Vance, whose mother is a recovering addict, has been a vocal critic of pharmaceutical companies, which he claims allowed their products to decimate communities – including the area of Appalachia from which he hails and which was the subject of his book Hillbilly Elegy.
During the interview, Von referenced this, saying: “You’re from a region that was first-hand devastated by the money lizard Sackler family.”
Vance laughed at the remark and replied “yes” before Von went on to blame the Sackler’s company, Purdue Pharmaceutical being responsible for the deaths of 500,000 Americans through their production of OxyContin, a powerful prescription painkiller that experts claim serves as a gateway to harder drugs like heroin and fentanyl.
Purdue has faced allegations that it played a key role in the development of the opioid crisis, with a 2019 lawsuit accusing the firm of being “the first to set out...to persuade the American medical establishment that strong opioids should be much more widely prescribed—and that physicians’ longstanding fears about the addictive nature of such drugs were overblown”, according to the New Yorker.
Von noted the Sackler’s heritage as the children of Jewish immigrants from Galicia and Poland, before saying: “Shouldn’t they be kicked out of our country? If we can let 20 million people into our country…why can’t we put those motherf*****s on a boat and send them back to wherever the f*** they came from?”
Vance then responded suggesting that there should at least be a criminal investigation into the firm.
In January, Purdue agreed to a £6 billion ($7.4 billion) settlement in a civil case, following the rejection of a lesser deal (which would also have granted the family civil immunity) by the Supreme Court. Purdue was aware of the widespread abuse of OxyContin as early as 1996 but continued to market it as safe with a low risk of addiction, according to a Justice Department report.
The company declined to comment on the report at the time, but told the New York Times: “Suggesting that activities that last occurred more than 16 years ago are responsible for today’s complex and multifaceted opioid crisis is deeply flawed.”
David and Kathe Sackler, testifying before the US House of Representatives Oversight Committee in 2020, said the family was “truly sorry” for the role the drug played but insisted that the family had been assured by company management that Purdue was meeting all of its legal and regulatory obligations.
The Trump administration, of which Vance is now part, is not expected to oppose the new settlement, according to the Associated Press.
The JC has contacted Von and Vance for comment.
