Ending the Drug War in Mexico

For: President Barack Obama, Secretary of State Hilary Clinton,

Attorney General Eric Holder, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, and
Speaker of the House John Boehner

Michael Basmajian
American Foreign Policy
Professor Laura Reed
TA: Kate Mooney
4/6/11
 The Mexican Drug War is a violent conflict between rival drug cartels that has spurred

atrocity and is of major concern to the United States. In December of 2006, Mexican president

Felipe Calderón launched a military offensive against the drug gangs that dominate the streets.

Since then, violence and drug trafficking have increased and penetrated the border, terrorizing

our own people. The influence of these Mexican drug cartels has been rising, and their continued

operations threaten the Mexican state. The United States cannot allow for the drug cartels to

continue their increasingly powerful and violent operations. Combating the drug cartels with

violence has only begat more violence. Providing funds to Mexico has not worked, and sending

ground troops into Mexico would be a mistake. Because the vast majority of drug cartel profit is

generated through the trafficking of cannabis (better known as marijuana), the best course of

action for the United States to take is to legalize cannabis and bring the business into a legitimate

market, eliminating the drug cartels’ primary source of funding.

Due to its geographic location, illegal drug trafficking has long been a problem for the

state of Mexico. The first drug cartel of Mexico was a man named Miguel Gallardo who was

known as “The Godfather.” In the 1980s, Gallardo controlled all of the major trafficking across

the border of Mexico and the United States. In 1987, he split up his operations to make them

more efficient and secure. After Gallardo was arrested in 1989, the newly independent cartels

expanded and began competing violently for power (Padgett, Shannon).

The first real retaliation by the Mexican government against the drug cartels was the

December 2006 military offensive. This effectively began the Mexican Drug War. President

Calderón mobilized thousands of troops to occupy territories controlled by the cartels. Their

mission was, and still is, to actively pursue, incarcerate, and kill the central leadership that runs

the drug rings. Despite United States partnership with Mexico to provide aid and assistance, this

1
offensive has been largely ineffective. The war has been reciprocated by the drug cartels and

violence has been increasing and spreading. In total, there have been 34,000 people, mostly

civilians including women and children, killed in the past five years and according to Mexican

government figures, last year was the bloodiest so far, with 15,273 drug-related killings (Hillary

Clinton Backs Mexico Drug War). These troubling numbers illustrate the magnitude of the

violence in Mexico, which has been steadily increasing and has spilled over the border and

begun harming our own people.

Despite government efforts, the power of the drug cartels in Mexico permeates Mexican

society. The drug cartels openly recruit members with the promise of good wages and protection

and use fear to hinder the influence of their opposition (Ellingwood, Wilkinson). Politicians have

been assassinated and journalists often do not report on the increasing drug related crime due to

threats (Johnson). Since the Drug War was waged in 2006, 66 journalists have been murdered

between and another 12 have gone missing (Goodman). One Mexican reporter commented, “We

just don't cover the violence anymore. It's too dangerous for us” (Goodman). The fear that

journalists, politicians, and regular citizens are forced to live in is a horrible threat to democracy

and has severely weakened the Mexican state. Mexico has further been weakened by a faltering

economy, directly stemming from the drug cartels. The violence has severely damaged Mexico’s

once blossoming tourism industry as the cartels pose an increasing threat to civilians which has

grown significantly with the drug cartels’ acquisition of advanced weaponry. While the drug

cartels get many of their low caliber weapons from the United States, they receive heavy artillery

such as anti-tank missiles, armor piercing ammunition, high-powered automatic weapons, and

grenade launchers from Central America and overseas (Ellingwood, Wilkinson). Their massive

2
profits from the drug trade have allowed them to overcome the monopoly of violence that the

Mexican state once possessed.

Corruption has permeated the Mexican public sector and is a putting the security of the

state in jeopardy. President Calderón has proposed a police reform plan to eliminate 2,000 local

police departments due widespread corruption in relation to the drug cartels. In addition,

politicians and other Mexican officials have been arrested on charges of corruption (Ellingwood,

Wilkinson). Unfortunately for the state of Mexico, the military is just as corrupt. At least five

Mexican generals, one of which was the country's top anti-drug official, have been imprisoned

on charges of drug corruption (Goodman). The Mexican army is essentially a government-

financed criminal organization that works in direct correspondence with the drug cartels.

