Hovde misses mark on claim that Baldwin 'has done absolutely nothing' on fentanyl

As both U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, a Democrat, and Eric Hovde, a Republican, advance to the fall election in November, the two aren’t pulling punches when it comes to criticisms. 

After voting in the fall primary on Aug. 13, Hovde criticized Baldwin for not visiting Wisconsin enough to talk with voters and for not doing enough to address the state’s growing fentanyl crisis. 

"I have never seen such a disingenuous campaign, making up lies, not only about me, taking things completely out of context, but also embellishing her record and what she’s done, like talking about fentanyl and how she’s done something about the fentanyl crisis," Hovde said outside his polling place in Shorewood Hills, just outside of Madison. "She has done absolutely nothing." 

Hovde went on to say that Baldwin was merely one in a long list of co-sponsors on a recent fentanyl bill that was introduced by a Republican lawmaker. 

So, has Tammy Baldwin "done absolutely nothing" on fentanyl (a pretty low bar to counter)? And, if not, what kind of work has she done?

Fentanyl is a powerful synthetic opioid that is used as a pain medication with a doctor's prescription. But it is also made illegally, and can easily cause overdoses with a very small amount of the drug.z

Starting with the 2018 campaign, Baldwin has shared her experience growing up with a mother addicted to prescription drugs, according to a May 1, 2018, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel report.

Since then, Baldwin has been involved in several pieces of legislation regarding fentanyl.

In 2019, she introduced a bill that would have required the U.S. Postal Service to enter into an agreement with U.S. Customs and Border Control to train employees on how to identify illicit packages. The bill did not make it out of the Senate in the 2019-20 session.

Earlier this year, she supported the FEND Off Fentanyl Act, which aims to stop the flow of the drugs into the country by choking off the income source of those who traffic it, according to an April 24 news release. That bill did make it to the president’s desk and was signed into law the same month. 

Asked about its claim, Hovde’s campaign noted Baldwin was not a writer of the bill, but instead was one of many co-sponsors.

"In reality, she did nothing," said Ben Voelkel, a Hovde campaign spokesperson, in an email. "She was the 28th co-sponsor out of 68, and not on the committee that advanced the bill and offered 0 amendments."

Baldwin also introduced in September 2023 the Safe Response Act, to ensure first responders can get trained on how to use life-saving overdose reversal drugs. 

In May, she voted yes, according to Senate records, though the bill failed to pass.

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Voelkel also said Baldwin has voted against border control to stop the flow of drugs from entering the U.S. 

But Baldwin voted for a bipartisan border security deal that "would have authorized billions in funding for border security, including tools to help detect and stop the flow of fentanyl into the United States," according to a document outlining the senator’s work on fentanyl from her campaign press secretary, Jackie Rosa. Baldwin did vote yes on May 23 for the bipartisan deal, Senate records show, though the bill ultimately failed. 

Hovde claimed Baldwin "has done absolutely nothing" to address the fentanyl crisis in Wisconsin. 

Of course, "nothing," is a pretty stark claim — and it does not take much to have done, well, "not nothing."

For years, Baldwin has been outspoken about her work to address the growing number of issues with opioids in the state, including fentanyl. In particular, Baldwin has signed on to, championed or even introduced bills aimed at tackling the issue not just in Wisconsin, but across the country. 

Hovde’s campaign argued that on the bill that passed, Baldwin was not a major factor. Nevertheless, she did endorse the bill and ultimately supported it.  

We rate this claim False.