How Claudia Sheinbaum Should Respond to Trump’s Threats
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Last month, President-elect Trump stated that if Mexico failed to stem the tide of migrants and drugs coming into the United States, he would impose a 25 percent tariff on Mexican goods imported into the United States. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum responded that if Trump followed through with his tariff threat, Mexico would respond with a 25 percent tariff on U.S. goods coming into Mexico.
While predictable, Sheinbaum’s response to Trump’s threats is a bad one. What she should do instead is take the following three steps:
1. Legalize all drugs in Mexico.
It is the war on drugs, which has been inspired and directed by the U.S. government, that has given rise to drug cartels and massive violence inside Mexico for the past 50 years.
Mexico used to be a peaceful nation, one where everyone felt safe taking road trips throughout the country. Border towns were prosperous tourist destinations. That was before the war on drugs. Once Mexico began ramping up the war on drugs, at the direction of U.S. officials, a black market was formed, which brought the drug cartels into existence.
Moreover, the more the Mexican government attacked the cartels, the worse the problem of violence became. That’s because the crackdown raised black-market prices and profits to exorbitant levels, which induced more violence in the effort to garner a larger share of the profits.
Thus, the drug war will never — repeat never — get rid of the drug cartels. Instead, it will continue to do the opposite. The drug war guarantees the continuation of the cartels and the continuing destruction of Mexico. To eradicate the cartels — to put them out of business immediately — there is one — and only one — solution: Bring an end to the drug war by legalizing all drugs.
If more drugs enter the United States from Mexico, so be it. If American wish to consume drugs, that’s their business, not the business of the Mexican government … and not the business of the U.S. government. It is not
Article from The Future of Freedom Foundation
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