Cruz, Roy slam Biden admin over 'man-made' border crisis as fentanyl deaths skyrocket
April of this year alone saw a 233% increase in fentanyl seizures at the southern border
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, slammed the Biden administration over the "man-made" border crisis as fentanyl deaths in America skyrocket.
The two Republican lawmakers are traveling around Texas to learn more from local officials and stakeholders about how the border crisis is affecting them.
"Texans experience the consequences of the border crisis firsthand," Cruz tweeted, including a video of him and Roy speaking at a roundtable on Tuesday.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}BORDER CRISIS: 233% INCREASE IN FENTANYL SEIZURES AT SOUTHERN BORDER
At the roundtable, Cruz said the "maddening" thing about the crisis is that it is the result of calculated choices by the president and vice president.
'What's so maddening is this crisis is man-made," Cruz said. "It was caused by deliberate political decisions by this administration, by [President] Joe Biden and by [Vice President] Kamala Harris."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Cruz said there are three reasons for the crisis: Biden paused border wall construction, reinstated the "failed" catch-and-release policy, and made the "most offensive decision" of ending the "successful" remain in Mexico policy.
Roy spoke on the "human cost" of the crisis, such as the human smuggling aspect, as well as the harm caused by drugs such as fentanyl.
The Texas tour comes as the border crisis rages and deaths due to fentanyl skyrocket.
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April of this year alone saw a 233% increase in fentanyl seizures at the southern border, according to data released by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
Fentanyl, a dangerous opioid, is significantly stronger than heroin and the related opioid carfentanyl is even stronger than fentanyl.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Fentanyl is considered to be 50-100 times more potent than morphine and kills tens of thousands of Americans each year. And if the chemical is altered, it can be significantly more lethal," House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., said in April.
"Nearly all states are seeing a spike in opioid deaths, and it should compel every government official to take action to prevent these avoidable deaths."
Houston Keene is a reporter for Fox News Digital. You can find him on Twitter at @HoustonKeene.