America’s fentanyl crisis is no longer a hidden epidemic. It is the most lethal threat to our nation’s health and security. Fentanyl has become the leading cause of death for Americans aged 15 to 48, and cartels, armed with Chinese precursor chemicals, continue to push millions of lethal doses into our communities. Under former President Biden, this crisis was ignored, rapidly fueled by open borders and weak enforcement. Under President Trump, the fight is finally turning.

Biden’s Open Borders Fueled the Fentanyl Flood

The Biden years allowed fentanyl to spiral into an absolute catastrophe.

These are not just numbers. They represent funerals in nearly every town in America. They stand for children being buried by parents, neighborhoods gutted by addiction, and families ripped apart. Biden’s border crisis and lax enforcement gave cartels the opening they needed to wreak havoc. This was the absolute disaster President Trump walked into in January.

Trump Administration: Decisive Action, Measurable Results

President Trump has made the fentanyl crisis a top national security priority, using law, enforcement, and international pressure to deliver results. Unlike Biden’s passive approach, President Trump’s strategy is active, strong, and unapologetically focused on destroying the cartels.

Let’s take a look specifically at what the president has done so far:

  • Designating cartels as terrorists: One of President Trump’s first acts after returning to office was to sign an Executive Order declaring the obvious truth: cartels are not just drug traffickers; they are foreign terrorist organizations. This was a game-changer. By designating groups like the Sinaloa Cartel, Jalisco New Generation, MS-13, and Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua as terrorists, President Trump gave U.S. law enforcement and intelligence the full arsenal of counterterrorism tools to go after them. That means freezing assets, cutting off global financing, and prosecuting cartel members the same way we prosecute al-Qaeda operatives or ISIS supporters. It is a recognition that fentanyl is not just a public health crisis, but it is terrorism against the American people—plain and simple. Under Biden, cartels were treated like common criminals. Under President Trump, they are treated like the national security threat they are.
  • The HALT Fentanyl Act: On July 16, 2025, Trump signed the HALT Fentanyl Act into law. For the first time, all fentanyl-related substances are permanently classified as Schedule I drugs, triggering mandatory 10-year minimum sentences for traffickers in possession of 100 grams or more. This legislation eliminates loopholes traffickers have exploited for years and gives law enforcement a permanent tool to prosecute them.
  • Global pressure: With his aggressive tariff agenda, President Trump has been applying pressure on Canada, Mexico, and China to crack down on precursor production and trafficking networks.

Just recently, President Trump escalated the battle against international drug cartels by deploying U.S. destroyers and thousands of Marines toward Venezuela to block cartel trafficking routes and drug pipelines flowing into America. Treating cartels as foreign terrorist organizations is no longer theoretical; it is a recognition of reality. The reality is that cartels are armed, organized, and violent groups undermining U.S. sovereignty. By deploying U.S. warships, America is making it clear that we will not allow narco-terrorists to operate unchecked in our hemisphere anymore. Unlike fake and empty United Nations condemnations or bureaucratic “task forces” that accomplish nothing, hard power and strength backed by resolve and determination are what cartels respond to. President Trump has even put a $50 million bounty on Nicolás Maduro, exposing the Venezuelan regime’s complicity in trafficking poison into American communities.

This expansion of the fight demonstrates that President Trump sees cartels not only as a law enforcement challenge, but also as a national security threat, destabilizing the entire hemisphere. Every fentanyl overdose around the country connects back to these same networks. Strong borders alone are not enough; so the fight must be waged at the source, and President Trump is re-establishing the principle that America has both the right and the duty to defend its citizens from foreign threats.

Angel Families: Faces of the Crisis, Voices of Strength

The signing of the HALT Fentanyl Act this past July was a moral reckoning. Angel Families, who have tragically lost loved ones to fentanyl, stood at the White House as President Trump signed the law that finally acknowledged their grief and armed law enforcement with permanent authority. I was lucky enough to attend this historic bill signing and witness the incredible resilience with which these Angel Families have turned their indescribable grief into purpose.

Anne Fundner, whose teenage son Weston died of fentanyl poisoning, said at the signing:

In the last four years, fentanyl became the number one killer of Americans ages 15 to 48. For four years we felt ignored. This law is a lifeline for families across America. Thank you, Mr. President, for keeping America safe for our children.

Greg Swan, who also lost his son to fentanyl, stated:

We were being gaslit, but you came and lit a fire. We’re a lot safer for it.

Anne and Greg’s words underscored what was at stake. This was not about abstractions or even numbers. This was about lives stolen and families shattered. President Trump’s leadership gave these grieving families validation, action, and hope that their elected officials were finally listening.

The Angel Families represent countless similar stories across America: parents who buried children, siblings who lost brothers and sisters, communities forever scarred. By spotlighting their grief, President Trump made it clear that their fight is now America’s fight, and they no longer have to stand alone.

Moving Forward

President Trump’s leadership has delivered the first real momentum in years, but the battle is far from won. To move forward, we must:

  • Secure the Northern Border: Cartels continue to usher dangerous substances through Canada. In February 2025, President Trump issued a memorandum spotlighting cartel labs in Canada, making clear that this front cannot remain neglected. Canada must be held accountable once and for all.
  • Hit China and Mexico harder: Nearly all fentanyl precursors originate in China before being processed by Mexican cartels. Sanctions, tariffs, and diplomatic escalation must continue until the flow is entirely cut off.
  • Expand enforcement and technology: More non-intrusive inspection technology at ports of entry and targeted operations like Plaza Spike are essential to keeping pace with cartel innovation.
  • Invest in treatment and recovery: Enforcement alone cannot solve the problem. President Trump has called for expanding access to addiction treatment and supporting communities in recovery to reduce demand and break the cycle.
  • Confront narco-terrorism abroad: The fight must also be waged at the source. By projecting purposeful power abroad, such as the naval blockade in Venezuelan waters, President Trump is protecting American lives at home. Leftist, soft-on-crime ideology has translated into weakness against cartels. The disastrous Biden years showed what happens when you downplay these threats—record fentanyl deaths, open borders, and emboldened gangs. President Trump’s message is clear: We cannot negotiate with terrorists. We must instead defeat them.

A Fight America Must Win

The Trump administration has done more in a few months to fight fentanyl than Biden’s administration did in four years. From launching bold enforcement operations to dismantling cartel networks and signing the HALT Fentanyl Act into law, this administration is showing what real, strong, and smart leadership looks like. 

Despite this, fentanyl is adaptive, ruthless, and unrelenting, and this fight is not over. To defeat fentanyl forever, America must double down, securing our borders, pressuring China and Mexico, holding Canada accountable, projecting force against Venezuela, and staying relentless in law enforcement, treatment, and recovery.

This is a war for the future of the country. And under President Trump, America is not just mourning losses. America is taking action and finally fighting for families and communities all across the country.