8 notable guests at the State of the Union address
Doug Griffin
During his remarks, Biden acknowledged the presence of "a father named Doug from Newton, New Hampshire," recalling a letter he wrote to him and the first lady Jill Biden about his daughter Courtney.
"He shared a story all too familiar to millions of Americans and many of you in the audience. Courtney discovered pills in high school. It spiraled into addiction and eventually death from a fentanyl overdose. She was just 20 years old," Biden said.
The president applauded Griffin's family for turning "pain into purpose" by "working to end the stigma and change laws." He praised the grieving father's desire to "start a journey toward America's recovery."
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Assuring him that "we're with you," Biden asked Congress to "launch a major surge to stop fentanyl production and the sale and trafficking, with more drug detection machines, inspection cargos, stop pills and powder at the border."
Another proposal offered by the president involved "working with couriers like Fed Ex to inspect more packages for drugs" and imposing "strong penalties to crack down on fentanyl trafficking." Biden said fentanyl is the cause of death for "more than 70,000 Americans a year."
As Biden spoke, Republicans interrupted him, criticizing his policies on border security. Statistics from U.S. Customs and Border Protection showed a record-breaking 251,487 encounters between illegal immigrants and border officials in December 2022.
Earlier in his speech, the president touted the efforts of border officials, whom he credited with "arresting 8,000 human smugglers, [and] seizing over 23,000 pounds of fentanyl in just the last several months."
Ryan Foley is a reporter for The Christian Post. He can be reached at: [email protected]
