Trump Calls His Drug Czar Nominee, Who Pushed a Law Fueling Opioid Crisis, ‘A Fine Man’ as He Withdraws Amid Outrage

‘Tom Is a Fine Man and a Great Congressman!’ Trump Says of Man Who Helped Fuel Drug Epidemic

It took just 48 hours for a Washington Post report to end the candidacy of Donald Trump’s nominee to become his first “drug czar.” The Post’s report revealed Republican Congressman Tom Marino of Pennsylvania had pushed a bill knowing it would make it harder for the DEA to combat America’s opioid crisis, a crisis that has led to hundreds of thousands of drug overdose deaths. 

On Monday a reporter asked the president about Marino, noting the Washington Post’s story from Sunday. Trump refused to condemn Marino, but said he would look into it.

Trump actually defended Marino at a press conference Monday (photo), first and foremost by stating that the Pennsylvania Republican was among the first to support is presidential candidacy.

Over the course of the day outrage grew. Democratic Senator Claire McCaskill of Missouri announced she will introduce a bill to repeal the law Marino – aided by the drug companies – pushed. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) urged Trump to pull Marino’s nomination.

Trump this summer had promised to declare the opioid crisis a national emergency, and when pressured, did, but took exactly zero action since August to battle it. Naming Marino was his first step, and now that, too, has failed thanks to Trump’s poor decision-making skills.

Tuesday morning Trump tweeted Marino had withdrawn his name from consideration. The President tweeted Marino, whose actions made it easier for Americans to obtain prescription drugs, benefiting drug companies, “a fine man and a great Congressman!”

Marino’s name is mentioned about 50 times in the Washington Post report. A screenshot of one portion of the article:

The Post’s report noted drug companies’ PACs “contributed at least $1.5 million to the 23 lawmakers who sponsored or co-sponsored four versions of the bill, including nearly $100,000 to Marino and $177,000 to [Sen. Orrin] Hatch. Overall, the drug industry spent $102 million lobbying Congress on the bill and other legislation between 2014 and 2016, according to lobbying reports.”

“The drug industry, the manufacturers, wholesalers, distributors and chain drugstores, have an influence over Congress that has never been seen before,” said Joseph T. Rannazzisi, who ran the DEA’s division responsible for regulating the drug industry and led a decade-long campaign of aggressive enforcement until he was forced out of the agency in 2015. “I mean, to get Congress to pass a bill to protect their interests in the height of an opioid epidemic just shows me how much influence they have.”

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