Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Lamar Smith (R-Texas) today called on House Democrats to hold a hearing on the surge in drug-related violence on the U.S.-Mexico border. The violence is attributed to Mexican drug cartels, fighting turf battles and competing to control the U.S. drug trade markets.
In a letter to Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers (D-Mich.), Smith cited reports from Wall Street Journal and USA Today that Mexican gangs are operating organized crime rings in at least 230 U.S. cities. Ranking Member Smith issued the following statement along with his letter:
“The recent surge in drug-related violence on the Southwest border has turned some American communities and neighborhoods into the ‘wild west.’ Drug traffickers battling for an increased share in the U.S.-Mexico drug trade market are resorting to far more violent and deadly acts.
“According to national news reports, this violence resulted in the deaths of at least 9,000 people since 2007. A battle is building on the border and U.S. citizens are getting caught in the cross-fire. Congress must address the violence before more lives are lost.”
Mexico continues to be the source or entry point for the vast majority of the narcotics that are consumed in the US. Mexico is the leading transit country for cocaine and heroin consumed in the US. It is also the leading source country for marijuana and now methamphetamine.
Occasionally, the federal government of Mexico temporarily deployed the military and federal police officers to maintain order against trafficker-generated violence in highly impacted cities. But more often than not Mexican military — or those posing as military — provide protection for the traffickers and drug gangs.
The heavily-armed "Zetas" complicate matters even more. These are former Mexican military personnel and deserters, some of whom were actually trained by the United States in counter-narcotics operations.
While the Mexican government pledged an all-out effort against drug trafficking organizations, it lacks the capacity to eliminate or even control the leading cartels. The principal impediment to counter-drug success is Mexico's inherent institutional weakness and endemic corruption.
In the longer term, if Mexico is to reduce the production and transit of illegal drugs, the government must continue to consider the problem a high priority, complete ongoing institutional restructuring and transition, and significantly strengthen special counter-drug law enforcement units.
The task is daunting, but early successes against leading drug traffickers have shown that law enforcement progress is achievable. Still, American law enforcement continues to be concerned over reports that Mexican federales and paramilitary personnel are in cahoots with the drug cartels and pose a threat to US border patrol agents and local police in border jurisdictions.
The working relationship between the United States and Mexico on investigations against major traffickers continues. The professional capacity of Mexico's lead counter-drug police agency, the Federal Investigation Agency (AFI), has increased dramatically. However, it is not clear that the improvements have reduced the volume of drugs trafficked in Mexico. Some major traffickers, such as the Arrellano Felix Organization, have been damaged, but other traffickers have expanded operations.
In recent years, the Government of Mexico has arrested a former governor of the State of Quintana Roo, suspected of assisting in the transshipment of millions of dollars worth of cocaine from South America to the US Mexican authorities also arrested Gilberto Garcia Mena, suspected leader of the Gulf Cartel, and Alcides Ramon Magaña, a known drug kingpin.
More recently, Mexican authorities captured Consolidated Priority Organization Targets Otto Roberto Herrera, Jaime Herrera Herrera, as well as Jose Aureliano Felix and Efrain Perez, two prominent members of the Arellano Felix drug trafficking organization wanted in the US
Some traffickers operate drug organizations from jail, and extradition of active major traffickers to the United States remains a challenge. Mexican jails are far from secure. Even security at maximum-security prisons is compromised. It's believed that prison administrators and guards are routinely paid off to help major traffickers "escape" from Mexican prisons.
In 2007, there were three killings at La Palma, including the inmate Arturo Guzman Loera, brother of drug kingpin Joaquin Guzman Loera (El Chapo Guzman). Arturo's murder occurred less than one week after Federal Preventive Police conducted a surprise operation at the facility, specifically to prevent the smuggling of weapons, drugs, and other prohibited objects into the prison.
While Mexican interdiction of marijuana is fair, the interdiction of cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine remains poor: less than 2 percent of the volume trafficked in Mexico. These results are probably due to inadequate intelligence penetration of trafficking organizations for heroin and cocaine, and insufficient familiarity with methamphetamine trafficking.
Cocaine is susceptible to interdiction at sea or after it is imported into Mexico before it is distributed in smaller packages for onward transport. Subsequently, land interdiction may still be possible at checkpoints if inspectors are trained, equipped and supervised properly. The Isthmus of Tehuantepec constitutes a natural chokepoint for land transportation. The area offers interdiction opportunities which do not exist anywhere else in Mexico. Over one hundred metric tons of cocaine that arrives in Central America and in southern Mexico pass through or around the Isthmus.
Smuggling and diversion of precursor chemicals like pseudoephedrine within Mexico account for large amounts of methamphetamine becoming available for US markets. The Mexican government has updated its laws and regulations relevant to methamphetamine, and the Federal Commission for the Protection Against Sanitary Risks, a division of the Ministry of Health, began to conduct unannounced inspections at the premises of importers of precursor chemicals.
New regulations control the number of pseudoephedrine tablets that can be purchased by individuals. However, at present Mexico neither has the necessary expertise nor the equipment to locate and seize methamphetamine laboratories. In many instances, these laboratories are discovered only when authorities react to fires or explosions.
