Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis warned Mexican cartel members Friday that if he’s elected president and they attempt to illegally enter the US, his administration will “leave them stone cold dead at the border.”
DeSantis — who launched his 2024 bid in May — vowed to use deadly force against suspected drug traffickers during an interview with conservative radio talk show host Erick Erickson at an event in Atlanta.
“We are going to authorize the use of deadly force against the cartels,” the 44-year-old presidential hopeful vowed.
“If you have somebody coming in with the fentanyl in the backpack – they even break through the border wall, where there is wall – if they’re doing that, that’s the last thing they’re going to be able to do because we’re going to leave them stone cold dead at the border,” he threatened.
“We’re not putting up with it anymore,” DeSantis added, generating roaring applause.
DeSantis, who is polling in second place behind former President Donald Trump in most 2024 Republican presidential primary surveys, argued that under President Biden, the cartels have “more control over our border than we do.”
“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,” DeSantis told Erickson as he outlined his plan for combating the cartels and the crisis on the southern border.
“We’ll build a wall, we’ll remain in Mexico, stop the invasion, we’ll do all that,” the Florida governor said.
“But when you have cartels operating the way they are, they’re operating as akin to foreign terrorist organizations because they’re killing our people. They’re poisoning our people.”
Meanwhile, DeSantis signaled during an event in Iowa last week that he would also be open to carrying out drone strikes against the drug cartels on Mexican soil.
“We will lean in against the drug cartels. We will absolutely reserve the right. If they’re invading our country and killing our people, we have the right to defend this country,” the White House hopeful said.
