The White House doubled down Monday on its authorization of lethal strikes against narco-terrorist groups ahead of a high-level Oval Office meeting amid escalating tensions with Venezuela.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Monday that President Donald Trump has the authority to use lethal force against members of designated narco-terrorist groups and has directed the military to treat suspected traffickers as lawful targets.
“The president has made it quite clear that if narco-terrorists, again, are trafficking illegal drugs towards the United States, he has the authority to kill them—and that’s what this administration is doing,” Leavitt told reporters.
She added that “many options at the president’s disposal remain on the table.”
Leavitt’s comments come ahead of a scheduled Oval Office meeting Monday afternoon, where top Trump administration officials are set to discuss the administration’s pressure campaign against Venezuela&#8217;s socialist dictator Nicolás Maduro.
Officials will include Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, and Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller.
Leavitt said the meeting is part of Trump’s “responsibility to ensure that peace is ongoing throughout the world.”
The United States has continued to increase its military presence in the Caribbean and conduct strikes on vessels linked to narco-terrorist groups under “Operation Southern Spear.” 
The USS Gerald R. Ford, the U.S. Navy’s most advanced aircraft carrier, arrived in the Caribbean last month to support the operation, which is aimed at disrupting drug trafficking networks heading toward the U.S. More than 15,000 troops and a dozen warships have reportedly amassed in the region. 

More than 80 people have been killed in strikes on alleged drug vessels, <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2025/12/01/politics/trump-venezuela-meeting">reported CNN.</a>
On Sunday, Trump warned that Venezuela’s airspace should be considered closed.
“To all Airlines, Pilots, Drug Dealers, and Human Traffickers, please consider THE AIRSPACE ABOVE AND SURROUNDING VENEZUELA TO BE CLOSED IN ITS ENTIRETY. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/115633041089714842">Trump posted</a> to Truth Social.
Some flights have continued to operate in Venezuelan airspace despite Trump’s warning, including commercial and private jets, <a href="https://www.flightradar24.com/9.24,-65.53/6">Flightradar24</a> shows.
Maduro’s government responded, calling the president’s comments a “colonialist threat.”
“No authority outside the Venezuelan institutional framework has the power to interfere with, block, or condition the use of international airspace,” the statement said.
Trump, who designated Maduro as the leader of the Cartel de Los Soles, has been pressuring him to resign and flee the country. Trump confirmed he has spoken with Maduro but did not share the details of what was discussed.

Maduro and Trump

White House Doubles Down On Authority ‘To Kill’ Narco-Terrorists Ahead Of Oval Office Meeting

Cartels

Donald Trump

Nicolas Maduro

Venezuela

Mexican cartels amassed fortunes on par with major corporations, but that has all changed since President Donald Trump closed the border.
Under the Biden administration, the Mexican cartels&#8217; profits jumped from $500 million in 2018 to an estimated $13 billion in 2022, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/25/us/migrant-smuggling-evolution.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to The New York Times. The massive flow of cash was largely due to their migrant smuggling enterprise, which grew even more profitable than their vast drug empire.
Border Patrol agents were instructed to release illegal crossers into the United States as swiftly as possible under then-President Joe Biden, and many likened what the job had become to aiding in the smugglers&#8217; enterprise.
But now that&#8217;s all changed since Trump&#8217;s return to office. For the last six months, the Trump administration hasn&#8217;t released a single illegal border crosser into the country, putting an end to the major catch and release pipeline and driving migrant encounters to record lows.
Smugglers, however, have grown desperate to maintain their profits, shifting operations to the high seas to move people illegally into the U.S.
Along the California coast, the pace of interdictions of boats packed with illegal immigrants has remained constant.
Last fiscal year, the Coast Guard encountered &#8220;well over&#8221; 2,000 illegal immigrants. And traffic has remained &#8220;fairly steady&#8221; with the Coast Guard seeing an increase in interdictions, Coast Guard Capt. Jason Hagen, who is the southwest district chief of enforcement, told The Daily Wire in a recent interview.
&#8220;As you lock down the land border, the cartels will need to make their money, so they push to the maritime, to the water side. And, unfortunately, there is no border wall in the ocean; we&#8217;re challenged with the tyranny of distance,&#8221; Hagen said.
Earlier this month, Coast Guardsmen in San Diego&#8217;s Mission Bay were forced to fire several rounds to disable the engine of a 20-foot smuggling boat carrying 12 <a href="https://www.news.uscg.mil/Press-Releases/Article/4330965/coast-guard-interdicts-12-aliens-offshore-mission-bay/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">illegal immigrants</a> from Mexico and El Salvador as they tried to escape.
<div id="attachment_1004923" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1004923" class="wp-image-1004923 size-full" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/11/11-19-25_panga_subjects.jpg.webp" alt="" width="300" height="300" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/11/11-19-25_panga_subjects.jpg.webp 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/11/11-19-25_panga_subjects.jpg-150x150.webp 150w" sizes=" (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />Credit: Customs and Border Protection</div>
Days later, Navy sailors came across a small boat packed with <a href="https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/local-media-release/cbp-apprehends-17-illegal-aliens-coastal-waters-near-san-clemente" target="_blank" rel="noopener">17 illegal migrants</a> traversing the sea near San Clemente Island. Border Patrol took them into custody, as is standard procedure.
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At least four illegal migrants died after their boat recently capsized off Imperial Beach in a separate incident. The Justice Department has since hit a Mexican man believed to be the captain with charges of &#8220;Bringing in Aliens Resulting in Death and Bringing in Aliens for Financial Gain&#8221; that could result in life in prison, <a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdca/pr/two-charged-human-smuggling-event-led-least-four-deaths">according</a> to the Justice Department.
&#8220;It&#8217;s a dangerous game, and I can tell you the cartels are not in the business of safety, they&#8217;re in the business of money,&#8221; Hagen said.
The cartels have also increased their maritime smuggling fees.
Under the Biden administration, they were charging illegal immigrants between $10,000 &#8211; $15,000 in smuggling fees to take to the seas. Now, they&#8217;re forcing migrants to pay between $20,000 &#8211; $40,000, Manny Bayon, the President of the Border Patrol union’s San Diego chapter, told The Daily Wire.
Bayon echoed that maritime smuggling in the Pacific Ocean has picked up &#8220;due to the increased enforcement on the southern border.&#8221;
In response, federal authorities are now preparing to bolster security along the coastal border by installing new thermal imaging cameras to spot smuggling activity before it reaches America&#8217;s shores, <a href="https://www.latimes.com/socal/daily-pilot/entertainment/story/2025-11-19/san-clemente-cbp-maritime-surveillance" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to the Los Angeles Times.

