How China has been ‘exploiting’ a US Customs loophole

In less than a month, Chinese President Xi met with President Biden, and Beijing vowed to curb production. However, China has been exploiting the U.S. trade law, taking advantage of a loophole that allows millions of international mail packages to enter the U.S.

without federal scrutiny. This loophole is fueling the fentanyl crisis in America. A coalition has written a letter to President Biden, demanding that more be done to close this loophole. Joining us is Michael Sumo, CEO of the Coalition for Prosperous America, to discuss what's happening and the reaction when raising this issue with the Biden administration.

Version 1: >> This loophole is ungovernable, leading to a state of lawlessness. Why risk bringing fentanyl and other narcotics across the border when you can simply package them in Mexico or China, label them as toys, and ship them to the U.S.?

With approximately 3 million packages per day, it becomes nearly impossible to identify what is truly inside. Even if fentanyl or other drugs are discovered, the chances of getting caught are slim, allowing most of these packages to slip through. This poses a significant threat, as people are ordering these dangerous substances from the comfort of their homes. It is imperative that this loophole be shut down.

TREY: I imagine someone mistakenly thought that this loophole was a good idea. Is it called the "minimus" exception? Are the drugs not the only concern, but also the impact on American manufacturers? >> Absolutely.

Since 1930, if you brought in a package from overseas or if your grandma shipped you a package from the old country, you would know how to get it inspected by the customs agency. However, with the rise of e-commerce giants like Amazon and FedEx, they have exploited this loophole of one package per day to receive a staggering 3 million packages per day.

The customs service is not supposed to inspect low-value goods, and as a result, everything from products made with forced labor (which is unlawful) to counterfeits and dangerous toys containing lead (also unlawful) are all slipping through. There are currently a million packages sitting at JFK airport alone.

In less than a month, Chinese President Xi met with President Biden, and Beijing vowed to curb production. However, China has been exploiting the U.S. trade law, taking advantage of a loophole that allows millions of international mail packages to enter the U.S.

without federal scrutiny. This loophole is fueling the fentanyl crisis in America. A coalition has written a letter to President Biden, demanding that more be done to close this loophole. Joining us is Michael Sumo, CEO of the Coalition for Prosperous America, to discuss what's happening and the reaction when raising this issue with the Biden administration.

Version 1: >> This loophole is ungovernable, leading to a state of lawlessness. Why risk bringing fentanyl and other narcotics across the border when you can simply package them in Mexico or China, label them as toys, and ship them to the U.S.?

With approximately 3 million packages per day, it becomes nearly impossible to identify what is truly inside. Even if fentanyl or other drugs are discovered, the chances of getting caught are slim, allowing most of these packages to slip through. This poses a significant threat, as people are ordering these dangerous substances from the comfort of their homes. It is imperative that this loophole be shut down.

TREY: I imagine someone mistakenly thought that this loophole was a good idea. Is it called the "minimus" exception? Are the drugs not the only concern, but also the impact on American manufacturers? >> Absolutely.

Since 1930, if you brought in a package from overseas or if your grandma shipped you a package from the old country, you would know how to get it inspected by the customs agency. However, with the rise of e-commerce giants like Amazon and FedEx, they have exploited this loophole of one package per day to receive a staggering 3 million packages per day.

The customs service is not supposed to inspect low-value goods, and as a result, everything from products made with forced labor (which is unlawful) to counterfeits and dangerous toys containing lead (also unlawful) are all slipping through. There are currently a million packages sitting at JFK airport alone.