While the Mexican drug cartels traffic many drugs, cannabis is their primary product of

transport into the United States. The profits of the drug cartels are largely because of the United

States citizen’s appetite for cannabis (and other drugs to a much lesser extent). It is essential in

the understanding of the Mexican Drug War to understand the American Drug War, especially

the history of the criminalization of cannabis in the United States.

Cannabis has been used legally for centuries. The first American law regarding cannabis

(hemp) required every farmer to grow it due to its versatile usability (The Union). The reason

that cannabis was outlawed in the United States was based on corporate greed and xenophobia.

William Randolf Hearst, who owned a large chain of newspapers, wanted to protect the timber

industry which he was heavily invested in. Hemp was a threat to the timber industry, so he

spread fear and racism towards minorities through his newspapers to make people cannabis and

associate is with violence (Guither). This “reefer madness” led to the 1937 Marijuana Tax Stamp

Act that federally outlawed cannabis. Then, in 1972, President Nixon ignored a comprehensive

3
scientific report which concluded that cannabis is not a harm to public safety and recommended

cannabis to be decriminalized, and began the War on Drugs (Moore). Although several states

have legalized medical marijuana or decriminalized small amounts, cannabis remains federally

criminalized despite the overwhelming body of evidence that cannabis poses little harm to

society.

The stakes for the United States in regards to the Mexican Drug War are dangerously

high. The United States-Mexico border is of great geopolitical significance. Mexico is one of two

states that share a border with the United States. The length of the border is nearly 2,000 miles

(3,169 km), and is the most frequently crossed international border in the world. Despite the high

level of enforcement and patrol along the border, there is a huge amount of land that is

vulnerable, and is taken advantage of by drug smugglers.

The violence and influence of the Mexican drug cartels has spread beyond the Mexican

border and has spilled into United States territory. Currently, the United States Justice

Department considers the Mexican drug cartels as the greatest organized crime threat to the

United States (Napolitano). In Tucson, Arizona, three quarters of home invasions investigated by

the police were linked to drug trafficking and violent incidents even farther from the border in

Georgia and Alabama have been linked to the Mexican drug cartels (Jentleson, 385). The

Mexican drug cartels are currently operating and trafficking drugs in over 230 American cities,

endangering the security of our citizens (Meyers). Our own citizens, most of which were simply

caught in the crossfire, have been killed by this conflict. The Mexican drug cartels are as much

the United States’ problem as they are Mexico’s problem.

The proximity of Mexico to the United States, by default, creates investment for a safe

and secure Mexican state that will not threaten the security of the United States. Unfortunately,

4
the drug cartels have become more powerful than the Mexican government in many cities across

Mexico. Some experts here in the United States have even gone as far as to call some Mexican

cities such as Ciudad Juárez, “failed cities” (Baxter). This poses a major threat for the national

security of the United States. When a state’s major cities are becoming “failed cities,” it is of

legitimate concern to United States that if there is not a fundamental change in the current

discourse, Mexico is on the path to becoming a failed state. With the United States engaged in a

global war on terror, and with the United States-Mexican border already vulnerable, having a

failed state for a neighbor is extremely dangerous and threatens our national security.

In addressing policies that the United States should implement, there are essentially three

courses of action to consider. The first course of action is to continue funding the Mexican

government’s effort to combat the drug cartels militarily and up border security. The second

option is to deploy ground troops into strategic locations of Mexico where drug cartel operations

are organized and implemented. The third, and best course of action, is to fully legalize cannabis,

terminating illegal demand for the drug, therefore significantly defunding the cartels and

weakening them to the possible point of failure.

