On the recordNovember 17, 2022
my Democratic colleague is objecting to legislation that simply gives the Secretary of Health and Human Services the authority to limit border crossings when necessary to combat substantial, dangerous illicit drug smuggling. It doesn't provide authority to stop all asylum claims. It only applies where substantial illicit drug smuggling is endangering public health. More than 100,000 Americans are dying annually of drug overdoses, many of which result from drug smuggling at our southern border. The legislation isn't a mandate. It is a tool to help save American lives whenever that is possible. Everyone acknowledges that an already recordbreaking crisis will get far worse without title 42. American lives and communities hang in the balance. Yet my colleagues across the aisle are categorically opposed to a commonsense policy to address this glaring problem. It begs the question: What do Democrats propose that we do in response to this title 42 ruling? refuse to deal with the problem? hope this crisis won't spiral further out of control? These are not acceptable answers. More broadly, is any volume of illegal immigration or drug overdose deaths adequate to get this administration to secure the border?…





