Over the years, I’ve discussed America’s drug problem with President Trump. In his first term, I had dinner with him at Mar-a-Lago and asked whether he was considering military action against the Mexican drug cartels, which have damaged the USA big time. Mr. Trump hesitated, saying the blowback would be considerable.
Donald Trump well understood that then Mexican President Obrador’s “hugs” policy towards drug merchants was a corrupt, look-the-other-way situation. The cartels spread enormous money throughout Mexico City to bribe civilian and military leaders. Obrador knew that and apparently had no objection.
Quite a guy.
The Mexican drug industry is still prospering off the death and destruction of weak American addicts. The current Mexican president, Claudia Sheinbaum, is not going to confront the drug gangsters in a meaningful way. She’s frightened.
But President Trump is a different leader the second time around so Claudia might want to pay attention. Classifying people and groups as “narco-terrorists” gives Mr. Trump the power to arrest or even kill them. Thus, the hunt is on.
Venezuela strongman Nicholas Maduro has to be a complete idiot. Everyone this side of Tierra del Fuego knew the U.S. military was poised to sanction him. Maduro should have absconded to Cuba or Paraguay. In fact, he was trying to negotiate that, but wanted to take $200 million with him.
Nice pay, Nick. How did that come about?
Easy. The Colombian drug merchants bribed Maduro to allow vast cocaine shipments to pass through Venezuela on the way to the USA and Mexico. Cocaine is harvested and produced in the mountains of Colombia. My book “Confronting Evil” documents that.
The president of that country, Gustavo Petro, is said to be “owned” by the drug cartels. I don’t know if that’s a fact, but I do know President Trump believes it.
Not good news, Gustavo. If you get my drift.
Ironically, at the same time the U.S . Special Forces were physically removing Nicholas Maduro and his awful wife from their supposedly secure Caracas compound, the 34-year-old daughter of actor Tommy Lee Jones collapsed in San Francisco’s Fairmont Hotel. Dead. Fentanyl-laced narcotics.
Victoria Jones joins almost a million other American OD victims over the past few years. Under the incredibly incompetent Joe Biden, drug smuggling into the USA reached record levels.
Going forward, the U.S. military action in Venezuela will mirror the Iranian bombing mission. No American casualties in both cases. Maduro was abducted and the Venezuelan military stepped aside completely. Tells you something.
The anti-Trump brigades in this country will, of course, squawk, just as they did with the nuke facility strike. However, most Americans understand that narcotics trafficking has become a national security problem.
Finally, Democrats say “Congress should have been consulted” before the Maduro takedown.
That’s not how national security operations are conducted. Stealth and power always tell the tale. President Trump is doing the right thing by waging furtive war on the vicious purveyors of narcotics.
China, Russia, and Iran all disagree with that analysis. Which should indicate the true story here. Those countries are certainly NOT looking out for us.
Terrorism comes in many forms. Addictive substances is just one of them. Long past time to put all the narcotics merchants on notice. There is now nowhere to hide.
Have fun in federal prison, Nick Maduro. You earned it.
