PrairiePundit

 Daily Mail: Donald Trump has declared war on drug cartels and notified Congress that the United States is now engaged in a 'non-international armed conflict'. The extraordinary escalation by the president follows a series of recent strikes on drug-smuggling vessels operated by 'terrorist organizations' in the Caribbean. Trump's declaration is intended to place an iron-clad legal framework around the military action. According to international law, a country may kill enemy fighters even when they pose no threat and detain them indefinitely without trial. In a confidential memo sent to lawmakers on Thursday, the president calls the cartel gangsters 'unlawful combatants' whose actions 'constitute an armed attack against the United States'. It follows a closed-door Senate Armed Services Committee briefing on Wednesday during which Pentagon officials addressed lawmakers' concerns over the legality of the strikes. The president's notice uses l...

Headline USA: DEA Surge Against Cartel Turns up Fentanyl, Millions in Cash, Guns   U.S. Customs and Border Protection seized more than 1.1 million fentanyl pills the Nogales Port of Entry in Arizona / PHOTO: U.S. Customs and Border Protection ... Hopefully, this will lead to fewer drug overdoses.

 Reuters: Inside the CIA’s secret fight against Mexico’s drug cartels Working with special Mexican army and navy units, the CIA for years has been running covert operations to hunt down Mexico’s most-wanted narcos, a Reuters investigation finds. Among the captures: a son of cartel chief Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán. It is also in Mexico's interest to defeat the cartels, and that is one reason why they are working with the US CIA.  See also: White House warns of devastating military strikes targeting this foreign nation ... America is fighting back hard against the drug scum poisoning its streets, and Tuesday’s decisive U.S. military strike on Venezuelan narco-terrorists marks a new chapter in that battle. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, pulling double duty as acting national security adviser, made it crystal clear that these actions aren’t one-offs—they’re the new normal for dealing with cartels that dare to flood the nation with deadly narcotics. Rubio didn’t mince words during...

Blaze:   Border czar: Trump built the most secure border in American history  The president’s enforcement cut illegal crossings by 96% and rescued children from trafficking, while Biden’s reversal brought record deaths and lawless chaos. ...  As of today, we have the most secure border in the nation's history. I don’t take credit for that. The credit goes to President Trump for signing the executive orders that ended catch-and-release, reinstated Remain in Mexico, and put into place the agreements and policies that worked. And the greatest credit belongs to the men and women of the United States Border Patrol, the finest I’ve ever met. ... Trump demonstrated that the border can be secured, while Biden's policy was a disaster for the country and the migrants.  The Democrats are going to have to change their tune about the border if they ever hope to regain power.  I grew up on the border well before the Biden regime, and Trump is returning the area to control of ...

 Blaze: Latin American leaders react to report that Trump will use US military against cartels  'We cooperate, we collaborate, but there will be no invasion.'  Presidents in Latin America have voiced their opposition to President Donald Trump reportedly ordering the U.S. military to take direct action against drug cartels in the region. ... It should be in their interest to defeat the cartels and allow the US to help them do so. 

 Federalist Wire: ... The administration of President Donald Trump has issued a confidential order directing the Department of Defense to deploy military resources against specific drug cartels labeled as foreign terrorist organizations, according to sources familiar with the matter. A report from The New York Times revealed that Trump discreetly authorized the directive, establishing a basis for potential military engagements targeting these criminal networks. According to The Times , Pentagon officials have begun formulating strategies for military actions against the cartels. However, such operations could face legal challenges, particularly if they result in the deaths of individuals who do not present an immediate threat or are not part of a conflict authorized by Congress. “President Trump’s top priority is protecting the homeland, which is why he took the bold step to designate several cartels and gangs as foreign terrorist organizations,” White House spokesperson Anna Kell...

 The Sun: As Tech-Savvy and Ruthless Mexican Cartels Grow More Sophisticated, the Trump Administration Presses the Fight ‘This isn’t just a drug war anymore — it’s a hybrid criminal insurgency spreading across the hemisphere,’ one expert says. The state of Texas is also joining this fight against the cartels. Destroying the cartels is necessary to save the health of Americans.