The first policy option is to essentially continue the current discourse by continuing to

redirect funds to Mexico to combat illegal drug smuggling and attempting to strengthen border

security. In March of 2009, President Barack Obama outlined plans to deploy more than 500

federal agents to the border and redirect $200 million to combat smuggling of illegal drugs,

money and weapons, then in May of 2010, Obama ordered 1,200 National Guard troops to help

boost security along the United States-Mexico border (Werner, Billeaud). This option is fairly

intuitive and straightforward, yet has yielded little to no results. The drug cartels continue to

succeed by using their profits from cannabis and other drugs to purchase weapons and evade

5
detainment across the border. Increasing aid to Mexico to combat the drug cartels will be a waste

of United States’ funds. The drug cartels currently bring in $23 billion every year, and increased

funding has not lessened their profit margin (Roig-Franzia). With widespread corruption in the

Mexican public sector, it is likely that much of the aid is lost or misused. While deployment of

more troops to the border will help to curb some of the smuggling, because of the massive size of

the border, any deployment of troops short of a full military operation will be more of a publicity

act against the cartels, rather than a serious effort to stop their criminal trafficking.

The second policy option for the United States to combat the Mexican drug cartels is the

deployment of ground troops into Mexican territory to take out the cartels by force. This option

would involve sending troops into “failed cities” such as Ciudad Juárez. While this option may

yield results, it is an extremely dangerous option to consider. The United States is currently

involved in heavy military operations in Afghanistan, Iraq, and now Libya. Adding another war

front to the United States’ foreign policy would be a serious mistake. Not only would it be

monetarily costly, it would wear our military thin, resulting in less overall cohesion of forces and

success of military operations. It is always best to employ non-military policy options before

resulting to force. We have already seen the deadly effects of combating the drug cartels with

force. Calderón’s 2006 military offensive has failed to show any progress in the fight against the

drug cartels and has only resulted in thousands of civilian casualties. The United States cannot

afford to risk the deadly results that would come from the deployment of troops into Mexico.

With the nation already in serious debt and facing many challenges overseas, it is in the best

national interest of the United States to keep our military forces focused on our objectives in the

areas of conflict that we have already committed ourselves to militarily.

6
 The best policy option for the United States to take is to remove the primary source of

profit for the Mexican drug cartels from the underground market by legalizing, taxing, and

regulating cannabis for adults. While the drug cartels do profit from trafficking drugs besides

cannabis such as cocaine and methamphetamine, cannabis is their primary source of profit.

While the exact percentage of their profits that are derived from cannabis is difficult to calculate,

the United States Office of National Drug Control Police estimates that around 60% of the

cartel’s income is made through sale of cannabis in the United States (ONDCP). Other sources

such as Arizona's Attorney General Terry Goddard estimate that cannabis accounts for up to 70%

of the drug cartels’ profits (Edwards, Webster). Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said recently in

a Mexican news interview that the United States cannot legalize drugs as a means of fighting the

drug cartels because “there is just too much money in it” (Tencer). Clinton’s response illustrates

the intellectual bankruptcy of prohibition. The reason that there is so much profit from

trafficking illegal drugs is the fact that they are illegal. The United States should take this money

out of the hands of criminals. Legalizing and regulating cannabis would eliminate the demand for

the drug because cannabis consumers in the United States would be able to access it from a safe,

legitimate source. Introducing cannabis into the free market would diminish the superficially

inflated price that prohibition has generated. The cartels would not be able to compete with the

free market because the market would determine the price and regulations would be able to

ensure the quality of the product. This loss in profits would be devastating for the drug cartels.

Without the enormous source of revenue that they acquire from cannabis, they will be unable to

continue to purchase heavy weaponry and become significantly weak to the possible point of

failure.

7
 It is said that those who fail to learn from history are destined to repeat it. Lessons from

the Prohibition of alcohol in the United States from 1919 to 1933 can be applied to the current

prohibition of cannabis. Criminalizing alcohol allowed for a dangerous underground market to

develop. Alcohol prices skyrocketed because of the risk that the mafia took for production and

distribution. Mobsters such as the notorious Al Capone took control of the industry and

transformed it into a violent criminal enterprise. Only after Prohibition was repealed in 1933 was

Al Capone’s criminal organization was forced out of business. Capone went on the run and was

captured and brought to justice. The United States must learn from this era in history. The

prohibition of cannabis has been just as harmful as the prohibition of alcohol, if not more so.

Bringing cannabis into the legitimate market will not only defund the drug cartels to near the

point of collapse, it could potentially bring some of the largest Mexican drug cartels to justice.