Untitled design – 2025-11-21T120849.513

How Cartels Are Shifting Tactics After Trump Crushed Their Human Smuggling Empire

How Cartels Have Changed Tactics After Trump Destroyed Their Multi-Billion Dollar Human Smuggling Bu

Border

Cocaine

Fentanyl

Smuggling

President Donald Trump pivots from the Middle East to peace in Ukraine, Trump intervenes to protect military paychecks amid the Democrat shutdown, and drug cartels declare “open season” on federal agents.
It’s Thursday, October 16, 2025, and this is the news you need to know to start your day.
Morning Wire is available on video! You can watch today’s episode here:
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<h2 style="text-align: center;">After Middle East Peace, Trump Turns Toward Russia</h2>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-986667" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Trump-Eyes-Ukraine-300x169.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="169" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Trump-Eyes-Ukraine-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Trump-Eyes-Ukraine-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Trump-Eyes-Ukraine-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Trump-Eyes-Ukraine-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Trump-Eyes-Ukraine.jpg 1920w" sizes=" (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />
Topline: After securing a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, Trump has shifted his focus to the war in Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will make his third trip to the White House on Friday since Trump began his second term. The two are expected to discuss supplying Ukraine with more powerful weapons, such as Tomahawk cruise missiles, as well as additional air defenses to counter Russian bombardments.
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The United States has reportedly started to share intelligence on Russian energy infrastructure with Ukraine, increasing Ukraine’s ability to strike deep inside Russian territory.
Trump pushes Putin: The U.S. president has made clear in recent months that he sees Russian President Vladimir Putin as the main obstacle to peace in the Ukraine war. The president is reportedly considering additional sanctions on Russia to increase pressure on Putin to negotiate.
“I’m very disappointed because Vladimir and I had a good relationship,” <a href="https://youtu.be/hfwxTnKt6iA?t=2418">said</a> Trump on Tuesday. “He just doesn’t want to end that war.”
View from Moscow: Moscow has said that even if Tomahawks were provided to Ukraine, that would not “change the dynamic” of the war. A Kremlin spokesman later added that the missiles would be an “extreme concern.” Putin said that he would increase Russia’s air defense, but he did not mention escalation on his end.
<h2 style="text-align: center;">Trump Shuffles Funds In Dem Shutdown To Pay Military</h2>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-986669" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Funding-The-Frontlines-300x169.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="169" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Funding-The-Frontlines-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Funding-The-Frontlines-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Funding-The-Frontlines-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Funding-The-Frontlines-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Funding-The-Frontlines.jpg 1920w" sizes=" (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />
Topline: Two weeks into a Democrat shutdown, and now federal employees are starting to feel the effects. On Wednesday, military personnel were set to miss their first paychecks, but President Trump ordered War Secretary Pete Hegseth to find a way to keep the troops paid.
Morning Wire spoke with Rep. August Pfluger (R-TX), chairman of the Republican Study Committee. (The following transcript has been lightly edited for clarity.)
Morning Wire: Now we&#8217;ve crossed one of the first thresholds for missed pay of this shutdown. There were fears that the military would miss a paycheck this week, but then Trump intervened. How did that go down? 
Pfluger: As a veteran and as somebody who served for over 20 years, this is personal to me because I saw it firsthand during previous shutdowns, where you had especially the junior enlisted personnel, those with families and young kids, some of them on food stamps. This puts them in a terrible position, and commanders, instead of focusing on the mission and the threat, readiness and lethality now have to focus on how are their men and women in uniform going to put food on the table? Thankfully, Donald Trump and Pete Hegseth came up with a plan to pay the troops and that is happening mid-month. But it doesn&#8217;t last forever, so if Democrats keep up their shenanigans and keep up the shameful approach that they&#8217;re using and showing why they don&#8217;t really like the military, then I&#8217;m not sure that they&#8217;re going to get a paycheck on the next pay period.
Morning Wire: To be clear – they managed to pay everyone this time, but this isn&#8217;t something that can continue for weeks. 
Pfluger: Yeah, they&#8217;re pulling money out of other areas. I mean, the money that they&#8217;re using to pay the troops was probably intended to go to operations or readiness or things like that. It was not the bucket that Congress appropriated for military pay, personnel pay, so this isn&#8217;t going to last forever.
Morning Wire: Is there any way that Congress could ensure going forward that this doesn&#8217;t happen again, particularly with the military? Can we put in place emergency measures for how government shutdowns affect military members?
Pfluger: I sure hope so. I think there&#8217;s an appetite for that. And I&#8217;d go a step further. I would include Border Patrol. I would include law enforcement, federal law enforcement, all the agencies that are charged with keeping us safe, national security level agencies. I&#8217;d go a step further on that. But let me just say this. Where are my Democrat colleagues on the other side of the aisle who served in uniform? Where are they right now? Why are they not standing up and taking the stand and saying enough is enough? … I&#8217;d like to see a country where we come back together and we unite and do the right thing. I thought that was going to happen after the assassination of Charlie Kirk, and, obviously, it hasn’t.
<h2 style="text-align: center;">DHS Says Cartels Threaten Federal Immigration Agents</h2>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-986671" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Cartels-Target-ICE-300x169.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="169" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Cartels-Target-ICE-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Cartels-Target-ICE-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Cartels-Target-ICE-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Cartels-Target-ICE-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Cartels-Target-ICE.jpg 1920w" sizes=" (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />
Topline: Federal immigration agents carrying out President Trump&#8217;s immigration enforcement efforts in Chicago are facing mounting threats stemming from drug cartels in Mexico, according to the Department of Homeland Security. 
Intelligence on threats is coming into federal immigration agencies daily, an agent on the ground in Chicago told The Daily Wire. Mexican drug cartels are recruiting and operating within the city of Chicago to go after ICE and Border Patrol agents. 
DHS says cartels are offering up to $50,000 in bounties for the heads of federal officers. On top of that, they are recruiting leftist, anti-ICE agitators who have already been out in the streets, and they’re asking them to help.
According to DHS, cartels are placing armed spotters on top of rooftops in areas where ICE agents are making arrests, and the spotters mark the coordinates of ICE officers and Border Patrol agents and relay their whereabouts.
The threats: The latest allegedly involved a Latin Kings gang member. A leader of that gang was nabbed by the federal authorities in Chicago. He is accused of placing a bounty on the head of Operation Midway Blitz, Chief Gregory Bovino.
On Tuesday, Border Patrol agents were rammed by an illegal alien driver who also had an illegal alien passenger in his car. That brought an anti-ICE riot mob to one of the quiet neighborhoods in Chicago.
The riot forced federal authorities to deploy tear gas. Federal officials were targeted with rocks and other objects.
&nbsp;

