FROM CNN's Jack Cafferty:
The Obama administration says it will send hundreds of federal agents and crime-fighting equipment to the Mexican border in an effort to prevent drug-related violence from spilling over into this country. It's a little late - the Mexican drug cartels are already active in 230 American cities.
A section of the U.S./Mexico border fence crosses previously pristine desert sands between Arizona and California. Homeland Security may respond to escalating violence of warring Mexican drug cartels by deploying military personnel and equipment to the region.
$700 million meant to bolster Mexican law enforcement and crime prevention efforts probably can't come soon enough. The mayor of Phoenix says it's a great first step, but "a drop in the bucket in terms of what's needed." Crimes like drug-related kidnappings and torturing are overwhelming the Phoenix police department. And Texas Governor Rick Perry had asked for a thousand more troops for parts of the border, saying he doesn't care what kind of troops they are as long as they're properly trained.
Meanwhile, the Justice Department has identified 230 U.S. cities where the Mexican cartels "maintain drug distribution networks or supply drugs to distributors," and we're not just talking about cities along the border here; they include places like Anchorage, Alaska, Atlanta, Boston and Billings, Montana.
This mess is the net result of President Bush's failure to secure the borders, among other things. They're still not secure and nothing has happened to diminish the appetite for illegal drugs in this country. Drugs flow north and money and guns flow south into Mexico.
The open border advocates think it's fine that illegal aliens come and go in and out of this country pretty much as they please. I wonder if they think it's also okay that Mexican drugs are poisoning their children here and increasing crime at home.
Here’s my question to you: What should be done about the fact that the Mexican drug cartels are now operating in 230 American cities?
Interested to know which ones made it on air?
Mark writes:
We learned nothing from prohibition. Imagine for a moment legalizing and regulating the sale of medical grade narcotics. Would the bad outweigh the good? Drugs are the scourge of this nation, but our approach is not sustainable. We need to consider things that can only be described as more drastic.
DP writes:
Give the special interest groups (like La Raza, Southern Poverty Law Center) more ways to explain why the southern border fence is a bad idea and keep telling the stories of illegal immigrants and their hardships while not running stories of how cops are being killed by these thugs! If you tell one side of the story, this is what you get!
Sue from Austin, Texas writes:
Jack, We need to send in regular U.S. military troops to the Mexican border to help the Border Patrol. The troops would need to have arrest power and the power to fire back if fired upon. Why not have a police action on our own border? We have done it so many times elsewhere.
Joe from Virginia writes:
We must secure the border, despite the forthcoming howl from the politically correct gang. We must also work to change the attitude about drug consumption. The cartels would not be here but for America's huge appetite for drugs… I think we should consider legalizing some drugs, get tax revenue from them, and control them like we do alcohol and tobacco. For those people stupid enough to burn out their brains and ruin their lives on drugs, let them at least do it without the crime element.
Frankie writes:
That's too easy: legalize pot. (No I don't mean for me, I'm clean and sober.) But pot should be dealt with exactly like alcohol was, and for the same reasons, as when Prohibition was repealed. You can't legislate morality. You CAN take the market away from illegal dealers.