Political Quotes

“Mr. Chair, I thank the chairman of the full committee, and I thank the ranking member for yielding. Today I rise in support of Mr. Rose's amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act. This amendment, which I cosponsored, takes the necessary steps to target bad actors responsible for the illegal trafficking of fentanyl into the United States. Across Arkansas, heartbroken families have told me their stories time and time again about how the opioid crisis has claimed the lives of their loved ones. According to the CDC, in 2017, more than 130 Americans lost their lives to opioid abuse each day, nearly half of those deaths attributable to fentanyl. We have a responsibility to stem the tide of this crisis. Targeting the source of the world's largest producers and distributors of fentanyl will begin to stop the flow of these drugs. Mr. Chair, I am grateful to Mr. Rose for this effort, which complements work that I have been doing over the past year with my friend, Senator Tom Cotton, to fight this plague. Mr. Chair, I thank the ranking member for yielding, and I urge a ``yes'' vote on this en bloc package.”