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Morning Brief: Trump’s Peace Plan Pivot, Troops Paid In Dem Shutdown, & Cartel Targets ICE Agents

Border Patrol

Department of Defense

Government Shutdown

Immigration

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)

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Military

Morning Wire

Politics

Russia

Ukraine

Vladimir Putin

Volodymyr Zelensky

The Trump administration has stripped at least 50 Mexican politicians of their visas, saying the officials have ties to drug cartels.
While previous administrations have taken similar actions, the Trump administration is revoking visas at an unprecedented scale, Reuters <a href="https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/us-revokes-visas-over-50-mexican-politicians-new-drug-war-front-2025-10-14/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>.
President Donald Trump’s previous acting Drug Enforcement Administration Administrator Derek Maltz told The Daily Wire that there’s “a long history of the cartels relying on corrupt officials and politicians in Mexico to advance their criminal goals.”
“Travel to America, the greatest country in the world, is a privilege, not a right. Travel visas for individuals are not automatic and I&#8217;m glad to see that the State Department is scrutinizing them at a new level,” he said.
“Nobody should be surprised that this administration is looking outside the box and will use all capabilities to make it difficult for the cartels to continue to kill Americans at record levels,” he added.
A senior State Department official told The Daily Wire that the Trump administration has had “a good working relationship” with the Mexican government led by President Claudia Sheinbaum and looks “forward to continuing to advance our bilateral relationship in the interest of the America first foreign policy agenda.”
Visas can be revoked for many reasons, including violations of American law, overstaying permissions, corruption, drug trafficking, acting as an agent of the Chinese Communist Party, espionage, aiding illegal immigration, the official said. However, the official didn’t confirm the visa revocations.
The Trump administration has prioritized efforts to counter drug cartels and has taken out 27 alleged “narcoterrorists” in kinetic strikes on multiple vessels traversing international waters that were believed to be transporting deadly drugs.
The War Department carried out such a strike off the coast of Venezuela Tuesday morning, taking out six alleged drug traffickers.
“Unprecedented death and destruction to American communities and families requires unprecedented action by the United States government,” said Maltz.
The cartels’ control over Mexican administrations has increased in recent years as presidents shy away from fighting the narcotraffickers, according to a 2024 <a href="https://www.texaspolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/2025-01-RR-SST-Abrazos-no-Balazos-The-Mexican-State-Cartel-Nexus-update-1.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report</a> by the Texas Public Policy Foundation. An estimated 35% to 40% of Mexico is controlled by the drug cartels.