The prohibition of cannabis has been a complete failure. Every year, the United States

spends around $40 billion dollars trying to eliminate the supply of drugs, and every year the

United States arrests 1.5 million of its citizens for drug possession, incarcerating 500,000 of

them (Economist). Despite these extraordinary efforts to diminish both the supply and demand of

illegal drugs, the United States has failed to lessen usage rates. There is little to no correlation

between the severity of drug laws and the incidence of drug use (Economist). The United States

cannot continue to treat cannabis consumers and otherwise law abiding citizens as criminals.

Cannabis has been a part of American culture, and indeed the culture of humans in general for a

long time, and just as it was ignorant to believe that criminalizing alcohol would make it

disappear, it is ignorant to believe that cannabis will disappear any time soon. It is time to admit

that the prohibition of cannabis is a mistake, and implement a policy of legalization, taxation,

and regulation.

8
 While policy options such as combating the Mexican drug cartels militarily are

excessively costly, legalizing cannabis would not cost the United States government a dime. In

fact, such policy will generate billions of dollars in revenue to the state. In addition to raising

billions of dollars in tax revenue, legalizing and regulating cannabis will open an entire new

sector of jobs. Perhaps most importantly, the legalization of cannabis will open up the industry of

industrial hemp to the United States. Allowing the hemp industry to thrive will produce over

25,000 types of products that range from paper to fuel to textiles to medicine to food (Hemp

Facts). In this time of economic hardship, the United States needs to raise new sources of

revenue and open new job sectors. Furthermore, legalizing cannabis will help reprioritize our law

enforcement towards violent crime, and free up space in our courts and prison systems. The

legalization, taxation, and regulation of cannabis is what this nation needs.

For some, cannabis is still a taboo issue, and many are refuse to acknowledge legalization

as a viable option. A common argument against legalizing marijuana to combat the Mexican

drug cartels is that the cartels would simply focus more on hard drugs and continue to thrive.

This would not be the case because no other illegal substance has the demand that cannabis does

in the United States. Cannabis is the number one cash crop of the United States, valued at over

$35.8 billion, almost $13 billion above corn (Venkataraman). The usage rates of hard drugs such

as cocaine and methamphetamines are not even close to that of cannabis. Another concern is that

the drug cartels will continue to traffic cannabis regardless of legalization. This would also not

be the case because the cartels would not be able to compete with the free market. There is no

underground demand for alcohol, tobacco, or any other legal substance, and there would not be

any such market for cannabis.

9
 Some argue that the negative health effects and societal implications of legalizing

cannabis will outweigh any potential effects that the policy will have on the Mexican Drug War.

While cannabis is a Schedule I drug under federal law, the drug is actually quite safe. In addition

to studies that show that cannabis is not a harm to public safety, there are many confirmed

medical uses and many more to be discovered. Cannabis is not physically addictive, and is has

no lethal dosage; there are no known deaths directly attributed to cannabis (Erowid). Although

cannabis has some negative effects associated with the act of smoking, it is much safer than legal

substances such as alcohol and tobacco. Many skeptics of legalization, especially parents, are

concerned with the implication on youth. However, regulation of cannabis will make it more

difficult for youth to obtain. Teenagers have consistently reported that cannabis is much easier to

obtain than alcohol or cigarettes (Califano). Controlling the market for only adults will curtail

underage use of the substance. While there may initially be a small rise in overall usage of the

drug, the usage level will dip back down, and the regulation of cannabis will not have a harmful

effect on society. Following the implementation of this policy, the United States should invest in

factual drug education, free from fear tactics and propaganda, to help citizens make informed

choices when it comes to drugs.

The legalization, taxation, and regulation of cannabis in the United States is the best

policy option to defeat the drug cartels and end the Mexican Drug War. While it is likely that

legalizing cannabis will not fully destroy the drug cartels, it will weaken them to the point where

their influence will not be as prevalent in Mexican society, and Mexican military and police

force will be far more able to properly dismantle their criminal enterprises. More and more

individuals are waking up to the reality that the prohibition of cannabis has been a failure on all

fronts. Even former Mexican President Vicente Fox, amongst a series of former Latin American

10
Presidents, has come out in favor of legalization (Grillo). The only way to stop the expanding

destructive influence of the drug cartels is to eliminate cannabis, their primary source of funding,

from the underground market. The United States cannot allow for the casualties of this conflict to

continue rising, and let Mexico become a failed state. Legalizing, taxing, and regulating cannabis

will succeed in vastly diminishing the control that the drug cartels have over the Mexican state,

and lead to the end of the Mexican Drug War.