Jim Kouri, CPP is currently fifth vice-president of the National Association of Chiefs of Police and he's a staff writer for the New Media Alliance (thenma.org). In addition, he's the blog editor for the House Conservatives Fund's weblog. Recently, the editors Examiner.com appointed him as their Law Enforcement Examiner. Kouri also serves as political advisor for Emmy and Golden Globe winning actor Michael Moriarty.
He's former chief at a New York City housing project in Washington Heights nicknamed "Crack City" by reporters covering the drug war in the 1980s. In addition, he served as director of public safety at a New Jersey university and director of security for several major organizations. He's also served on the National Drug Task Force and trained police and security officers throughout the country. Kouri writes for many police and security magazines including Chief of Police, Police Times, The Narc Officer and others. He's a news writer for NewswithViews.com and PHXnews.com. He's also a columnist for AmericanDaily.Com, MensNewsDaily.Com, MichNews.Com, and he's syndicated by AXcessNews.Com. He's appeared as on-air commentator for over 300 TV and radio news and talk shows including Oprah, McLaughlin Report, CNN Headline News, MTV, Fox News, etc. His book Assume The Position is available at Amazon.Com. Kouri's own website is located at http://jimkouri.us
Mexican/American Border Violence
There’s probably little that can be done concerning this issue without a fundamental change in tactics.
The high end value of annual drug traffic across the border is estimated at $120 billion. That number represents 16% of the entire US annual expenditure on the Department of Defense.
This type of capital allows the drug cartels to hire, train, and equip a large cadre of men. In most cases; civilian law enforcement is both out trained and out gunned.
Even ICE and DEA do not routinely receive the combat arms training or the same caliber (pun intended) of weaponry . About the only things outside the reach of the cartels are state-of-the-art air assets. In every other aspect; these ‘cartel militias’ are as well trained and equipped as any US Military IBCT (Infantry Brigade Combat Team).
The only clear method of defeating such a force is direct confrontation: And by direct, I mean shoot first, use overwhelming force, completely destroy their ability to continue the fight, track and destroy the supply chain back to the source, and then destroy the entire capacity of that source. A Marine Expeditionary Force could accomplish such a mission.
However; I doubt if the American people or their current Commander-in-Chief have the stomach for such a confrontation. If we are prohibited from conducting operations such as these in the battle space of Iraq or Afghanistan; what would lead one to think we’d conduct such an operation across the border.
Legalize drugs! Don’t you get it? People are going to do drugs whether they are legal or illegal. That cannot be denied. If you legalize it, the drug cartels will whither and die within weeks. Problem solved. Let’s not even discuss the billions being wasted on this drug war, the violence and the inevitable corruption of U.S. law enforcement and the judiciary that is a by-product of the war. Of all our problems this is the easiest one to solve.
Legalizing rape and murder would certainly make for more efficient government as well. Changing something from being illegal to legal doesn’t change the rightness or wrongness of the thing itself. We don’t have fewer alcohol related deaths since prohibition was overturned, we wouldn’t see less violence and public health risks if crack and methamphetamine were made legal, one’s fondness for smoking pot notwithstanding.
Patrick..ridiculous strawman argument. Rape and murder are violent crimes with victims. Drug ingestion (like alcohol consumption) is not. Additionally, of course there would be less death if drugs were legalized. I just read 1,000 or so were murdered in AZ recently due to drug gang violence. Those deaths will disappear as drug gangs will not be fighting themselves and civilians and law enforcement when the profits are totally stripped from the enterprise. Is my solution perfect? No, but much better than what we currently have. BTW, not that it matters, I don’t do drugs so that is not my incentive in this debate.
No one loves us NeoCons anymore. We’re the red-headed stepchild of the Conservative Movement. But consider this: a destiny is likely unfolding here. Either Mexico is destined to colonize large portions of the US, or the US is destined to colonize large portions of Mexico.
A more sensible policy might proceed from the premise that If ten percent of your population wants to come here so badly that they would sneak in, we have a better idea. We’ll just annex ten percent of your territory. Let’s decide where, and send all the would-be illegals there.
Preferably something coastal, so we can build desalination plants more cheaply than we could off the California coast. We’ll set people to work building water pipelines to Arizona and Nevada.
Well at least you neo-cons are consistent…always dreaming of a new conquest to consider. :)
Many things can safely be surmised about the Mexicans living in the US. One of these is that, on average, they likely have better ideas about how to run Mexico, than the Mexicans now running Mexico.
Let’s give them ten percent of Mexico to practice with.
Probably true, but you can be sure that 100% of Mexicans will oppose our invasion. I hope you’re not serious about this idea amigo…
They’ll lose.
Hey we’d just be sending them back the same Mexicans they sent us. Call it a “homecoming party.” The entire invasion force could be Mexican national US Army vets from Iraq and Afghanistan.
America would have more fun than we’ve had since it armed the slaves and sic’d them on Dixie.
It’s like the gift that keeps on giving!