NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – Democratic former Gov. Phil Bredesen said Friday that his first action in the U.S. Senate would be to file or co-sponsor legislation to repeal a 2016 law criticized for weakening federal authority to curb opioid distribution. The announcement sought to put his opponent, Republican U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn, on the spot for supporting the law.
Bredesen discussed the idea at an opioid forum in a packed day on the campaign trail for the two Senate hopefuls in a tightly contested race.
Republican Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa also visited Tennessee to boost Blackburn, weighing in on President Donald Trump’s tariffs during an agricultural round-table. Ernst said Iowa farmers can tolerate tariffs in the short term, but trade deals need to be completed soon.
At the opioid event, Bredesen said the Blackburn-backed law “defanged” the Drug Enforcement Agency in its fine print. Further, Bredesen said “Congress needs to admit that it has an opioid problem.”
Reports by The Washington Post and CBS News in October 2017 shed light on the law passed unanimously by Congress and signed by then-President Barack Obama. Republican Rep. Tom Marino of Pennsylvania, whose involvement in the legislation was detailed in the reports, withdrew his name from consideration to become Trump’s federal drug czar shortly after the news reports.