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This isn’t a new thought for Trump — during his 2024 campaign, he openly floated the idea of authorizing direct military action against cartels operating inside Mexico, as the New York Post noted. Now back in office, Trump has wasted no time acting on that vision.
Since reclaiming the Oval Office, Trump has hit Mexico and Canada with higher tariffs over their failure to stem the flow of drugs and human trafficking into the U.S. He has also ordered immigration officials to aggressively target suspected gang members entering the country.
In recent months, Trump has invited families victimized by cartel violence to the White House, vowing to seize cartel assets and funnel the proceeds to American families devastated by what he calls “migrant crime.” Venezuelan strongman Nicolás Maduro has been singled out as one of his top priorities.
On Thursday, the Justice and State Departments announced a staggering $50 million reward for information leading to Maduro’s arrest on charges tied to U.S. drug trafficking laws.
The anti-cartel offensive isn’t just a military operation — it’s a coordinated push involving the Departments of Defense, Justice, and Homeland Security, along with the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and the Treasury Department.
“President Trump’s top priority is protecting the homeland, which is why he took the bold step to designate several cartels and gangs as foreign terrorist organizations,” deputy White House press secretary Anna Kelly said in a statement.
The crackdown has already produced results. Earlier this week, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested Cristian Alberto Rivas-Escalante, a 29-year-old fugitive from El Salvador, at a work site on Marco Island, Florida. He was wanted in his home country and classified as a “criminal alien” linked to the violent 18th Street Gang.
“(ICE) came to the Island to locate and arrest an individual with an outstanding fugitive warrant. Contrary to some concerns, this was not an immigration raid,” said Marco Island Police Captain David Ennis. “Agents were specifically focused on locating one individual who was working in the area due to his past criminal activity.”
ICE confirmed Rivas-Escalante entered the U.S. illegally in 2015 and was living in Southwest Florida before his arrest. According to Homeland Security officials, he has known ties to the 18th Street Gang — a bitter rival of MS-13, which the U.S. formally labeled a foreign terrorist organization in February.
With Trump now willing to put military boots into the fight, the cartels — and their political protectors — may find themselves facing an entirely new level of pressure.