  Trending Politics: White House border czar Tom Homan shared new details on the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids that set off organized leftist attacks on federal agents and multiple days of rioting in Los Angeles. Despite misinformation advanced by California Governor Gavin Newsom and other California officials, many of whom have claimed violence erupted only after President Donald Trump deployed National Guard personnel, the unrest began on Friday when federal agents came under sustained attack while conducting operations in the city’s fashion district. Agents were later cornered in a federal building while members of the mob attacked them with rocks, clubs, hammers and fireworks. The violence escalated on Saturday, when agents were nearly killed by rioters tossing large rocks at moving vehicles. During a recent appearance on “Dr. Phil Primetime,” Homan shared new details on the raid that led to the unrest that is still ongoing and spreading throughout the countr...

 DC Daily Journal: President Donald Trump has intensified his campaign to confront Mexico’s drug cartels head-on, seizing a moment of vulnerability as these criminal enterprises grapple with internal chaos and a fortified U.S. military presence at the southern border. The cartels, once untouchable, now face a reckoning. The situation in Mexico has reached a boiling point, with cartels like the Sinaloa and Jalisco New Generation locked in brutal power struggles. Trump’s response has been unwavering: he’s pushing for direct action, including offering U.S. military support to Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum. While Sheinbaum has resisted, Trump’s insistence reflects a belief that now is the time to strike decisively against these criminal empires. Sheinbaum revealed over the weekend that Trump personally extended an offer of American military assistance. “How can we help you fight drug trafficking? I propose that the United States military come in and help you,” she quoted him as s...

 DC Daily Journal: ... In a jaw-dropping interview aired Saturday, CNN faced widespread mockery after a Sinaloa Cartel member expressed admiration for President Donald Trump, undermining the network’s apparent attempt to portray the drug lord as a victim of the president’s tough-on-crime policies. The segment, filmed in a clandestine Mexican hideout, was meant to highlight the cartel’s reaction to Trump’s designation of the group as terrorists, part of his aggressive campaign to curb the deadly fentanyl flood into the United States. Instead, the gangster’s response bolstered Trump’s image as a leader protecting American interests. “According to the Trump Administration, you are a terrorist … What do you make of that?” CNN’s Isobel Yeung asked the masked Sinaloa Cartel member. The gangster, shrouded in a face covering, sunglasses, and latex gloves, replied, “Well, the situation is ugly but we have to eat.” When pressed on what he would say to Trump, he added, “My respect. According ...

 NBC News: The Trump administration is considering launching drone strikes on drug cartels in Mexico as part of an ambitious effort to combat criminal gangs trafficking narcotics across the southern border, according to six current and former U.S. military, law enforcement and intelligence officials with knowledge of the matter. Discussions among White House, Defense Department and intelligence officials, which are still at an early stage, have included possible drone strikes against cartel figures and their logistical networks in Mexico with the cooperation of Mexico’s government, the sources said. Still, the administration has made no final decision and reached no definitive agreement about countering the cartels. And unilateral covert action, without Mexico’s consent, has not been ruled out and could be an option of last resort, the sources said. It is unclear whether American officials have floated the possibility of drone strikes to the Mexican government. If Mexico and the Un...

 NY Post: A Texas border rancher was killed near the border by a suspected cartel IED earlier this month, the Texas Department of Agriculture told The Post Tuesday — as officials issued an urgent safety warning for the Rio Grande Valley. Rancher Antonio Céspedes Saldierna, 74, who worked on both sides of the border, along with Horacio Lopez Peña, were killed in the blast in Tamaulipas, Mexico, which was just south of Brownsville, Texas. Lopez’s wife, Ninfa Griselda Ortega, was hospitalized with injuries. Saldierna was driving on his ranch when he hit the explosive device , causing it to detonate, according to KRGV. Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller said the deadly explosion is part of a “growing threat posed by cartel activity along our southern border ” and encourages ranchers “to exercise extreme caution” in the area. “I encourage everyone in the agricultural industry to stay vigilant, remain aware of their surroundings, and report any suspicious activity to law enforcem...