We must defeat the drug cartels at their own game

President Biden and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas have created the worst border crisis in generations. Their open-border policies have left our nation vulnerable to evil forces and jeopardized the safety of our families and rural communities. Iowa families deserve a secure border and safe communities.

Since President Biden took office, nearly 7 million illegal immigrants have crossed our border, with another 1.7 million evading apprehension and illegally dispersing across our country. That number is greater than the population of Iowa, Nebraska, and both of the Dakotas combined. Last December alone, 302,000 illegal immigrants were encountered at our southern border, which is the highest number recorded in American history, and last November, almost 5,000 people with ties to the Chinese Communist Party were stopped at our border. Additionally, more than 310 people on the terrorist watchlist have been apprehended by border patrol since the beginning of the Biden administration.

The Biden administration has broken record after record, none of which make our country more secure. As has become commonplace for President Biden, he weaponizes the power of the pen to circumvent Congress and the will of the American people. Back in 2021, he signed executive orders to halt construction of the border wall, handcuff our brave border patrol agents from detaining illegal immigrants, and ended the “Remain in Mexico” policy, which required illegal immigrants to wait in Mexico while their asylum claims were being processed. In short, President Biden’s actions directly facilitated the open border that is allowing fentanyl to flood our rural communities, illegal immigrants to ignore our nation’s laws, and terrorists to slip through the cracks.

While President Biden and Secretary Mayorkas – both of whom I believe must be impeached for their dereliction of duty to secure our border – refuse to act, I am doing the job myself.

After visiting the southern border in San Diego and seeing firsthand the enormous amount of fentanyl and money sitting in vaults, I introduced legislation to close President Biden’s open border and put an end to the madness and chaos. The best part is that it won’t cost Iowa taxpayers a dime. My Build the Wall and Fight Fentanyl Act would seize money from the drug cartels to finish the border wall and fund fentanyl treatment and recovery service for our families and rural communities. This bill sounds straightforward because it is. What the title says it will do is exactly what it will do – no gimmicks, just results.

More specifically, this legislation establishes two separate funds within the Department of the Treasury, which are the “Southern Border Wall Fulfillment Fund” and the “Combating the Fentanyl Epidemic Fund.” These funds will be filled with assets and money confiscated by our brave border patrol agents from drug traffickers and other criminals. 

After years of attacking the idea, even President Biden now realizes we need a border wall, with his administration moving forward with building a new section of the wall in Texas. He has even acknowledged what Iowans have known all along – there is a real crisis at our border. My bill will fund wall construction, fight the fentanyl epidemic, and save precious lives.

As a father of four and the proud representative of hundreds of thousands of families, I’m sick and tired of waiting for the Biden administration to do what is right. My Build the Wall and Fight Fentanyl Act will secure our border, finish the wall, and keep our families safe. I will continue to use every tool at my disposal to end President Biden’s border crisis and protect our nation’s sovereignty.

This op-ed was originally published in the Carroll Times Herald on February 16, 2024.