{"id":2389112,"date":"2025-01-11T09:30:02","date_gmt":"2025-01-11T14:30:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/using-military-force-against-mexican-drug-cartels-could-create-a-black-eye-for-trump-washington-examiner\/"},"modified":"2025-01-11T09:31:49","modified_gmt":"2025-01-11T14:31:49","slug":"using-military-force-against-mexican-drug-cartels-could-create-a-black-eye-for-trump-washington-examiner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/using-military-force-against-mexican-drug-cartels-could-create-a-black-eye-for-trump-washington-examiner\/","title":{"rendered":"Using military force against Mexican drug cartels could create a \u2018black eye\u2019 for Trump &#8211; Washington Examiner"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">34<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fusing-military-force-against-mexican-drug-cartels-could-create-a-black-eye-for-trump-washington-examiner%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2389112&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article discusses President-elect \u2063Donald Trump&#8217;s proposal to use U.S. military forces to combat Mexican drug cartels, which has sparked controversy and concern among critics. \u2062They argue that such military intervention \u200ccould worsen the border crisis and strain\u2064 trade relations wiht Mexico.Brandan Buck,a foreign policy research fellow,warns that secret military operations\u2063 in Mexico could backfire and damage Trump&#8217;s management. Trump\u2062 aims \u200bto designate drug cartels \u200bas terrorist organizations to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/biden-administration-ukraine-invasion-not-imminent-just-imminent-enough\/\" title=\"Biden Administration: Ukraine Invasion Not &#039;Imminent,&#039; Just &#039;Imminent Enough&#039;\">justify military action<\/a> against them, citing \u2062the\u200d significant American casualties from fentanyl.\u2063 However, mexican President Claudia sheinbaum has dismissed this approach as unrealistic. Buck emphasizes that \u200bunilateral\u200b military action could\u200d harm U.S.-Mexico relations and complicate broader regional dynamics in Latin America. The piece highlights the complexities and \u200bpotential risks of Trump&#8217;s proposed \u200dmilitary strategy\u200b against drug cartels.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Using military force against Mexican drug cartels could create a &lsquo;black eye&rsquo; for Trump<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_1417449\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>President-elect <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Donald Trump<\/a> said he wants to use the United States military to combat Mexican <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/drug-cartels\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">drug cartels<\/a>, a plan his opponents suggest could exacerbate the border crisis and worsen trade relations with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/mexico\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Mexico<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>&ldquo;If the US government sends forces down there surreptitiously, it could go sideways pretty quickly and create a crisis for the Trump administration that could really give his administration a black eye,&rdquo; Brandan Buck, a<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cato.org\/news-releases\/reconsidering-us-special-forces-deployment-against-mexican-cartels\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\"> foreign policy research fellow<\/a> at the Cato Institute, told the <em>Washington Examiner<\/em>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/policy\/finance-and-economy\/3242203\/what-items-affected-trump-tariffs-canada-mexico\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\"><strong>WHICH ITEMS WOULD BE AFFECTED BY TRUMP&rsquo;S PROPOSED TARIFFS ON CANADA AND MEXICO<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>As one of his major campaign promises, Trump said he wants to crack down on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/special-forces-vet-explains-what-happens-when-trump-cuts-delta-force-loose-against-cartels\/\" title=\"Special Forces Vet Explains What Happens When Trump Cuts Delta Force Loose Against Cartels\">drug cartels &#038;mdash<\/a>; even going as far as labeling them as &ldquo;terrorist organizations&rdquo; so the U.S. can deploy military forces against the drug lords.<\/p>\n<p>Tom Homan &mdash; Trump&rsquo;s appointee to &ldquo;border czar&rdquo; &mdash; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=2-IYe9EKNPQ\">shared<\/a> on News Nation back in November that he supported Trump in his effort.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I believe he should, and he will,&rdquo; Homan. &ldquo;The reason why they should be <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/can-she-ever-fly-the-flag-maybe-just-once-for-us-bill-hemmer-katie-pavlich-call-out-ilhan-omar-over-extreme-comments\/\" title=\"\u2018Can She Ever Fly The Flag Maybe Just Once For Us?\u2019: Bill Hemmer, Katie Pavlich Call Out Ilhan Omar Over \u2018Extreme\u2019 Comments\">designated terrorist organizations<\/a> is because the criminal cartels in Mexico have killed more Americans than every terrorist organization in the world combined.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Homan went on to cite how more than a quarter of million Americans die from fentanyl poisoning.<\/p>\n<p>Trump&rsquo;s pick for national security adviser &mdash; Rep. Michael Waltz (R-FL) &mdash; coauthored a bill with Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-TX) that would create &ldquo;Authorization for Use of Military Force&rdquo; to go after drug cartels. The bill was introduced last year.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/presidential\/3237587\/gaetz-withdrawal-spotlight-trump-nominees-sexual-assault-allegations\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\"><strong>GAETZ WITHDRAWL SPOTLIGHTS TRUMP NOMINEES WHO FACE SEXUAL ASSAULT ALLEGATIONS<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s time to go on offense,&rdquo; Waltz said in a statement. &ldquo;Not only are these paramilitary transnational criminal organizations responsible for killing an unprecedented number of Americans, but are actively undermining our sovereignty by destabilizing our border and waging war against US law enforcement and the Mexican military.