MixCollage-05-May-2025-07-30-AM-9035

Trump Admin Pulls Visas From 50 Mexican Officials Over Cartel Ties

Claudia Sheinbaum

Drug Cartels

Mexico

Over two dozen fugitives from Mexico, accused of drug trafficking, murder, and kidnapping, were extradited to the United States on Tuesday. 
Those extradited include men linked to Mexican drug cartels that have been classified as terrorist organizations by the Trump administration. They now face criminal charges, including drug trafficking, hostage-taking, kidnapping, gun crimes, human smuggling, money laundering, and murder. 
“Today is the latest example of the Trump administration’s historic efforts to dismantle cartels and foreign terrorist organizations,” Attorney General Pam Bondi <a href="https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/26-fugitives-wanted-violent-and-serious-crimes-returned-united-states-mexico-including-0">said</a>. “These 26 men have all played a role in bringing violence and drugs to American shores — under this Department of Justice, they will face severe consequences for their crimes against this country. We are grateful to Mexico’s National Security team for their collaboration in this matter.”  
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Almost all of the fugitives face life in prison if convicted in federal court. The Justice Department said the men were collectively responsible for smuggling tons of cocaine, meth, fentanyl, and heroin into the United States. 
“This transfer is yet another example of what is possible when two governments stand united against violence and impunity,” U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Ronald Johnson said. “These fugitives will now face justice in U.S. courts, and the citizens of both of our nations will be safer from these common enemies.”
Several of the men were members of the Sinaloa Cartel, Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG), and Cártel del Noreste, all terrorist designated cartels, according to the Justice Department. 
One of those extradited, Robert Salazar, was wanted in connection with the murder of  Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Deputy Juan Escalante in 2008. Escalante <a href="https://www.odmp.org/officer/19840-deputy-sheriff-juan-abel-escalante#:~:text=Deputy%20Sheriff%20Juan%20Escalante%20was,deputy%20before%20being%20fatally%20shot.">was</a> shot by two gang members outside his home before he left for work. 
Another one of those handed over to American authorities was Abdul Karim Conteh, a Sierra Leone national accused of smuggling illegal immigrants from Iran, Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Turkey, Somalia, Cameroon, Senegal, Mauritania, Ethiopia, and Egypt into the United States. 
Luis Raul Castro Valenzuela, a Sinaloa Cartel member set to face American justice, is charged with kidnapping and holding hostage an American, the Justice Department said. 
The extradition agreement with Mexico coincides with a report from last week that President Donald Trump had quietly signed an order to use military force against drug cartels in foreign countries. Mexico has resisted suggestions that the American military be deployed on the ground to crack down on the cartels. 
“We cooperate, we collaborate, but there is not going to be an invasion,” Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum said. “That is ruled out, absolutely ruled out,” she continued. “It is not part of any agreement, far from it. When it has been brought up, we have always said no.”

MEXICO-US-ECONOMY-CEO-DIALOGUE-SHEINBAUM

Dozens Of Mexican Drug Cartel Fugitives Extradited To Face American Justice

Department of Justice

Illegal Immigation

Pam Bondi

Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents captured more than 1,300 illegal aliens in the Houston area in June, nabbing a plane hijacker, child predators, and murderers.
ICE agents and members of Texas law enforcement arrested an astonishing 1,361 illegal aliens in the Houston area last month, including Adermis Wilson-Gonzalez, a 56-year-old Cuban national with a conviction for hijacking a plane.
Wilson-Gonzalez served 20 years in prison after he was convicted in 2003 for hijacking a plane traveling from Cuba to Florida. The man was <a href="https://www.lmtonline.com/local/article/laredo-sector-usbp-agents-assists-ice-arrests-20766632.php">released</a> from prison into the United States before being apprehended by law enforcement agents late last month. He was just one of many criminal illegal aliens caught last month in southeast Texas.
“The brave men and women of ICE continue to work tirelessly around the clock targeting dangerous criminal aliens to restore integrity to our nation’s immigration system and bolster public safety in our communities,” said Gabriel Martinez, the acting Field Office Director for ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Houston.
“The number of dangerous criminal aliens that they removed from local communities across Southeast Texas last month is just another example of their selfless and unyielding efforts to return our local communities to places where we can all raise our families without having to worry about child predators, gang members, or other violent criminal aliens preying on our loved ones.”
Authorities also arrested 32 child predators in their enforcement operations in the Texas region. Javier Escobar Gonzalez, a 51-year-old Mexican national, has a long criminal history, including a conviction for sexual indecency with a minor. The man has also been convicted of criminal trespass with a deadly weapon, driving while intoxicated, and the unauthorized use of a firearm.
Jose Meza, a 40-year-old Mexican illegal alien, was convicted of sexual assault of a minor and theft. Meza has illegally entered the United States four different times, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) says.
ICE caught nine different murderers, including Luis Pablo Vasquez-Estolano, a 29-year-old Mexican national who had been deported from the United States six times prior to his June 10 arrest. The illegal alien has convictions for homicide, aggravated robbery, burglary of a vehicle, and drug possession.
In addition to capturing the plane hijacker, murderers, and child sex offenders, the federal agents and their state law enforcement partners caught 16 members of gangs or cartels.
Among them was 47-year-old Mexican national Arnulfo Olivares Cervantes, a former member of the Mexicles gang. Cervantes has convictions for attempted murder, evading arrest, illegal entry, and drug possession, as well as two convictions for trafficking cocaine. The Mexican national illegally entered the United States on four different occasions.
Houston has been the site of several immigration raids since President Donald Trump took office in January. Federal agents arrested more than <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/more-than-500-criminal-illegal-aliens-captured-by-ice-in-week-long-houston-raids">600 illegal aliens</a> in Houston in a weeklong operation in March. More than 500 of those arrested had criminal records beyond illegal entry.
Law enforcement also <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/nearly-100-illegals-captured-in-colony-ridge-deportation-raids">captured</a> more than 100 illegal aliens, including multiple child sexual predators and a member of a foreign terror organization at Colony Ridge, a land development just outside of Houston that The Daily Wire exposed as a hotbed for illegal aliens.

