Tom Homan, appointed as the "Border Czar" by President-elect Donald Trump, has called for cartels to be "designated as terrorist organizations" and eradicated. He expressed this view during an interview with Tucker Carlson on the Tucker Carlson Show podcast, which was posted on X on December 18.
"These criminal cartels have killed more Americans than every terrorist organization in the world combined," said Homan, Border Czar, Former ICE Director. "That's why they need to be designated as terrorist organizations and wiped off the face of the earth. It's going to take the United States to do it, Mexico has failed to do it. Much of the Mexican military, government and law enforcement is corrupt."
According to The Wall Street Journal, polls indicate that a majority of Mexican citizens support a U.S. military presence to combat cartel violence.
"There won’t be an invasion," said Claudia Sheinbaum, the Mexican president, according to The Wall Street Journal. She emphasized that Mexico is addressing the migration and drug crises in response to Trump's tariff threats and potential U.S. military action. The current Mexican administration has reportedly seized 1.3 tons of fentanyl and is working to reclaim Sinaloa state from cartel control.
The Wall Street Journal reports that one-third of Mexico is under the influence of drug cartels and other criminal groups. Over the past six years, more than 200,000 Mexican citizens have died, and another 50,000 are missing due to internal conflicts among cartels. These groups are also linked to the flow of fentanyl into the United States, which caused 76,000 American overdose deaths in 2023.
In July at the Republican National Convention, Homan delivered a message directed at Mexican criminal cartels, as reported by C Span: "He [President Trump] is going to designate you a terrorist organization," Homan said, "and he is going to wipe you off the face of the earth; you’re done."
Homan's background includes serving as a New York Police Officer and as Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
