Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) said during a campaign event this week that he would support the use of “deadly force” against drug cartels. The governor’s comments mirror statements by other prominent Republicans calling for the potential use of force to stop drug trafficking.
This is not the first time that DeSantis has brought up the concept of attacking cartels, but may be his clearest statement on the subject yet.
The Mexican drug cartels are killing tens of thousands of Americans every single year.
This cannot go on.
As President, I will build the wall, stop the invasion, and authorize use of force against drug smugglers breaking into our country.
Cartels who seek to harm Americans… pic.twitter.com/fjkwVZKPnR
— Ron DeSantis (@RonDeSantis) August 18, 2023
The candidate made the comments Friday during an interview with conservative radio host Erick Erickson. DeSantis said that drug runners would not be able to cross the border “because we’re going to leave them stone-cold dead at the border. We’re not putting up with it anymore.”
He also recommended building a border wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.
“We now have tens of thousands of people that are dying from fentanyl overdoses, and that’s all being brought in because the border is not secure and the cartels have more control over our border than we do,” DeSantis said.
DeSantis’ comments also come after further commitment to border security by his opponent, former President Donald Trump. Trump recently stated that he would support the use of the death penalty for drug dealers.
Trump told Fox News in June that the death penalty would be the “only way” to stop the current drug trade. He said that a drug dealer “will kill approximately 500 people during the course of his or her life.”
The former president also declared his support for the death penalty for child traffickers.
Trump made the comment after watching the best-selling movie “Sound of Freedom.” The former president stated that he would reinstate the Title 42 asylum policy instituted during his term.
He said that the policy would be utilized to “end the child trafficking crises by returning all trafficked children to their families in their home countries and without delay.”
Trump said on Truth Social that he would ask Congress to “ensure that anyone caught trafficking children across our border receives the death penalty immediately, and that includes women.”