ICE Arrest

Plane Hijacker, Child Predators, Murderers: ICE Nabs More Than 1,300 Illegals In Houston

Crime

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Julio César Chávez Jr. was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents on Wednesday and is facing deportation to Mexico for overstaying his visa and lying on a green card application.
The arrest came just days after Chávez faced off against boxer and influencer Jake Paul in Anaheim, California. Chávez lost the match.
Chávez, a Mexican citizen, has committed numerous crimes while staying in the United States and has apparent ties to the Sinaloa Cartel, a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization. He&#8217;s facing organized crime charges in Mexico.
“This Sinaloa Cartel affiliate with an active arrest warrant for trafficking guns, ammunition, and explosives was arrested by ICE,&#8221; Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement.
McLaughlin noted that Chávez was allowed re-entry into the United States under the Biden administration and emphasized that under President Donald Trump, cartel affiliates will not be allowed to remain in the country.
&#8220;It is shocking the previous administration flagged this criminal illegal alien as a public safety threat, but chose to not prioritize his removal and let him leave and COME BACK into our country,” she said. “Under President Trump, no one is above the law — including world-famous athletes.&#8221;
&#8220;Our message to any cartel affiliates in the U.S. is clear: We will find you and you will face consequences,&#8221; McLaughlin added. &#8220;The days of unchecked cartel violence are over.”
Homeland Security <a href="https://www.dhs.gov/news/2025/07/03/dhs-announces-ice-arrest-mexican-boxer-sinaloa-cartel-affiliate-active-criminal">said</a> in a press release that Chávez is being processed for &#8220;expedited removal from the United States.&#8221; The boxer has an &#8220;active arrest warrant in Mexico for his involvement in organized crime and trafficking firearms, ammunition, and explosives,&#8221; the department added.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said on Friday that she hopes Chávez &#8220;will be deported and serve the sentence in Mexico.&#8221;
Chávez&#8217;s B2 tourist visa expired in February 2024. Two months later, he filed an application for Lawful Permanent Resident status, based on his marriage to an American citizen, who is connected to the Sinaloa Cartel.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services in December 2024 made a referral to ICE that Chávez is an &#8220;egregious public safety threat.&#8221; However, he was still allowed reentry and was paroled into the U.S. under the Biden administration.
Homeland Security said it determined on June 27 that Chávez was &#8220;in the country illegally and removable,&#8221; following multiple fraudulent statements on his application to become a Lawful Permanent Resident.
The department noted the following from Chávez&#8217;s rap sheet:
<ul>
<li>On January 22, 2012, California Highway Patrol arrested Chavez and charged him with DUI alcohol/drugs and Driving Without a License. On June 23, 2012, the Superior Court of California, County of Los Angeles, convicted Chavez for the offense of driving under the influence of alcohol and sentenced him to 13 days in jail and 36 months’ probation.</li>
<li>On January 14, 2023, a District Judge issued an arrest warrant for Chavez, for the offense of organized crime for the purpose of committing crimes of weapons trafficking and manufacturing crimes, in the modality of those who participate in clandestinely bringing weapons, ammunition, cartridges, explosives into the country; and those who manufacture weapons, ammunition, cartridges, and explosives without the corresponding permit.</li>
<li>On January 7, 2024, the Los Angeles Police Department arrested Chavez and charged him with Illegal Possession of Any Assault Weapon and Manufacture or Import Short Barreled Rifle. The court convicted Chavez of these charges.</li>
</ul>

Jake Paul v Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.

A Mexican Boxer Is In ICE Custody After Jake Paul Fight. His Rap Sheet Is Crazy.

Boxer In ICE Custody After Jake Paul Match. His Rap Sheet Is Crazy. 

