Drug czar nominee pulls name from consideration

Reports: Marino played key role in ’16 drug law

Washington — Rep. Tom Marino, President Donald Trump’s nominee to be the nation’s drug czar, has withdrawn from consideration following reports that he played a key role in weakening the federal government’s authority to stop companies from distributing opioids.

“He didn’t want to have even the perception of a conflict of interest with drug companies or, frankly, insurance companies,” Trump told Fox News Radio in an interview Tuesday, shortly after breaking the news on Twitter.

The announcement follows reports by The Washington Post and CBS News, which detailed the Pennsylvania lawmaker’s involvement in crafting a 2016 law, signed by President Barack Obama, that weakened the Drug Enforcement Administration’s authority to curb opioid distribution.

It also comes amid growing pressure on Trump to fulfill his pledge to declare the nation’s opioid epidemic a “national emergency,” as a commission he’s convened on the subject has urged him to do. Trump said Monday that he would be making “a major announcement” on the topic next week.

Interviewed by Fox News Radio’s Brian Kilmeade, Trump said Marino “felt compelled” to step down from the job.

“He feels very strongly about the opioid problem and the drug problem and Tom Marino said, ‘Look, I’ll take a pass,’” Trump added. Trump did not say when he and the congressman spoke. Marino could not immediately be reached Tuesday for comment.

Trump had announced the news in an early-morning tweet, telling his supporters that Marino had “informed me that he is withdrawing his name from consideration as drug czar.”

“Tom is a fine man and a great Congressman!” he added.