Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.), who is in his first term, again spotlighted some of the deceptive narratives from figures on the far-right like Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) during a recent hearing of the House Oversight Committee about the border.
Frost and Greene actually both serve on that panel. In a portion of the Florida Democrat’s questioning during those recent proceedings, he spotlighted and fact-checked the false idea that foreign interests are primarily responsible for the tranches of the dangerous drug fentanyl that are trafficked into the United States. Greene herself recently resurfaced this specific line of argument, alleging that drug cartels operating south of the border are engaged in essentially killing Americans in part through the drug trade. Frost explained that it’s American citizens who account for the overwhelming majority of some recent arrests related specifically to fentanyl itself.
“I just want to start with a reality check for my colleagues for people watching back at home,” Frost said. “That the individuals most responsible for smuggling fentanyl across our borders are not migrants. In fact in prior years, American citizens have accounted for more than 86 percent… 86 percent of fentanyl trafficking convictions at the border have been U.S. citizens, not foreign nationals, not undocumented immigrants, and not asylum seekers — Americans.” In further portions of his questions, Frost turned to other topics, asking about expanding the opportunities for migrants to actually use an app rolled out by the U.S. government for handling attempts at entry and protecting personal data collected about travelers.
At another recent hearing, Frost exposed the falsity of the notion spread by Trump and others that the southern border is open. In reality, that’s just not true, which the Congressman spotlighted in part by asking witnesses about whether their teams had simply stopped enforcing relevant laws. Frost received the expected answers indicating such hadn’t happened. “You know, it’s unfortunate that this hearing started off with a ton of hyperbole and posturing, saying that President Biden and his administration have created the worst border crisis in American history,” the Congressman said. “That isn’t about oversight. It’s about stoking the fears of immigrants and those seeking asylum, and it’s something I take personally as a son of a Cuban refugee.”
Deceptive fearmongering about the southern border extends to the top echelons of the House GOP. Biden’s team was “not even trying to solve the border crisis they created,” House Speaker Rep. Kevin McCarthy (Calif.) claimed. Watch Frost’s new remarks below:
