1775, 651,000 U.S. soldiers have died in battle across all conflicts.
Since 1999, a total of 932,000 Americans have died of drug toxicity.
“Instead of reducing prison sentences for drug offenders, it is long past time that those who are responsible for manufacturing or knowingly distributing fentanyl pay a heavy price,” Gosar said.
Last week, American authorities detained an Afghan national who was on the country’s terrorism watch list, aggravating the border problem that President Joe Biden created for himself.
According to Fox News’ sources, the Afghan national entered the country in Otay Mesa, California, along with a group of migrants. Border Patrol agents discovered that the individual was a match in the Terrorist Screening Database after conducting standard arrival processing, including a biometric check. The FBI was then informed of the results and instructed to initiate an investigation.
The detained individual crossed the border one day prior to the expiration of Title 42, a COVID-19 emergency measure that permitted border patrol agents to turn away immigrants. Fox News reports that thousands of migrants have arrived at the United States-Mexico border since the expiration of the policy.
According to Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), who represents the district where the Afghan national was apprehended, Biden’s border policies, which he enacted on his first day in office and which Republicans claim have contributed to a two-year record influx of illegal immigration, attract terrorists.
“Biden’s open borders aren’t just a gateway to five million illegals, record human and child trafficking and the deadliest drug crisis in our history,” Issa said. “Biden’s reckless policy is also an open invitation to even the most wanted terrorists in the world to come to America. They know they’ll never have to leave.
“The nation knows what’s going on, and this president has only begun to be held accountable for what he has done,” Issa added.
On Friday, a federal magistrate postponed the implementation of the administration’s plan to promptly process and release migrants once Title 42 expired.