National security

America’s biggest national security crisis: Drug wars

The expansion of the Mexican drug war to America is the greatest threat to our society. Past successes in interdiction along waterways and efforts to curb supply and demand, such as Plan Colombia in the early 2000s, only resulted in adaptive efforts by drug cartels to meet demand. According to the Department of Health and Human Services’ Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the use of illicit drugs has consistently increased. There is no higher priority than defending the American people, their communities and their future. The United States should galvanize resources and leadership toward drug demand and supply reduction.

Cartels, like any business, compete with one another to meet drug demand and control importation and distribution across the United States. These violent organizations have expanded their influence up and down the supply chain, from production networks in South America to distribution hubs in American cities.