By State Rep. Brooks Landgraf
At this time 187 years ago, Texans were fighting and dying for independence. The Alamo was already lost and the massacre at Goliad was just weeks away. Texas fathers and sons who left their homesteads behind, undefended from the ever present threat of Comanches, were outgunned and outmanned by the Mexican army, but they were willing to risk everything for liberty. Thankfully for everyone reading this today, General Houston and the Texan army overcame every setback, claiming victory over Santa Anna’s superior forces less than two months after declaring independence.
Today, Texans are dealing with a new deadly threat that has made its way across the Rio Grande: fentanyl. And just like Santa Anna, who required every Texas prisoner of war to be executed without exception or mercy, fentanyl does not fight fair. This is not another chapter in America’s drug war, fentanyl is poison that can be lethal in small doses.
In fact, since Operation Lone Star began in March 2021, the Texas Department of Public Safety has seized more than 361 million lethal doses of fentanyl across the state – enough fentanyl to kill every man, woman and child in the United States. Fentanyl is not just a drug. It is a form of chemical warfare.
In 2021, I was part of the successful effort in the Texas legislature to increase state funding for border security to $3 billion for 2022-2023. Now that the legislature is back in session, I am hard at work to make sure we continue prioritizing border security in the state’s budget for the next two years. I’m also working hard to beef up law enforcement’s response to the fentanyl crisis and create harsher penalties for fentanyl dealers as a coauthor of House Bill 6, House Bill 7 and House Bill 20.
If passed into law, HB 6 would impose severe and swift punishment for fentanyl-related crimes in Texas. Fentanyl makers, smugglers and dealers could face up to 10 years in prison, even for these small quantities.
HB 7 would establish the Legislative Border Safety Oversight Committee to provide recommendations guiding the state’s border safety policies and oversight over a newly-proposed Border Protection Unit. HB 7 would also ensure that the state’s border security operations receive necessary funding and legal support to handle border-related legal matters. HB 20 seeks to establish the Border Protection Unit whose officers can arrest, detain, and deter individuals crossing the border illegally, including with the use of non-deadly force.
I’m thankful state leaders like Speaker Phelan and Governor Abbott agree that we must act now to protect Texas communities from the ever-growing fentanyl threat. Ultimately, however, the burden of this fight is going to fall on parents and families, on friends and neighbors. It is up to all of us to be aware and keep each other safe. It appears that we cannot rely on the Biden Administration to do so.
The fight against fentanyl is real, and we are all on the front lines. This lethal drug has infiltrated every community in Texas. My heart breaks after talking with the families of West Texans who have lost their lives to fentanyl. Sadly, I’ve had several of those conversations in the last few weeks.
I’m committed to fighting to secure the border and crack down on smugglers and dealers. I’m committed to protecting the lives of Texans. As Sam Houston said, “Texas has yet to learn submission to any oppression, come from whatever source it may.” The border and fentanyl crisis will be no different. I’m firmly engaged in the fight, and Texans are going to be victorious.
God bless Texas!