11
Works Cited:

Padgett, Tim; Shannon, Elaine, “The Border Monsters” Time.com. 2001.

http://www.time.com/time/covers/1101010611/fbrothers.html

“Hillary Clinton backs Mexico drug war” BBC News. January 24, 2011.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-12264674

Ellingwood, Ken; Wilkinson, Tracy. “Mexico Under Seige” Los Angeles Times. March 15,
2009.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-mexico-arms-race15-
2009mar15,0,229992.story

Johnson, Gary. “Legalize Marijuana to Stop the Drug Cartels” Huffington Post. August 26, 2010.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/gary-johnson/legalize-marijuana-to-sto_b_696430.html

Goodman, Sandy. “Mexico Drug War a Lost Cause” Huffington Post. March 10, 2011.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/gary-johnson/legalize-marijuana-to-sto_b_696430.html

Harvey, Brett (Director) “The Union.” Score G Productions. 2007.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-9077214414651731007#

Guither, Pete. “Why is Marijuana Illegal?” DrugWarrant.

http://www.drugwarrant.com/articles/why-is-marijuana-illegal/

Moore, George. “Marijuana and Social Policy” Schaffer Library of Drug Policy.
http://druglibrary.net/schaffer/Library/studies/nc/ncrec.htm

Napolitano, Janet. “Testimony of Secretary Janet Napolitano before Senate Homeland Security
and Governmental Affairs Committee, Southern Border Violence: Homeland Security Threats,
Vulnerabilities, and Responsibilities” United States Department of Homeland Security. March
25, 2009.
http://www.dhs.gov/ynews/testimony/testimony_1237993537881.shtm

Jentleson, Bruce. “Mexico” American Foreign Policy. New York, London: W.W. Norton &
Company, Inc. 2010.

Meyers, Dev. “Mexican Cartels Operate in 230 American Cities” Examiner. March 23 2010.
http://www.examiner.com/cannabis-revolution-in-national/mexican-cartels-operate-230-
american-cities

Baxter, Samuel. “Mexico’s Drug Cartel War” The Real Truth. February 10, 2009.
http://www.realtruth.org/articles/090203-005-americas.html

Werner, Erica; Billeaud, Jacques. “Troops to the Mexican border” Boston.com May 25, 2010.

12
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2010/05/25/obama_set_to_send_1200_t
roops_to_us_mexico_border/

Roig-Franzia, Manuel. “Mexican Drug Cartels Move North” The Washington Post. September
20, 2007.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/19/AR2007091902442.html

“ONDCP Statement on Mexican Drug Trafficking Organization Profits from Marijuana” Office
of National Drug Control Policy. September 16, 2010.
http://www.whitehousedrugpolicy.gov/news/press10/mjrevenue.pdf

Edwards, David; Webster, Stephen. “Arizona AG: Marijuana Legalization Could Curb Mexican
Drug Cartel Warfare” The Raw Story. February 27, 2009.
http://rawstory.com/news/2008/Arizona_AG_Marijuana_legalization_possible_way_0227.html

Tencer, Daniel. “Why can’t the US legalize drugs?” The Raw Story. February 7, 2011.
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/02/07/clinton-legalize-drugs-too-much-money/

“How to Stop the Drug Wars” The Economist. March 5, 2009.

http://www.economist.com/node/13237193

Venkataraman, Nitya. “Marijuana Called Top U.S. Cash Crop” ABC News. December 18, 2006.
http://abcnews.go.com/Business/story?id=2735017&page=1

“10 Things Every Parent, Teenager & Teacher Should Know about Marijuana” Erowid.
December 12, 1990.
http://www.erowid.org/plants/cannabis/cannabis_flyer1.shtml

Califano, Joseph. “National Survey of American Attitudes on Substances.” Columbia University.

August, 2009.
http://www.casacolumbia.org/articlefiles/380-2009%20Teen%20Survey%20Report.pdf

Grillo, Ioan. “Mexico's Ex-President Vicente Fox: Legalize Drugs” Time. January 19, 2011.
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2040882,00.html

13