The Great Smoky Mountain Journal
Staff, Wire Reports
Posted: Sunday, January 21, 2018 06:34 PM
President Trump's Pick For Drug Czar Tom Marino Withdraws Following Allgegations He Helped Water Down Legislation That Would Weaken DEA's Ability to Go After Big Drug Distributors
President Trump’s pick for drug czar,
Rep. Tom Marino, has withdrawn from consideration following allegations
he helped water down legislation and weaken the Drug Enforcement
Administration’s ability to go after big drug distributors.
Trump tweeted Tuesday, “Rep. Tom Marino has informed me that he is
withdrawing his name from consideration as drug czar. Tom is a fine man
and a great Congressman!”
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Donald J. Trump ✔@realDonaldTrump
Rep.Tom Marino has informed me that he is withdrawing his name from
consideration as drug czar. Tom is a fine man and a great Congressman!
8:39 AM - Oct 17, 2017
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Democrats and at least one Republican had pressed the president on
Monday to pull Marino’s nomination following a weekend Washington
Post/”60 Minutes” report on the drug legislation.
Amid the firestorm, Trump had seemed to leave Marino dangling during his
Monday press conference alongside Senate Majority Leader Mitch
McConnell, R-Ky., at the White House.
“He was a very early supporter of mine. … He's a great guy,” Trump said
of Marino, before adding, “We're going to look into the report. We're
going to take it very seriously. … We're going to be looking into Tom.”
At the same time, Trump said he would declare a national emergency next
week on the opioid epidemic that has spread across the United States.
Soon after Trump’s Tuesday tweet, Vice President Mike Pence told WMAL
radio that the administration thinks “very highly of Congressman Marino
and respect (sic) his decision to withdraw.”
In a Tuesday morning interview on Fox News Radio with host Brian
Kilmeade, the president called Marino a “fine man,” and explained his
decision to withdraw from consideration for czar.
“He was very gracious,” Trump said. “He didn’t want to even have the
perception of a conflict of interest with drug companies or insurance
companies.”
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said nominating the
Pennsylvania Republican for drug czar is “like putting the wolf in
charge of the henhouse.”
Schumer said Americans deserved an advocate who is “totally committed to
fighting the opioid crisis, not someone who’s labored on behalf of the
drug industry.”
The Post reported Sunday that Marino and other members of Congress,
along with the nation's major drug distributors, prevailed upon the DEA
and the Justice Department to agree to an industry-friendly law that
undermined efforts to restrict the flow of pain pills that have led to
tens of thousands of deaths. President Barack Obama signed the law in
April 2016.
The industry worked behind the scenes with lobbyists and key members of
Congress, including Marino, pouring more than a million dollars into
their election campaigns, the newspaper reported.
Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, the bill's lead Senate sponsor, defended the
measure Monday, calling allegations that he or Marino "conspired" with
drug companies "utterly ridiculous." Hatch, a 40-year veteran of the
Senate, said he was "no patsy" of the drug industry.
The language affecting DEA enforcement authority was suggested by DEA
and the Justice Department, Hatch said, adding that the agencies could
have tried to stop the bill at any time -- or recommended that Obama
veto the measure.
"Let's not pretend that DEA, both houses of Congress and the Obama White
House all somehow wilted under Representative Marino's nefarious
influences," Hatch said.
West Virginia Democrat Sen. Joe Manchin, whose state has been among the
hardest hit by the opioid crisis that has killed tens of thousands of
Americans and has seen millions more addicted to deadly painkillers,
demanded Trump withdraw Marino’s nomination.
Manchin, who has his own ties to big pharma, said the legislation Marino
helped pass through Congress had effectively defanged the DEA’s ability
to do its job.
Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., said Monday she will introduce legislation
to repeal the 2016 law.
Before the announcement that Marino was stepping aside, Manchin had gone
on CNN’s “New Day” and said Marino would become the Trump
administration’s drug czar “over my dead body” and said “adjustments
will be made.”
Following the announcement, Manchin called Marino’s move to withdraw the
“right decision,” but added that “the fact that he was nominated in the
first place is further evidence that when it comes to the opioid crisis,
the Trump administration talks the talk, but refuses to walk the walk.”
“The opioid crisis demands that the next drug czar is solely focused on
getting communities across the country the help they desperately need. I
hope the Trump administration nominates someone that fits the bill.”
There has been no immediate comment from Marino following the weekend
report.
His nomination had been pending before the Senate Judiciary Committee,
but no actual date had been set for his confirmation hearing. Trump
nominated Marino last month.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
