1 week Ago
The closest crossing into Canada is about 600 miles from the Triad. But what flows into the U.S.
from its neighbor to the north – or potential 51st state, if President Donald Trump were to get his way – still can impact life in North Carolina, according to U.S. Sen.
Ted Budd. In a speech last week on the Senate floor, the Republican from Davie County urged Canada to do more to slow the flow of fentanyl into the U.S.
“When I talk to the sheriffs in all 100 counties across North Carolina, I repeatedly hear the same message: every county in North Carolina is a border county," he told his colleagues. However, such conversations were news to at least two of those 100 sheriffs. Guilford Sheriff Danny Rogers “has not had any discussions with Senator Ted Budd regarding fentanyl or the classification of Guilford County as a border county,” a spokeswoman said in an emailed response to questions about any interaction with Budd.
People are also reading...
Same goes for Forsyth Sheriff Bobby Kimbrough Jr. “I have not spoken with the senator in quite some time,” he said. “But I would love to talk with him.
” Trump has threatened 25% tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico, in part over his belief that the two countries have not done enough to stop the flow of fentanyl, which was responsible for nearly 58,000 American deaths from September 2023 through August 2024, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Nearly 22,000 pounds of fentanyl was seized at the borders in 2024, according to the U.S.
Drug Enforcement Agency. However, just 43 pounds of that total - less than 1% - was confiscated at the Canada border. Budd acknowledged that Mexico has been the primary pathway for the drug.
“For years, our southern border has been a major entry point for illegal drugs to pour into our country,” he said. “But, under President Trump’s leadership, illegal crossings at the southern border have now dropped 94 percent. That’s real progress.
” That progress likely will have a minimal impact on the drug’s flow into the country, considering that 90% of the fentanyl seized at the southern border last year was from smugglers trying to sneak it through legal points of entry. Meanwhile, Canadian leaders might have a particular problem with being called out about border control by Budd, who owns a gun store and shooting range in Rural Hall. "Criminals are taking advantage of irresponsible American gun laws, and their weak border enforcement, to bring illegal guns into Canada,” Prime Minister Mark Carney said in a speech Thursday.
Canadian law enforcement officials reported seizing more than 1,000 firearms at the border in 2023, but other statistics suggest far more are entering the country. Nationwide, more than half of illegal handguns seized by police now are traced to the U.S.
, the Criminal Intelligence Service of Canada reported in 2023. In Toronto alone, 73% to 88% of guns used in crimes over the past five years were smuggled into the country from the U.S.
, according to the Toronto Police Service. In his speech, Budd acknowledged the challenge faced by both countries in controlling the flow of contraband. “The U.
S.-Canada border is the world’s longest international border, at more than 5,500 miles long,” the senator said. “But it remains extraordinarily vulnerable, as criminal cartel networks continue to take advantage of the gaps in our porous northern border.
” But there are two sides to every border. “Crime groups will continue to smuggle firearms at the current volume barring U.S.
changes,” the Criminal Intelligence Service of Canada concluded in a 2024 report. John.Deem@greensboro.
com 336-727-7301 Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items..