Boxer

Department of Homeland Security

President Donald Trump fires back at Vladimir Putin following Russia’s aerial attacks on Ukraine, the Treasury Department reveals a new approach to combating drug cartels, and Hollywood enjoys a record-breaking box office over Memorial Day weekend. 
It’s Tuesday, May 27, and this is the news you need to know to start your day.
Morning Wire is available on video! You can watch today’s episode here:
 
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If you’d rather listen to your news, today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below:
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<h2>Russia Strikes Ukraine</h2>
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Topline: President Trump rails against Russian President Vladimir Putin after he launches another aerial attack on Ukraine.
Over the weekend, Russia launched a series of air assaults on Ukrainian cities, deploying hundreds of attack drones and dozens of missiles. Those strikes killed at least 12 people and injured dozens more — many civilians — in what Ukraine <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/russian-drone-fragments-set-kyiv-apartment-building-ablaze-official-says-2025-05-24/">called</a> the most extensive aerial bombardment of the three-year war. 
In recent months, there had been hopes that a peace deal was within reach, but Putin appears to be making clear that he’s pushing ahead, despite increased threats of sanctions from the West. Ukrainian intelligence <a href="https://ca.news.yahoo.com/russias-casualties-war-against-ukraine-095937828.html?guccounter=1&amp;guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&amp;guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAM3atsZc41kCSRMKSfurjA_lU-16DhBVMjma8L5udzrwkvFa0KgXegrcgN4PLiL5kMS7G5o-tI97OUCDDVv0q_D28ERp7U8aWOO1ONbadwbiQg0sOb-32woFiDBFhUNANBcGjAoYOUBI1FcOyeD46QfZpkI09tXrEb_Zwy9CY8KJ">reportedly</a> shows that Moscow is gathering forces near the front line in preparation for a summer offensive. 
In response to those attacks, President Trump offered his <a href="https://x.com/yashar/status/1926775198956572815">strongest condemnation</a> of Putin to date. “I don&#8217;t know what the hell happened to Putin. I&#8217;ve known him a long time, always gotten along with him, but he&#8217;s sending rockets into cities and killing people, and I don&#8217;t like it at all. Okay, we&#8217;re in the middle of talking and he&#8217;s shooting rockets into Kiev and other cities.“ Later, on social media, the president appeared to make a veiled threat against Putin, <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/114571369956761390">writing,</a> “I’ve always said that he wants ALL of Ukraine, not just a piece of it, and maybe that’s proving to be right. But if he does, it will lead to the downfall of Russia!” 
However, this new anti-Putin rhetoric hasn’t exactly led to friendlier relations with Ukraine. Trump also said over the weekend that “Zelensky is doing his country no favors by talking the way he does. Everything out of his mouth causes problems.” 
Meanwhile, on Friday, Trump accused the Europeans of being “difficult to deal with” during trade negotiations, saying “discussions are going nowhere.”  The president threatened a 50% tariff that would kick in on June 1. That seemingly got their attention, as European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called the White House over the weekend to say “Europe is ready to advance talks swiftly and decisively.” As a result of that new willingness to make a deal, Trump agreed to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-delays-50-tariffs-eu-leader-blinks?author=Daniel+Chaitin&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=8&amp;row=3&amp;rowHeadline=Latest+News&amp;rowType=Vertical+Carousel&amp;title=Trump+Delays+50%25+Tariffs+On+EU+After+Its+Leader+Blinks">pause</a> his tariff hike until July 9 so an agreement could be reached. 
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<h2>Freezing Cartel Funds</h2>
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Topline:  Trump enlists the Treasury Department in his sweeping crackdown on drug cartels.
President Trump promised a “whole of government” approach to combating drug cartels. While the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and the Border Patrol have obvious roles to play, the Treasury Department is taking steps to crack down on money laundering.
“One of the most important things that the president did upon coming into office was to declare a number of the narco groups terrorist organizations,” Deputy Treasury Secretary Michael Faulkender told The Daily Wire. “[That] unleashes additional authorities at Treasury for us to better target some of the financial activities that these cartels are engaging in. It&#8217;s one thing to have our partners at DHS work on stopping the flow of people and drugs, but we can also use our financial tools to go after the money – because if the money is not flowing back south, then there&#8217;s less of an incentive to bring the drugs and the guns and some of the illicit activity up to the north.”
Among other things, Faulkender explained why Brinks Global was fined $37 million. “There is a statute called the Bank Secrecy Act that requires that if you&#8217;re going to facilitate transfers of monetary sums, that you need to know who the party is that is receiving this money, that is engaging in this transaction. And so what we did is our Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, which is called FinCEN, they launched an investigation into how this money was flowing south of the border – and found that Brinks had facilitated some of these money transfers without knowing who the parties were that were participating in this transaction.”
For the full interview, check out the Morning Wire podcast.
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<h2>Box Office Bonanza</h2>
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Topline: The box office for the holiday weekend blew away expectations. Disney’s live-action &#8220;Lilo &amp; Stitch&#8221; and Paramount’s &#8220;Mission: Impossible 8&#8221; set records to kick off the summer blockbuster season.
&#8220;Lilo &amp; Stitch&#8221; and &#8220;Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning&#8221; provide a much-needed shot in the arm for theaters nationwide. According to studio estimates, &#8220;Lilo &amp; Stitch&#8221; grossed a staggering $183 million domestically. That’s an all-time Disney record for this time frame. Its global haul was $342 million. Meanwhile, &#8220;Mission: Impossible&#8221; brought in a franchise-best $77 million domestically and $190 million worldwide. Taken together, Hollywood hopes this is a game-changer for an industry that’s been fighting to regain that pre-pandemic momentum.
Social media buzz for &#8220;Lilo &amp; Stitch,&#8221; especially from younger women and parents, has been off the charts with an “A” CinemaScore signaling strong word-of-mouth. Posts on X captured the excitement, with fans showing up in Stitch merch and plushies, turning screenings into events. This kind of cultural resonance is exactly what Disney banks on with its IP-driven strategy – sometimes successfully, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/snow-white-bombs-with-one-of-disneys-lowest-opening-weekends-for-a-remake">sometimes not</a>.
While it didn’t reach the heights of &#8220;Lilo &amp; Stitch,&#8221; &#8220;Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning&#8221; is unquestionably a triumph for Tom Cruise. The film’s opening beat the previous franchise record set by &#8220;Mission: Impossible – Fallout&#8221; in 2018 by $14 million, not adjusted for inflation.
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MRN 05.27.25 Tue Thumbnail

