Border Officials: Cartels Are Already Preparing For Trump And Flooding America With Drugs And Human Trafficking Before Transition

Border officials are warning that Mexican cartels are already reacting to the prospect of a new Trump administration by ramping up efforts to flood the United States with drugs and human trafficking operations before the Trump-promised stricter border policies come into effect.

“The cartels and the smugglers are spreading the word that now’s the time to get in before Trump enters,” Lora Ries, director of the Border Security and Immigration Center at conservative think tank Heritage Foundation told Fox News. “They will use any marketing that they can at any time to make more money.”

Following his election victory, President-elect Donald Trump wasted no time in announcing the return of Tom Homan, former acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), as his administration’s “border czar.” Homan, a staunch advocate of hard-line immigration policies, supported the Trump-era “zero tolerance” policy that led to controversial family separations, NBC reported.

Homan, who recently served as president of Border911, a nonprofit organization focused on border security, pledged that deportations under his leadership would be efficient and humane. “It’s going to be a well-targeted, planned operation conducted by the men of ICE,” Homan said. He also warned Mexican cartels that they could face extreme consequences, stating that a Trump administration might designate cartels as terrorist organizations, potentially opening up Military action against them.

Homan’s reappointment and Trump’s promises of aggressive border policies have sparked debates about the impacts on immigrant families. Biden-Harris 2024 Hispanic Media Director Maca Casado issued a statement condemning the decision, stating according to Axios, “Americans will never shake the cruel and unforgivable images of mothers being ripped away from their children, and who is to blame: Donald Trump.”

The Biden administration, meanwhile, is bracing for a migrant surge at the southern border as individuals may attempt to enter the U.S. ahead of the anticipated crackdown. A recent meeting led by Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas highlighted concerns among officials about an increase in crossings.

Trump has privately discussed deploying assassination squads to address the American fentanyl crisis and combat the iNFLuence of Mexican drug cartels, Rolling Stone reported. During his first presidency, he considered bombing cartel drug labs and reportedly discussed attributing the strikes to other countries, as disclosed by former Defense Secretary Mark Esper.

Publicly, Trump has not explained how many troops he would commit to such missions.