In this Sept. 23, 2011, file photo, Rep. Tom Marino (R-Pa.) speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington. On Tuesday, President Donald Trump announced that Marino's nomination to be drug czar had been withdrawn. | Susan Walsh/AP Marino out as Trump's drug czar nominee The Pennsylvania lawmaker faced growing resistance to his nomination after news reports detailed how he pushed legislation that hinders the DEA's ability to freeze suspicious narcotics shipments from drug companies.

President Donald Trump on Tuesday announced that Rep. Tom Marino has withdrawn as the administration's drug czar nominee, shortly after media reports revealed how the Pennsylvania Republican championed a law that hobbled federal efforts to combat opioid abuse.

"Rep.Tom Marino has informed me that he is withdrawing his name from consideration as drug czar. Tom is a fine man and a great Congressman!" Trump tweeted on Tuesday morning.


Marino had faced growing resistance to his nomination since this past weekend, when a report by "60 Minutes" and The Washington Post detailed how he championed legislation that makes it essentially impossible for the Drug Enforcement Administration to freeze suspicious narcotics shipments from drug distribution companies, according to officials at the DEA and Justice Department.

The 2016 law, signed by former President Barack Obama and unanimously approved by Congress, overturned longstanding DEA policy and established a much higher bar before the agency could take some actions to halt suspicious shipments.

Trump, speaking from the White House Rose Garden at a news conference on Monday, said he had seen the reports about Marino's legislation and promised, "We're going to be looking into Tom."

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer had spoken out Monday against Marino's nomination from the Senate floor. Sen. Joe Manchin, whose home state of West Virginia has the highest number of drug overdose deaths in the country, had vowed to block Marino's nomination from moving forward. "Over my dead body will he be the drug czar," Manchin said on CNN's "New Day" early Tuesday morning.

Manchin later applauded the decision to withdraw Marino's nomination, writing on Twitter: ".@realDonaldTrump - thanks for recognizing we need a drug czar who has seen the devastating effects of the problem."

Trump last month nominated Marino to lead the Office of National Drug Control Policy, which helps coordinate the federal government's response to drug abuse issues. Marino had been a contender for the job earlier in the year but originally withdrew in the spring, citing a family illness.

Marino has represented Pennsylvania's 10th Congressional District since 2011. He was previously a U.S. attorney in Pennsylvania.

The Trump administration has made a public push to combat the opioid crisis, with first lady Melania Trump and a presidential commission bringing attention to the issue.

Trump announced in August he would declare the opioid crisis a national emergency, which would allow his administration to free up federal resources to battle an epidemic killing 142 Americans every day. However, Trump has not yet made a formal declaration, though he said Monday that it will come next week.

"It's a very important step," Trump said. "And to get to that step, a lot of work has to be done, and it's time-consuming work. We're going to be doing it next week, OK?"

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who leads the president's opioid commission, last week said the delay was "not good."