MS-13, or Mara Salvatrucha, is a notorious and transnational gang that originated in Los Angeles, California, in the 1980s. The gang has since expanded its presence to various countries, particularly in Central America, including El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, and Mexico.
MS-13 is known for its involvement in a wide range of criminal activities, including drug trafficking, human smuggling, extortion, robbery, and violent acts such as murder and assault. The gang has gained a reputation for its brutal tactics and initiation rituals, which often involve violent crimes to prove loyalty and commitment.
And, thanks to Biden’s open borders, MS-13 members are welcomed to the doorsteps of ranch owners in border towns like Arivaca, Arizona. In November, Chilton Ranch owner Jim Chilton’s wife, Sue, answered the door to an unpleasant surprise – armed MS-13 members looking for an invitation into the couple’s home. The leader asked her to use the phone, but Mrs. Chilton refused to allow them inside. Instead, she made lunch for the gang members, who, thankfully, left her unharmed after the encounter.
Chilton said that in 2022 and throughout 2023, he has seen thousands of gun-toting migrants cross his ranch, many of whom he suspected of carrying drugs. His suspicions appear to be valid, with Arizona officials confirming they have seized 55 pounds of heroin, 15,000 pounds of fentanyl, and nearly 290 pounds of meth at the southern border in one day alone in November 2022.
Following a summer arrest of armed Mexican cartel members, DPS Lt. Chris Olivarez announced that Mexican drug cartels had gained “operational control of the border” through smuggling drugs and humans across international lines.
The smuggling operations of cartels along the U.S.-Mexico border have seen a significant surge, becoming a lucrative industry. Homeland Security Investigations reported that as of July 2022, the illicit trade has generated $13 billion, a staggering increase from $500 million in 2018.
Exploiting the desperation of migrants, cartels have raised fees during perilous journeys, resorting to extortion. Some migrants, unable to afford these costs, are coerced into trafficking drugs or working off their debts to the cartels in alternative ways. Failure to cooperate has dire consequences, including murder or ransom.
The current crisis at the southern U.S. border is reaching unprecedented levels, with a surge in illegal migrant entries throughout December 2023. U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) data reveals a record-setting week in early December, particularly in Arizona’s Tucson Sector, where 18,900 migrants were apprehended. This number surpasses the total for the entire month of December 2021 by about 2,000 encounters. Moreover, the southern border experienced a new daily record with over 12,000 migrants entering on December 4th.
And it’s not just drug cartels and violent gangs like MS-13 who are gaining entry. CBP data revealed that in fiscal year 2023, CBP encountered 169 individuals on the FBI terror watch lists. This figure surpasses the previous year’s record of 98 encounters and exceeds the total for the last six fiscal years combined.
Adding to concerns, CBP admits there is no way to track how many terrorists are “getaways” who evaded border control and law enforcement agencies and escaped into the United States interior.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre continues to claim that Republicans are to blame for the border crisis, including several perplexing statements that Biden “inherited a mess” at the border. Within two weeks of assuming office, however, Biden spectacularly faceplanted on the issue, with the results of his reckless policies now dragging down his reelection campaign as surely as a pair of cement shoes in a mafia movie.
In the heady exhilaration following Biden’s 2021 “victory,” the administration halted border wall construction, announced a pause of deportations, and revoked the Remain in Mexico policies of the Trump administration. In February 2021, he issued an executive order signaling a significant shift in U.S. immigration policy. The order aimed to “restore and strengthen” the U.S. asylum system, rejecting Trump administration policies he said went against American values and caused unnecessary human suffering.
While some Americans can be duped by Jean-Pierre’s claim that the border crisis has nothing to do with the Biden administration, illegal immigrants fully understand the President’s contributions to their newly found “freedom” in the United States. “I love you, Joe Biden!” one gushed in a video clip, adding, “Thank you for everything, Joe Biden!”
Republicans are standing firm in their resolution to force Biden’s hand by tying additional Ukraine aid to action at the border. The President now finds himself torn between providing money to his former business partners or padding the Democrat voter rolls enough to ensure Republicans will never win another election. But one way or another, Americans will pay the price.
