Congressional Candidate Joel Krautter Visits U.S. Southern Border

BILLINGS- Eastern Montana Republican congressional candidate Joel Krautter recently returned from visiting Eagle Pass, TX, to survey the crisis at the U.S. southern border and meet with local officials and learn about the current status of the crisis. "The U.S. southern border crisis is an issue Montanans want to see fixed because it's a national security issue. The crisis on the southern border is a result of the chaos we have in Washington that has been derailing congressional efforts to find a solution to this problem," said Krautter.

In Fiscal Year 2023, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recorded more than 2.4 million encounters at the southern border, including 169 individuals who are on the terrorist watchlist and were trying to enter the country illegally. The CBP also seized 240,000 pounds of drugs at the southwest land border, including an estimated 1.1 billion doses of fentanyl in fiscal year 2023. Krautter said, "While some of the drugs are being seized, we also know drugs that originated at the southern border are still coming into our communities along with crime, which is putting a strain on local law enforcement, and on Montana taxpayers who have to pay for public safety. This is all due to the federal government's failure of leadership to secure the border."

Krautter is a 36-year-old former state legislator, Montana attorney and small business owner in Billings and Sidney, who is campaigning for the 2nd congressional district covering eastern and central Montana. He is emphasizing the need for a new generation of leadership in Washington that will crush chaos and restore stability to America.