Thread: Allies in a border war - Navarrette

Allies in a border war

When Obama meets with the Mexican president,the two leaders must accept that both sides are responsible for the growing violence.

By Ruben Navarrette

SAN DIEGO — In the midst of the violent drug war along our border, Americans and Mexicans can't seem to figure out who should be afraid of whom.

I can tell you, after recently spending a week in Mexico, that many Mexicans think it is ironic that Americans are being warned to stay away from the border out of fear of drug violence. The Mexicans I spoke with say that the closer they get to the U.S. border, the more they fear becoming a casualty of that violence, and they blame the U.S. for the upsurge in killings.

(War on drug cartels: Launched by President Felipe Calderon in December 2006, the army is Mexico’s last hope to control the violence that have killed more than 9,000 people since then./ Alexandre Meneghini, AP)

Both sides are right: While endless streams of illegal drugs head north into the U.S., large amounts of cash and military-style weapons are crossing the border into Mexico from the U.S. That reality sets the stage for President Obama's meeting with Mexican President Felipe Calderon in a couple of weeks in Mexico City.

The challenges are daunting.

On the Mexican side, the border towns of Tijuana and Juarez are the major ports of entry for drugs into the USA. The coastal area of Sinaloa farther south produces most of the cocaine, methamphetamine and marijuana entering the U.S. According to most estimates, about 90% of all the cocaine consumed in the U.S. comes through Mexico.

On the U.S. side, the firearms bazaar keeps the cartels armed to the teeth with handguns, bullets, rocket launchers and AK-47s. According to the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), about 90% of the guns seized after drug-related violence in Mexico come from the U.S., where gun laws are more lax than in Mexico.

Calderon cracks down

Since his election in 2006, Calderon has tried to crack down on Mexico's drug cartels. In turn, these gangs have killed Mexican police, military officers, civilians and one another in fierce battles over turf. Since 2008, more than 7,200 people have died in drug-related violence, according to Mexican authorities. Now that violence is starting to boil over into the U.S. — especially into Arizona, where home invasions and kidnappings of drug and immigrant smugglers have begun to soar.

During the visit, President Obama is expected to highlight his plans for cracking down on the drugs, cash and arms trafficking, which include increasing U.S. manpower on the border. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano has said that Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection are sending more agents to the border. And although Obama has said that he is "not interested in militarizing the border," he might yet send in more National Guardsmen to the area. Obama also plans to increase technology and share more intelligence with Mexican law enforcement, using tools to track the flow of drug money.

But while his forceful steps are to be applauded, the likelihood that enforcement measures alone will stem the flow of contraband is very remote.

Cartels already in U.S.

Even with frequent vehicle checks, and additional electronic surveillance equipment, we can't prevent the flow of drugs, weapons, money and immigrants across the border. And while we're focusing on the border, Mexican drug cartels are already operating in at least 230 U.S. cities, according to the Justice Department. USA TODAY recently reported that Atlanta is the main distribution center for drugs in the eastern USA.

Meanwhile, within Mexico, Calderon's law officers are still outmanned and under-armed. The situation could ultimately require an expanded U.S. military presence in Mexico. U.S. Special Forces are already training and advising the Mexican military. But would the United States be willing to use them in combat, if necessary?

And that's just the enforcement component. To win this war on the drug cartels, people on both sides of the border also need to change their behavior and their thinking.

Americans need to finally own up to the role they play in perpetuating this crisis. The drug cartels' business would dry up if there weren't a U.S. market for their supply. The drug trade in North America is estimated to be $65 billion a year. And as long as there are 6,600 licensed gun dealers along the border, according to a recent New York Times news story, and only 200 ATF agents to monitor them, the flow of assault weapons will only continue to flow south.

Mexicans need to accept the fact that this drug war will be a long, hard slog. They need to stand by Calderon and his National Action Party (PAN) in the congressional midterm elections in July and reject the appeasement strategy of the rival Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), which plundered the country for 71 years and now plans a comeback fueled by public anxiety over the drug war. Polls show that a majority of Mexicans support Calderon's war but think it will fail. This is predictable Mexican fatalism. The drug lords know it and will try every tactic, from threats to bribery, to manipulate the political process.

And that's where the USA comes in. President Obama and the United States need to deliver every dime of the $1.4 billion funding that Congress has already promised to make sure that Calderon has the power to succeed.

This is a war — being fought on multiple fronts — that the cartels cannot be allowed to win. But Calderon cannot defeat his enemy without the unwavering support of his northern neighbor, whose fate is also wrapped up in the outcome of this bloody and epic battle.

Ruben Navarrette is a nationally syndicated columnist, a member of the editorial board of the San Diego Union-Tribune and a weekly contributor to CNN.com.

Posted at 12:15 AM/ET, March 31, 2009 in Foreign policy general - Forum, Forum commentary |
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Well, if we had any kind of border control, it might lessen the amount of drugs and guns crossing the border. If we would legalize drugs, there goes the money magnet. If people want to do drugs, they will find a way to do them. Obviously being illegal isn't stopping people from doing it. I don't do drugs, not becasue I can't afford them, its because I don't want to do them. I think it is with most Americans or people in general. If you have a addictive personality, you are more inclined to get into drugs or alcohol. If you want to do them, do them It's called personal responsibility. The "war on drugs is a joke." We are losing it because we don't have the will do really fight it. There is too much money in it and it probably goes a long way up the ladder.

The Mexicans I spoke with say that the closer they get to the U.S. border, the more they fear becoming a casualty of that violence, and they blame the U.S. for the upsurge in killings.

Hmmm..........they blame the U.S., yet it's Mexican nationals that are doing the killings.