Fight against drug addiction was another empty Trump campaign promise

Monday, June 26, 2017 | 2 a.m.

Of the many ways that President Donald Trump and the Republican Party’s congressional leaders are betraying their core voters, one of the most despicable involves Trump’s pledge to tackle the opioid addiction epidemic.

The pledge itself is fine — there’s no question that the struggle with opioids and heroin is a national crisis — but the problem comes with the GOP’s war against social services and the Trump administration’s apparent disinterest in furthering HIV/AIDS research.

That’s a blow to addicts and their families on two fronts. First, consider that the Trump budget contains a substantial cut to the Department of Health and Human Services, as well as a staggering 95 percent cut to the Office of National Drug Control Policy.

Considering that the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and the Administration for Children and Families fall under the Department of Health and Human Services, the cuts will lead to prolonged suffering among addicts and their children, many of whom grow up in horrific dysfunction or are placed in foster care as their parents struggle with addiction.

Then there’s the HIV/AIDS issue, which, as evidenced by the resignation of six HIV experts from Trump’s AIDS Advisory Council, the Trump administration appears uninterested in addressing. Considering that HIV is commonly spread through the use of dirty needles by people who inject heroin and other illicit drugs, Trump’s lack of engagement on this issue is alarming.

“The Trump administration has no strategy to address the ongoing HIV/AIDS epidemic, seeks zero input from experts to formulate HIV policy, and — most concerning — pushes legislation that will harm people living with HIV and halt or reverse important gains made in the fight against this disease,” wrote Scott Schoettes, a member of the council since 2014, in a guest column for Newsweek.

Then there’s the looming threat of the GOP’s plan to replace the Affordable Care Act and cap Medicaid, which could cut health insurance benefits to millions of Americans.

This is an administration and party that is serious about addressing opioids? It hardly looks that way.

Granted, Trump announced in March that he was making good on his campaign promise, establishing a new commission on opioid addiction chaired by New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and saying his administration would “spend the money” to fight the epidemic.

But it’s hard to imagine any plan working without strong support for families, robust social and health services and progress on HIV/AIDS. If Trump’s commission doesn’t demand action in those areas — in other words, if it doesn’t hold Trump’s feet to the fire on his pledge — then we can add opioid addiction to the growing list of issues on which Trump snookered his base.

Keep in mind, Trump was elected largely on the strength of his appeal to voters in Rust Belt and rural areas that have been hit hard by the opioid crisis.

It’s easy to understand why his message appealed to those voters. It’s heartbreaking to consider how badly they stand to be hurt by Trump and the GOP.