The Biden administration's lack of action on the southern border and refusal to designate Mexican drug cartels foreign terrorist organizations are costing American lives and making travel to Mexico too dangerous, according to Texas Highway Patrol South Texas Region Lt. Christopher Olivarez on Newsmax.
"There's really nothing being done as far as the federal level and what I mean by that is designate these cartels as terrorist organizations," Olivarez told "Saturday Report," praising Texas GOP Gov. Greg Abbott for having done so on the state level.
"Gov. Abbott did it last year at the state level. He designated the cartels as terrorist organizations. And we're using every tool and resource within our authority in the state of Texas to grab these organizations by seizing profits, vehicles that are used for organized crime, weapons — actually going after organizations that are operating in the United States that have some type of affiliation with the cartels."
But as much as Texas can do, the cartels need to be hit at the source, Olivarez told host Kilmeny Duchardt.
"This is a responsibility of the federal government to actually designate these cartels as terrorist organizations and to put pressure on Mexico and to go after organizations," he continued.
"And after the statements made by the president Mexico saying this is the United States' problem, well, then it's time for action. Now it's time for the federal government step in and actually do something, because the question needs to be raised is: How many more Americans need to lose their lives over fentanyl poisoning until there's some action done by this federal government?"
Also, Oliveira warned, spring breakers and travelers across the southern border need to find a different, safer destination.
"One thing that we want to make very clear, stress to those travelers and spring breakers that are traveling to Texas, is to avoid Mexico at all costs," he concluded. "Avoid traveling into Mexico right now because of increased violence and kidnappings that are taking place.
"That's one thing that I cannot stress enough. It's to those that are thinking about traveling to Mexico, upcoming spring breakers must avoid those areas as much as possible."
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Eric Mack ✉
Eric Mack has been a writer and editor at Newsmax since 2016. He is a 1998 Syracuse University journalism graduate and a New York Press Association award-winning writer.
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