Optimistic on Xi cracking down on horror drug<\/b>
\nPresident Trump suggested that China crack down on the exports of deadly synthetic opioid Fentanyl by using the death penalty, saying the results would be \u201cincredible.\u201d
After a meeting between the two leaders at last weekend\u2019s G20 summit in Argentina, Chinese President Xi Jinping promised to stop the flow of Fentanyl into the US. \u201cIf China cracks down on this \u2018horror drug,\u2019\u201d Trump tweeted on Wednesday, \u201cusing the Death Penalty for distributors and pushers, the results will be incredible!\u201d
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that can be 50 to 100 times stronger than morphine. Imported Fentanyl, some from China, has fueled the US\u2019 opioid crisis and was responsible for nearly 30,000 of America\u2019s 72,000 overdose deaths in 2017.
China did not say exactly what penalty it would apply to Fentanyl distributors, and has not hinted that it would execute the pushers. However, White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said in a statement that China would punish distributors with the \u201cmaximum penalty under the law,\u201d which in China is death.
Trump\u2019s recommendation that China execute its drug pushers is a highly unusual one, more reminiscent of the language used by Filipino strongman Rodrigo Duterte than the leader of the free world. Since taking office, Duterte\u2019s extrajudicial killing of drug dealers and distributors has claimed more than 20,000 lives and drawn international condemnation.
While a US president calling for executions in a foreign country is highly unorthodox, Trump suggested the death penalty for other criminals via Twitter before entering politics. \u201cGot to do something about these missing children (sic) grabbed by the perverts,\u201d he tweeted in 2012. \u201cToo many incidents \u2014 fast trial, death penalty.\u201d<\/p>\n