Macklemore joins Obama for funding push on opioid treatment

President Obama is pushing his new $1.1 billion funding package on opioid addiction with an assist from Grammy-Award winning artist Macklemore, a hip-hop star that's personally grappled with the consequences of opioid abuse.

"I'm here with President Obama because I take this personally," Macklemore, sitting beside the president, said in a video released Saturday. "I abused prescription drugs, and I battled addiction. If I hadn't gotten the help that I needed when I needed it, I definitely would not be here today. And I want to help others facing the same challenges that I did."

Macklemore, who lost a close friend to a prescription drug overdose and has since written a song in tribute to him, emphasized that the opioid epidemic "doesn't discriminate."

"It doesn't care what color you are, whether you're a guy or a girl, rich or poor, whether you live in the inner-city, a suburb or rural America," he said. "This doesn't just happen to other people's kids or in some other neighborhood. It can happen to any of us."

Mr. Obama chimed in with his own pitch to Congress about his recent $1.1 billion funding proposals, which would expand access to recovery services and give first-responders better tools to treat overdoses.

"Just talking about this crisis isn't enough - we need to get treatment to more people who need it," the president said. "This week, the House passed several bills about opioids - but unless they also make actual investments in more treatment, it won't get Americans the help they need."

In addition to bipartisan efforts in Congress, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention came out with new federal guidelines in March on the use of painkillers like OxyContin and Vicodin. Later that month, the president held a summit in Atlanta to urge more federal money to pour into addiction treatment.

"I know recovery isn't easy or quick, but along with the 12-step program, treatment has saved my life," Macklemore said. "And recovery works. We need our leaders in Washington to fund it and for people to know how to find it."

"More people will find the strength to recover, just like Macklemore and millions of Americans have," the president added. "We'll see fewer preventable deaths and fewer broken families."

In their own video, Republicans blasted the president for a "lost decade on economic growth" for America.

"More and more Americans believe that we are on the wrong track and that their kids will not be as well off as they are today," Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, said. "The DNA of America is based on the promise of progress, but that is losing out to President Obama's surrender and his 'new normal' economy."

Sullivan urged politicians to follow a "moral imperative" to grow the economy and "create economic opportunity."

The Alaska Republican pushed for a major "change in Washington."

"We can, we will, and we must reach our full economic potential as Americans," Sullivan said.