Morning Brief: Trump Blasts Putin, Cartel Crackdowns & Box Office Bonanza

Disney

Mission Impossible

Paramount

Tom Cruise

Treasury Department

Ukraine-Russia War

President Donald Trump said Sunday that Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum is so afraid of drug cartels that &#8220;she can&#8217;t even think straight,&#8221; and that&#8217;s why she rejected his proposal to send American troops into Mexico to fight them.
Trump made the comments after he was asked whether news that he had made the offer was true. On Saturday, Sheinbaum said that she had turned down Trump&#8217;s offer because it would impugn Mexican sovereignty.
&#8220;It&#8217;s true,&#8221; Trump told reporters. &#8220;[The cartels] are horrible people that have been killing people left and right. They&#8217;ve made a fortune on selling drugs and destroying our people. We lost 300,000 people last year to fentanyl and drugs. They are bad news.&#8221;
&#8220;If Mexico wanted help with the cartels we would be honored to go in and do it,&#8221; he added. &#8220;I told her that, &#8216;I&#8217;d be honored to go in and do it.&#8217; The cartels are trying to destroy our country. They are evil! And you know, we had 300,000 people die last year from fentanyl and all that. We had millions of people brought into this country that shouldn&#8217;t be here. The cartels brought them in.&#8221;
He said that he thought Sheinbaum was nice but that she refused American help because she was scared of the cartels.
&#8220;So if she said that I offered to do that, she&#8217;s 100 percent right,&#8221; Trump said. &#8220;She&#8217;s so afraid of the cartels she can&#8217;t walk so you know, that&#8217;s the reason. And I think she&#8217;s a lovely woman. The president of Mexico is a lovely woman. But she is so afraid of the cartels that she can&#8217;t even think straight.&#8221;
On Friday, it was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-pressures-mexico-to-allow-u-s-military-to-lead-fight-against-drug-cartels?author=Zach+Jewell&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Trump+Pressures+Mexico+To+Allow+U.S.+Military+To+Lead+Fight+Against+Drug+Cartels" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> that Sheinbaum and Trump got into a heated phone call last month after he pushed for the U.S. military to lead in the fight against cartels.
&#8220;He said, &#8216;How can we help you fight drug trafficking? I propose that the United States military come in and help you.&#8217; And you know what I said to him? &#8216;No, President Trump,'&#8221; Sheinbaum <a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-sheinbaum-mexico-drug-cartels-c2113e74cfc122f8f5a9e162644a470f" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> on Saturday, confirming the conversation.
&#8220;Sovereignty is not for sale. Sovereignty is loved and defended,&#8221; she added. &#8220;We can work together, but you in your territory and us in ours.&#8221;
Trump has designated cartels as foreign terrorist organizations and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-it-is-time-for-america-to-wage-war-on-the-cartels" target="_blank" rel="noopener">promised</a> in a speech before Congress to &#8220;wage war&#8221; on them.
White House National Security Council spokesman James Hewitt said Saturday that while the United States-Mexico border had largely been secured, Mexico still needed to do more to crack down on drug cartels.
&#8220;Dangerous Foreign Terrorist Organizations, however, continue to threaten our shared security and the drugs and crime they spread threaten American communities across the country,&#8221; Hewitt said. &#8220;The President has been crystal clear that Mexico must do more to combat these gangs and cartels and the United States stands ready to assist and expand the already close cooperation between our two countries.&#8221;

