Republican suggests using drones against Mexican cartels

Representative Brian Babin, a Republican from Texas, has suggested that the U.S. could use drones against Mexican cartels in an effort to protect American lives.

Newsweek contacted Babin’s office for further comment via email outside normal working hours.

Why It Matters

Cartels and crime syndicates have been thrust into the forefront of the national conversation surrounding immigration enforcement operations as President Donald Trump begins large-scale mass deportations.

Trump made immigration a core component of his successful presidential campaign, with Americans largely supporting immigration reform overall but disagreeing about how policies such as deportations should be carried out.

A New York Times/Ipsos poll conducted between January 2 and 10 found that 55 percent of voters strongly or somewhat supported deportations. Eighty-eight percent supported “deporting immigrants who are here illegally and have criminal records.” Large majorities of both Democrats and Republicans agree that the immigration system is broken.

What To Know

On Tuesday, Babin, a co-chair of the Border Security Caucus, told NewsNation’s The Hill that the United States could deploy drones against cartels if it would help protect American lives.

“It certainly could. I’m not saying it will,” Babin said, adding, “It could come down to that.”

According to the congressman, the U.S. knows where a lot of clandestine narcotics labs are and where “a lot of these bad guys live.”

Babin expressed his gratitude that Trump had labeled cartels as foreign terrorist organizations, which meant that “all is fair” and “everything’s on the table” when dealing with groups under the designation.

According to a leaked memo seen by NewsNation, cartels have approved the deployment of weaponized drone explosives targeting Customs and Border Protection personnel and other U.S. law enforcement officers at the southern border.

A CBP spokesperson previously told Newsweek, “We remain vigilant and stand ready to ensure the safety of our personnel, migrants, and local communities, and the security of our borders.”

Meanwhile, a former ICE field office director told Newsweek that cartels would “absolutely” be dismantled under the Trump administration.

How Is Trump Handling Cartels

During his 2024 presidential campaign, Trump repeatedly vowed to crack down on cartels.

On the first day of his second term, the president signed an executive order designating Mexican drug cartels and other Latin American criminal groups, such as the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, as foreign terrorist organizations or specially designated global terrorists.

These groups will be declared a national security threat, invoking the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to disrupt their operations.

According to the order, the groups “threaten the safety of the American people, the security of the United States, and the stability of the international order in the Western Hemisphere.”

In the Oval Office after his inauguration, Trump also remarked on the possibility of the U.S. sending troops into Mexico to combat the country’s powerful drug cartels.

Responding to a question about whether he would consider deploying U.S. special forces to target cartels, the president said: “Could happen. Stranger things have happened.”

What People Are Saying

Representative Brian Babin told NewsNation on Tuesday: “Everything’s on the table, and we could absolutely take that type of action against them to save American lives, to save our property, to save our sovereignty.”

John Ferguson, the chief executive officer of Saxon Aerospace, a drone manufacturer in Kansas, told Newsweek: “An attack of any sorts is considered an act of war. If the Mexican Government allows this to happen and does not clean this up internally then they should be willing to work with the United States to help mitigate this threat. We all know the Government cannot combat the Cartels within Mexico so they should be willing to offer assistance at the very least.

“The Cartels have more small arms firepower than most militaries in the world. They also have the same ability as any other country regarding drones and the utilization of drones to militarize them.”

What Happens Next

Mexico has agreed to send 10,000 troops to the southern border to combat the flow of drugs entering the country, delaying Trump’s 25 percent tariffs on Mexican goods.

While some U.S. lawmakers may see the use of drones as a means to enhance border security and combat cartel violence, there are concerns about the legality of such measures. Using drones could lead to diplomatic tensions with Mexico, which may view such actions as an infringement on its sovereignty.