President Donald Trump on Thursday defended his administration’s efforts to help stem the flow of opioids to the U.S. and insisted that he is not alone in his efforts to combat the problem.
Speaking at a news conference at the White House, Trump said that the opioid epidemic has become a “very serious problem.”
“We are doing a great deal of work on the border.
We have had great success in Mexico,” he said.
“We are going to continue to do that and we are going take it to a whole other level.
We are doing more to get people off the drug, more to take care of the people who are addicted.”
Trump said that while he is “not the only one” in the administration who has focused on the problem, his administration has made significant progress in addressing the issue.
“We’ve had a very positive relationship with our Mexican partners.
They are doing great,” Trump said.
He continued, “I think the reason why we are seeing the rate of the problem decline so rapidly is because we have been working very, very hard.”
“I think that we have done a tremendous job, but I think we are not alone,” Trump added.
“I am just one guy.”
Trump did not give any details on how he is planning to reduce the number of people in the U-S illegally in his first term.
He also did not address the issue of drug smugglers who have exploited the U,S.
border to smuggle drugs into the country.
“I’m not the person to do a breakdown on the drug problem,” Trump continued.
“The people who have to deal with it are going through a very, extremely difficult time.
They have to get through the toughest times.
So I think it is very important to look at what is going on with the people.”
Trump is not the first president to have a public conversation about the opioid issue.
Last week, former President Barack Obama addressed the issue during his final State of the Union address, saying the drug war has had a “disastrous” effect on families.
“While our federal government has worked tirelessly to stem the tide of prescription opioids, the opioid overdose epidemic is an issue that must be addressed in all of its complexity,” Obama said.