(Headline USA) Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., introduced legislation this week to classify illicit fentanyl as a weapon of mass destruction.
The bill would allow the departments of Homeland Security, Justice, and Defense, as well as the Drug Enforcement Agency, to coordinate efforts to “eliminate the threat posed by this deadly substance,” Boebert said.
It would increase resources for technology developments to create sensors that detect fentanyl, as well as provide additional assistance to Border Patrol agents who stop drug smuggling at the border.
“Just last year, Border Patrol encountered enough fentanyl at the border to kill every American seven times over,” Boebert said in a statement.
“There is no way around it — the Biden Border Crisis is killing Americans. It is time to call fentanyl what it is: a weapon of mass destruction that is destroying our nation.”
Boebert noted that her bill would not target legally prescribed fentanyl, which is sometimes used by doctors as a treatment for severe pain.
Border Patrol agents seized more than 11,000 pounds of fentanyl at the border in fiscal year 2021, according to immigration officials.
Fentanyl overdoses have also risen to become the leading cause of death for adults ages 18 to 45. In 2021, roughly 107,622 people died from drug overdoses, a nearly 15% increase from the year before, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Boebert argued that, because of the death rates, most Americans would agree that fentanyl should be classified as a WMD. Its “carnage” is “similar” to traditional WMDs, she said.
“Many people have lost friends and family members. And we’re going to try to treat this deadly substance with the seriousness that it deserved, especially with our law enforcement officer,” she added. “They’re overwhelmed by the fentanyl that is pouring into our community.”
