President Donald Trump has signed an executive order classifying “illicit fentanyl and its core precursor chemicals” as weapons of mass destruction, a move that has raised questions about its legal and practical effect.
Speaking in the Oval Office on Monday, Trump said the order was aimed at curbing the impact of fentanyl entering the United States. “Today I’m taking one more step to protect Americans from the scourge of deadly fentanyl flooding into our country with this historic executive order,” he said, adding, “No bomb does what this is doing.”
The announcement came during a ceremony honouring US service members with medals “for their central role in the protection of our border.”
Under existing US law, it is already a crime to use, threaten or attempt to use weapons of mass destruction, an offence that can carry the death penalty depending on circumstances. The law defines weapons of mass destruction to include “any weapon involving a biological agent, toxin, or vector.”
However, Trump cannot change federal law through an executive order. A former federal prosecutor specialising in national security questioned whether the designation would have any tangible impact.
The order claims “illicit fentanyl is closer to a chemical weapon than a narcotic” and directs Attorney General Pam Bondi to “immediately pursue investigations and prosecutions into fentanyl trafficking.” It also instructs Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to “pursue appropriate actions against relevant assets and financial institutions in accordance with applicable law for those involved in or supporting the manufacture, distribution, and sale of illicit fentanyl and its core precursor chemicals.”
The directive frames the production and distribution of fentanyl as a national security threat. “The production and sale of fentanyl by Foreign Terrorist Organizations and cartels fund these entities’ operations which include assassinations, terrorist acts, and insurgencies around the world and allow these entities to erode our domestic security and the well-being of our Nation,” the order states.
Dennis Fitzpatrick, a former national security attorney with the Eastern District of Virginia, described the move as a “political exercise,” arguing it could complicate enforcement under existing drug trafficking laws. “We already have statutes on the books that are tested, that prosecutors and agents are accustomed to working with, and they’re very clear, and they accomplish the same goals,” Fitzpatrick told CNN.
“There’s no practical reason to label fentanyl as a weapon of mass destruction. It’s a political exercise.”
He added that such action should come from Congress. “It’s naked lawmaking, and this is an area where Congress has the authority, has the responsibility,” Fitzpatrick said.
The order comes amid new federal estimates showing drug overdose deaths in the United States fell last year to their lowest level in five years. Despite the decline, synthetic opioids, primarily fentanyl, remained involved in most overdose deaths.
During the same White House event, Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said the administration had revived the Mexican Border Service medals, first established by Congress in 1918. “Our men and women will be wearing that very same medal as Americans 100 years before who were asked to defend the sovereignty of our country,” Hegseth said.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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