Moreno: Unsecured southern border invites problems including 'terrorist' drug cartels

A few weeks ago, I visited the U.S-Mexico border. After reading about what was happening in Del Rio, Texas (with thousands of Haitians entering our country illegally), I knew I had to see for myself what was going on. I not only visited Del Rio, but went into Mexico to talk to folks there and hear what they had to say.

Everybody told me I was out of my mind to cross the border without security. However, I have always believed that you can’t solve problems until you identify them first and call them what they are, so I knew I had to be there to understand the situation better.

What I saw at the border confirmed, in a very real way, what I have been saying for months: this is not a “challenge” or even a “crisis,” but an invasion of our country, an overrunning of our border, plain and simple.

The people I met in Del Rio were incredibly angry, understandably so, at the federal government for allowing the situation to get out of control. They could not understand why our government was encouraging people to come here illegally.

But you know who else was livid? They people I met in Acuna, Mexico, who are seeing their small community overtaken not only by illegal immigrants from outside Mexico, but also by drug cartels.

When President Trump was in power, they told me, the Mexican government deployed dozens of military officers to control border crossings. Now that President Trump is out of office, that military presence is almost non-existent and, as a result, drug trafficking and violence have grown exponentially.

More: Editorial: Relations with Mexico are another mess for Biden

They admire the fact that President Trump stood up for his country, and they benefitted from the fact that the Mexican government responded to his demands. Now, the drug cartels are running the show.

Taking control of what is happening in our southern border requires strong leadership. It begins with sealing our border with the U.S. military. Unless we do that, we are going to see a total collapse of our southern border and illegal crossings will continue to skyrocket, as has been happening for the past nine months in record numbers.

But there is another policy action that the federal government can take, immediately, to help regain control of the situation: declare Mexican drug cartels as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs). This will allow our government to go after these monsters the same way we go after terrorists.

Several Republican elected officials, including Gov. (Greg) Abbott of Texas, have called on our federal government to do so, to no avail. Although such efforts have fizzled out in the past, acting now is of critical importance, as the situation has escalated to unmanageable levels.

President Trump was right when he said that Mexico has “totally lost control of the cartels.” The time to act is now before the United States also loses control over them.

Designating Mexican drug cartels as FTOs would give us added weapons to fight and win this out-of-control war. For instance, it would give federal prosecutors and law enforcement, intelligence, military, and national security officers additional statutory authority and resources to go after cartel members and those who aid them, even extraterritorially.

It would also expose them to additional criminal liability and more serious consequences for their ruthless actions.

These people are not merely drug dealers; they are terrorists that run extensive criminal operations on both sides of our border, and they need to be treated for what they are. They endanger our way of life, and we must use all weapons at our disposal to destroy them.

Although some have argued that FTO designation would not provide us with any significant benefit, especially in light of what is sure to be strong opposition from the Mexican government (who would see it as interference with their sovereignty), such criticism is misplaced. The situation today is totally out of control, so we need all the leverage we can get to fight and win this war.

The experience of President Trump also shows us what happens when an American president gets tough and puts his country first: the Mexican government sees what is at stake and responds accordingly. Leaders respond to strength, not weakness. The time for strong and decisive action is now.

Bernie Moreno is a businessman, first-generation American, and first-time candidate for political office. He is running for the U.S. Senate.

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Is US-Mexico border safe from undocumented immigrants, drug cartels?