Although President Donald Trump and his administration have cracked down on illegal crossings along the southern border, another problem persists, according to a new report from Restoration News: drug trafficking.
The administration is beefing up border security and deporting illegal immigrants wanted for crimes. As result, illegal border crossings have plummeted, The Center Square reported. However, drug smuggling at legal points of entry keeps happening.
Notably, the report found that only 15% to 17% of commercial vehicles and 1% to 2% of private vehicles entering the United States from Mexico at legal points of entry are inspected for illegal drug smuggling. Most vehicles enter the country largely unchecked, even though almost 48,000 pounds of fentanyl – or 2.5 billion lethal doses – have been seized at legal points of entry since 2023. About 90% of border drug seizures happen at legal points of entry, the report said.
The administration has designated drug cartels as terrorist groups and used the military to train Mexican forces. Trump has also pushed for the death penalty for drug traffickers.
Additionally, Trump cited fentanyl trafficking as his initial reasoning for putting tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China.
