John Rice Carter: “I thank the gentlewoman for yielding. Madam Speaker, I am here today to ask my colleagues across the aisle to set aside…”

“I thank the gentlewoman for yielding. Madam Speaker, I am here today to ask my colleagues across the aisle to set aside this weak bill and support permanently--permanently as in forever--scheduling fentanyl and its analogues. We just heard from the gentlewoman from Texas. We all agree: It is not good. Fentanyl is the problem. Here, we have an opportunity for us to work together to help stem the flow of deadly fentanyl and its analogues in our country. This is an issue that impacts every one of us--every one of us. Whether we are Republican, Democrat, Independent, it impacts every one of us in our communities. Just last week, in my home State of Georgia, the Georgia Attorney General announced that he is investigating fatal drug overdoses based on counterfeit medications laced with fentanyl and its analogues. These individuals bought illegal products they believed to be Xanax, Percocet, and oxycodone. Overdoses like this happen every day all over the country--all over the country. Yet, some of my colleagues want to go soft on fentanyl analogues and let these products become legal in just mere weeks, or temporarily schedule it for a few months until they can craft another weak plan. How can anyone seriously argue that a drug 50 times more potent than heroin and which almost always proves fatal when ingested, should ever be legal? These products are manufactured illegally, and they are largely brought into the U.S. through the southern border. Every year, U.S.…”