Fresh off declaring control of Venezuela, Donald Trump casually revealed his next target in a conversation with Fox News host Sean Hannity, not in a formal speech or statement.
Trump was defending the operation that led to the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. He told Sean Hannity the move was not difficult to justify. According to Trump, Maduro had “killed a lot of people, sent a lot of bad people into our country,” and was a “big drug pusher.”
As he spoke, Trump shifted from explaining the past to previewing what could come next.
“You see that because all of the boats we shot down, they came out of Venezuela,” he said. “We knocked out 97 percent of the drugs coming in by water. And we are going to start now hitting land with regard to the cartels. The cartels are running Mexico.”
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The comment landed quietly, but its meaning was clear. Trump was no longer talking only about Venezuela. He was pointing directly at Mexico.
Experts immediately doubted Trump’s claim. There is no proof that U.S. strikes on Venezuelan boats stopped most drugs from reaching America. Even if some boats were involved, most carried cocaine for Europe, not the fentanyl that causes most U.S. overdoses.
Trump has also floated other targets before. He previously mentioned Colombia and hinted at more attacks in Venezuela. Now Mexico appears to be moving to the front of the line.
The Mexican government has pushed back on Trump’s narrative. President Claudia Sheinbaum has worked to calm tensions while increasing arrests tied to organized crime. She has also warned against U.S. military action inside Mexico.
Trump brushed that aside.
“It’s very sad to watch and see what happened to that country,” he said. “The cartels are running and they’re killing 250, 300,000 people in our country every single year.”
That number does not match reality. Fewer than 80,000 overdose deaths were reported last year. Trump has repeated the higher figure many times anyway.
His tough talk also clashes with his own record. Trump has pardoned nearly 100 people convicted of drug crimes. Since returning to office, he has freed even more, including major traffickers and high-profile figures.
Featured image via YouTube screengrab