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>But Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has rejected Trump&rsquo;s use of U.S. forces against the cartels, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.yahoo.com\/news\/us-invasion-mexico-cartels-rejected-165339125.html\">calling<\/a> the strategy &ldquo;entirely a movie.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>And according to Buck, Trump&rsquo;s deployment of U.S. military operations into Mexico without permission could really &ldquo;burn some bridges.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;If he&rsquo;s really sincere about wanting to keep a rise in China out of our own backyard, the idea of going into Mexico to fight the cartels puts that project at serious risk,&rdquo; Buck said.&nbsp; &ldquo;Not just for Mexico itself, but for the rest of Latin America&nbsp;where memories run very long about the history of the U.S. government and its interventions in Latin America.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Buck also pointed out that the United States military campaigns in Libya, Syria, and Afghanistan have only exacerbated issues in the country &mdash; leading to a refugee crisis.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;God, help us if we got involved in some kind of serious campaign down there,&rdquo; Buck said. &ldquo;Wars lead to the displacement of people. That&rsquo;s almost a constant, of course, not that the cartels aren&rsquo;t doing that themselves with their own violence, but you have to weigh these things against each other.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/supreme-court\/3258395\/james-ho-fifth-circuit-heir-clarence-thomas\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\"><strong>JAMES HO, THE 5TH CIRCUIT ORIGINALIST TIPPED AS THE HEIR TO CLARENCE THOMAS<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>In fact, Carolyn Gallaher, a professor studying guerrilla and paramilitary violence at American University&rsquo;s School of International Service, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/politics\/politics-features\/trump-mexico-invasion-plan-1235223266\/\">told<\/a> <em>Rolling Stone<\/em> magazine that using the military to kill off &ldquo;capos&rdquo; will just cause a greater rise in violence.<\/p>\n<p>A prime example of this would be when President George W. Bush backed Mexican President Felipe Caldero in the M&eacute;rida Initiative. Also known as Plan Mexico, the partnership between Mexico and the United States began in 2007 and lasted&nbsp;until 2021 to <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">combat drug cartels<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>In 2006, Caldero <a href=\"https:\/\/inkstickmedia.com\/how-the-united-states-fuels-militarization-in-mexico\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">declared<\/a> a war on cartels &mdash; which led to 10,000 homicides in Mexico that year. In 2008, homicides skyrocketed, and since 2016, there have been over 25,000 homicides in Mexico each year. Meanwhile, the flow of drugs into the United States has only increased.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;And that&rsquo;s what&rsquo;s happened thus far with Mexico&rsquo;s own war on drugs,&rdquo; Buck said.&nbsp; &ldquo;If they take out cartel leadership, the cartels fracture, and they&rsquo;re still able to maintain their business, albeit, you know, even more fragmented, but it still hasn&rsquo;t stopped the flow of drugs.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>In 2023, the Drug Enforcement Administration seized 80 million fentanyl-laced fake pills and nearly 12,000 pounds of fentanyl powder.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Fentanyl is so cheap to make,&rdquo; Buck said.&nbsp;&ldquo;It&rsquo;s not like cocaine, and it&rsquo;s certainly not like traditional opiates, like heroin. So it&rsquo;s hard to see any kind of military campaign having any real substantive ability to interdict fentanyl into the United States.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Brandan said that the best bet to combat drug traffickers is to prosecute them to the full extent of the law. And in terms of keeping Americans safe from drug overdoses, policymakers should focus on harm reduction.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\"><strong><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;You have to realize that the war on drugs is probably never going to be fully won,&rdquo; Buck said. &ldquo;It could just be assuaged, but&nbsp; using military force in this way would certainly just make it worse.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The <em>Washington Examiner <\/em>reached out to the Trump transition team for comment.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_1417449\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"1417449\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Using military force against Mexican drug cartels may harm Trump&#8217;s reputation<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2542,"featured_media":2389113,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/AP23068055010395-1024x764.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[39360,48069,23344,3634],"class_list":["post-2389112","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-drug-cartels","tag-military-force","tag-national-security","tag-trump"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/AP23068055010395-1024x764.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2389112","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2542"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2389112"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2389112\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2389116,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2389112\/revisions\/2389116"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2389113"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2389112"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2389112"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2389112"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}