The ongoing border crisis has raised an important question among policymakers and average citizens: Are we dealing with an immigration problem or a security problem? Each lens requires a different response. But the fact is, the border crisis is not primarily an immigration problem. We are facing the greatest national security crisis in our nation’s history.
Years of an unchecked, unsecured border has left the American people to suffer at the will of Mexican drug cartels. We have been unable to counter this threat because thus far, we have insisted on viewing the problem only as an immigration issue, leaving us unable to engage security assets and resources that could help us win the war against our adversaries.
But when we look at it through the lens of security, we recognize Mexican cartels for what they are: foreign terrorist organizations (FTOs). Further, we recognize Mexico as what it has become: a failing state, burdened by a tyrannical government that not only sponsors terrorism but also shields cartels as they undermine the rule of law and threaten regional stability.
Operating with the Mexican government “in good faith” has led to the United States pledging to leave Mexico alone, so long as it controls migration into our nation. This has resulted in two things. First, these efforts have failed to deliver security. Second, the Mexican narco-state has continued to emerge.
This leaves the American people with a national security crisis, a public safety crisis, and a crisis of constitutional governance. To quote the
