Baldwin speaking about fentanyl crisis at Northcentral Healthcare - Photo by MWC's Tom Schumacher
WAUSAU, WI (WSAU) – U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin stopped in Wausau on Wednesday to discuss and hear solutions to the fentanyl crisis impacting Wisconsinites and the nation from some of the community’s top health and safety officials.
During the press conference, which was held at Northcentral Healthcare, Baldwin spoke about the crisis and how helping to solve it has been a central point during her current term in Washington and would continue to be one of her top priorities if reelected come November. One of the solutions to the crisis that Baldwin laid out was reintroducing the previously proposed border bill that was rejected in May by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and even some Democrats, despite having bipartisan support.
California Democrat Sen. Alex Padilla, who was one of four Democrats who voted against the border bill, said it just didn’t do enough, saying, “It fails to address the root causes of migration or to establish more lawful pathways,” and former Arizona Democrat turned Independent Kyrsten Sinema took aim at her former party members over the bill, saying, “These games of tit for tat, caving to the political messaging game, force both parties further to the fringes — and further away from real solutions. Today, the Senate is proving what many Americans already think about Congress: that senators come here for political games, not to deliver results.”
Baldwin stated on Wednesday that the bill would’ve helped Customs and Border Patrol hire more personnel to keep their workforce of around 22,000 agents and purchase high-tech scanners, which would improve their ability to search vehicles entering the U.S. from Mexico as the rate of fentanyl being trafficked into the U.S. drastically increased in recent years, with just under 20,000 LBS being seized by CBP in 2023 compared to less than 8,000 LBS pounds being seized in 2022. She further stated that she would also support legislation that would place sanctions against Chinese fentanyl manufacturers, who make nearly all of the precursor drugs for top smugglers such as the Jalisco and Sinaloa Cartels.
Republican challenger Eric Hovde criticized Baldwin during his speech at the RNC in Milwaukee on Tuesday night, saying, “America is struggling under Joe Biden, and Sen. Baldwin has been a rubber stamp, voting with him 95.5 percent of the time. You can believe that Biden, with Baldwin’s help, has weakened us in every way, making Americans less safe,” and continued by saying, “Where Biden and Baldwin have failed, President [Donald] Trump and I will get the job done.” Baldwin declined to respond to those comments during the press conference due to it being a non-campaign event.
According to the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, fentanyl was identified in 91 percent of opioid overdose deaths and 73 percent of all drug overdose deaths during the fiscal year 2023, while opioid-related deaths totaled 839 in 2018 and 1,464 in 2022, an increase of 74%. Anyone looking for information on substance use services in their community can call 211 or 833-944-4673 for the Wisconsin Addiction Recovery Helpline, or visit addictionhelpwi.org for more information.
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