Sheila Jackson Lee: “Let me thank the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Trone) for the work that he is doing. Having served on the Foreign Affairs…”

“Let me thank the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Trone) for the work that he is doing. Having served on the Foreign Affairs Committee, and now serving on Judiciary as the chair of the Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security Subcommittee, I can affirmatively say that fentanyl kills. It kills people. It kills our children, our mothers, our fathers. It kills the family's infrastructure and system. So let me just simply indicate that the idea of having an extension of the Commission on Combating Synthetic Opioid Trafficking to join in the thoughtful discussion of what we are attempting to do on drugs that kill. We in the Judiciary Committee have been working and secured an extension of fentanyl sanctions, and it was in acknowledgment that the community is suffering by the harmful effects of fentanyl abuse and usage. It was acknowledging that it is imperative that we find a thoughtful resolution to address the grave tragedies that plague communities like mine and those throughout the country. Earlier, I mentioned names of individuals who were on the other side in terms of incarceration because of the imbalance in drug enforcement. But, again, we say that fentanyl kills. Given the importance of getting this right, I am in support of extending the measure in Judiciary, but I am in support of having the opportunity for thoughtful discussion to deal with what our next steps are.…”