A recent investigative report revealed that U.S. law enforcement quietly spent years examining allegations that allies of Mexico’s president took millions from violent drug cartels after he took office, a revelation that should shock every American who cares about law and order. The inquiry reportedly uncovered payments, alleged meetings with cartel leaders, and even claims of videos showing the president’s sons handling cash — yet the effort was shelved without a formal case.
These are not idle rumors shouted on a talk radio show; major outlets documented informants telling investigators about a $4 million payment, alleged meetings with Sinaloa cartel figures, and the timing of suspected payments that coincided with presidential visits to cartel strongholds like Sinaloa in 2020. The idea that this was all dismissed without consequence because of diplomatic caution is unacceptable to Americans watching fentanyl, cartel violence, and mass migration devastate our communities.
Instead of answering questions, Mexico’s president exploded at the press, branded reputable papers with insults, and even read a reporter’s phone number aloud in public — a disgraceful stunt that endangered journalism and intimidated the free press. That move drew immediate rebukes from press freedom defenders and prompted investigations back in Mexico, highlighting a pattern of hostility toward scrutiny.
Washington’s reaction was limp and telling: Biden administration spokesmen and Justice Department officials were quick to say there is no active investigation into the president himself, and U.S. officials admitted they had little appetite for pursuing allegations against a key partner. If the United States will not even follow credible leads when cartel money may have flowed to people close to a foreign leader, then we are choosing appeasement over accountability — and Americans pay the price in dead kids and poisoned towns.
Let’s be clear about the consequences of the policies that enabled this environment. Mexico’s insistence on a “hugs, not bullets” approach and the earlier reluctance to confront cartel bosses head-on coincided with skyrocketing drug production and smuggling operations that have fueled the fentanyl catastrophe in the United States. The result is a border disaster and a public-health emergency that Washington cannot solve by whispering behind closed doors.
This isn’t partisan chest-thumping — it’s a demand for common-sense national security. The Biden administration’s deferential diplomacy toward Mexico while drug cartels grow bolder is a strategic failure that contributes directly to American suffering. If U.S. law enforcement could trace suspicious payments and then shelve the probe because of political convenience, then our people are being sold out by elites more interested in headlines than homeland safety.
Patriots and policymakers must stop treating cartels as problems to be negotiated with and start treating them as criminal enterprises to be dismantled. That means real pressure on Mexico to investigate openly, full cooperation on prosecutions when warranted, and a secure border that stops the flow of fentanyl and cartel money into our towns. Hardworking Americans deserve leaders who will put our safety first, not protect foreign powerful men from inconvenient scrutiny.
