President-elect Donald Trump announced plans on November 27 for a nationwide advertising campaign to raise awareness about the dangers of fentanyl, a synthetic opioid that has severely impacted communities across the United States.
Trump described the campaign as “large-scale,” aimed at informing Americans about the deadly impact of fentanyl, a drug responsible for tens of thousands of deaths each year.
“I will be working on a large-scale United States advertising campaign, explaining how bad fentanyl is for people to use—millions of lives being so needlessly destroyed,” Trump stated.
He assured that by the campaign’s end, Americans would have a clear understanding of the crisis’s gravity. Details regarding the campaign’s budget or timeline were not disclosed.
Fentanyl, a synthetic opioid that is 50 to 100 times more powerful than morphine, is often illicitly manufactured and mixed into counterfeit pills made to resemble common medications such as Xanax or Adderall.
According to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, just two milligrams of fentanyl can be fatal. In 2023 alone, the DEA seized over 80 million fentanyl-laced counterfeit pills and nearly 12,000 pounds of fentanyl powder.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that fentanyl-related deaths reached 74,702 in 2023 and 76,226 in 2022, reflecting the ongoing severity of the opioid crisis.
Trump’s announcement came alongside a series of warnings to foreign governments, including Mexico, Canada, and China, which have been implicated in the production and trafficking of fentanyl and its precursors.
Trump pledged to impose a 25 percent tariff on all goods imported from Mexico and Canada if the two countries do not take stronger actions to prevent the flow of drugs and illegal immigrants into the United States.
In a post on November 24, Trump called on Mexico and Canada to “easily solve this long-simmering problem” and declared that until they take decisive steps, they would “pay a very big price.”
The criticism extended to China, which has long been identified as a primary source of fentanyl precursors. Trump threatened an additional 10 percent tariff on Chinese imports unless the Chinese Communist Party intensifies its efforts to stop the production and export of chemicals used in fentanyl manufacturing. He expressed frustration with previous discussions with Chinese officials, accusing them of failing to follow through on promises to impose harsh penalties, including the death penalty, on drug traffickers.
Foreign leaders have responded cautiously to Trump’s statements.
Canadian Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland and Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc issued a joint statement reaffirming Canada’s commitment to border security.
In Mexico, President Claudia Sheinbaum detailed her country’s ongoing efforts to tackle drug trafficking and migration issues, pointing to preventative campaigns and collaborative security initiatives.
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Washington asserted that Beijing has taken significant actions to combat drug trafficking and dismissed allegations of negligence as unfounded.
The fentanyl crisis continues to be a major challenge for the United States, with overdose deaths rising steadily over the past two decades.
While the Biden administration has taken steps to address the issue, including establishing a Trilateral Fentanyl Committee with Canada and Mexico and restarting counternarcotics cooperation with China, Trump’s recent statements signal a more aggressive approach.
By combining a public awareness campaign with economic penalties aimed at foreign governments, Trump’s plan underscores his administration’s determination to confront the opioid epidemic head-on.