Episode 90: The Fentanyl Crisis and the Politics of the United States and Mexico

Cartels, Conspiracies, and Camarena

I frequently get asked what I the major issues in the fight against the Mexican cartels and the fentanyl crisis. In response, in addition to other issues, I often talk about the demand for illegal drugs in the United States and elsewhere and the economic realities in much of Mexico that precipitate participation in the cartels. Recently, I read two interesting and compelling articles that add to the analysis, and I discuss each in this Episode.

The first article presents five policy areas Presidential aspirants should address in connection with the fight against the cartels. Those policies points are foreign policy changes, strategies to deal with the cartels, southern border strategies, declare the cartels narco-terrorists, and a uniform domestic anti-narcotic strategy. I look at and discuss each of these policies.

The second article discusses the Mexican military's unique role within the Mexican government and the risks to democracy presented by that role. In this Episode, we look at the critical features of the Mexican military highlighted by the article and the ways in which those features impact the war on fentanyl and efforts by both Mexico and the United States, separately or bilaterally, to combat the cartels.