Trump Says Mexico’s President ‘Afraid’ To Let American Troops Come Fight Cartels

Drugs

Executive

Acting Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Director Todd Lyons said on Friday that his agency has rounded up nearly 400 members of the Tren de Aragua terrorist organization since President Donald Trump took office.
Lyons revealed that ICE arrested 68 members of the organization in the last 48 hours alone.
&#8220;TDA members aren&#8217;t stupid,&#8221; he said at a press conference. &#8220;They don&#8217;t wear uniforms like the men and women here. They&#8217;re out there. They&#8217;re sophisticated, and they hide their crimes.&#8221;
&#8220;But today I&#8217;m here to let everyone know that we are more sophisticated,&#8221; he said. &#8220;We have more resources than ever to find them and get rid of them from the United States. Since March 15, the president invoked the Alien Enemies Act, and our officers have risked their lives every day to ensure that we are going after these foreign terrorist networks in our communities.&#8221;
He said that the goal was to &#8220;eradicate TDA from U.S. soil.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons: This month, through the work of <a href="https://twitter.com/DHSgov?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DHSgov</a> and President Trump, we have designated Tren de Aragua a top priority… in the last 48 hours, ICE and our partners have arrested more than 68 TDA gang members. To date, we’ve arrested 394 of these terrorists. <a href="https://t.co/JPj1rrJOtz">pic.twitter.com/JPj1rrJOtz</a>
&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1903190571650314611?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 21, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The Trump administration deported 250 illegal aliens belonging to the terrorist organization last week despite <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/judge-says-trump-admin-defense-of-gang-member-deportation-flights-woefully-insufficient">efforts</a> from an Obama-appointed federal judge to stop the deportations.
Trump <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-expected-to-invoke-wartime-powers-to-deport-illegal-tren-de-aragua-members">invoked</a> the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 this month to authorize the rapid removal of Tren de Aragua members from the country.
The law allows the president to arrest, detain, and deport non-citizens aged 14-years-old or older who come from nations that are mounting an “invasion or predatory incursion” into the United States. Tren de Aragua was one of the entities that the Trump administration designated as a foreign terror organization on the president’s first day in office.
“TdA is a transnational organization that originated in Venezuela with cells in Colombia, Peru, and Chile, with further reports of sporadic presence in Ecuador, Bolivia, and Brazil,” the Trump State Department said of Tren de Aragua. “This brutal criminal group has conducted kidnappings, extorted businesses, bribed public officials, authorized its members to attack and kill U.S. law enforcement, and assassinated a Venezuelan opposition figure.”
The gang became infamous after members of the criminal organization took control over apartment complexes in Aurora, Colorado.

US deports over 250 alleged gang members to El Salvador’s mega-prison

ICE Arrests Dozens More Tren De Aragua Terrorists

Tren De Aragua

Trump Administration

U.S.

President Donald Trump declared that it is time for America to “wage war on the cartels” during his historic speech in front of Congress.
The 47th president detailed his administration’s border security actions and its posture toward the Mexican drug cartels, which Trump designated as foreign terror organizations on his first day in office.
“The cartels are waging war on America and it is time for America to wage war on the cartels,” Trump said during his speech to Congress. “Two weeks ago, I officially designated this gang, along with MS-13 and the bloodthirsty Mexican drug cartels, as foreign terrorist organizations. They are now officially in the same category as ISIS.”
“Countless thousands of these terrorists were welcomed into the U.S. by the Biden administration,” he went on to add. “But now every last one will be rounded up and forcibly removed from our country.”
The surge of criminal illegal aliens resulted in the loss of American life, Trump noted during his speech. “All three savages charged with Jocelyn and Laken’s murders were members of the Venezuelan prison gang … Tren de Aragua,” the president said, referencing the deaths of Jocelyn Nungaray and Laken Riley at the hands of illegal aliens.
Since entering office less than two months ago, the Trump administration has already secured the capture of key cartel leaders. Trump explained that Mexican authorities handed over 29 cartel leaders to the United States in an unprecedented move prompted by the president’s threat of tariffs against America’s neighbor to the south.
Trump’s comments came just after Border Czar Tom Homan joined The Daily Wire and explained that the administration will use the “<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/tom-homan-tells-daily-wire-trump-will-use-full-might-of-government-to-crush-cartels?topStoryPosition=undefined">full might</a>” of the federal government to crush the cartels.
“We’re not just going to attack them on the southern border, we’re going to attack them across the globe,” Homan told The Daily Wire Backstage Live ahead of Trump’s Tuesday night address to Congress. “We’re going to use the full might of the federal government to take them out.”
One of the first and most important ways to cripple the cartels, Homan explained, is to cut off their funding by securing the southern border and preventing them from smuggling drugs and people into the United States. “If they don’t have money, they don’t have power,” Homan explained. “We’re going to shut them down one piece at a time.”

Trump

Trump: It Is Time For America To ‘Wage War On The Cartels’

Border Czar Tom Homan says President Trump will use the &#8220;full might&#8221; of the federal government to crush the drug cartels.
“We’re not just going to attack them on the southern border, we’re going to attack them across the globe,” Homan said on Daily Wire Backstage Live ahead of Trump&#8217;s Tuesday night address to Congress. “We’re going to use the full might of the federal government to take them out.” The Trump administration official went on to detail the scope of the crisis, noting that the cartels have a presence in every major American city.
“This is the biggest national security vulnerability I’ve seen in my lifetime,” he said of the millions of illegal aliens that had been allowed to enter and stay in the United States under the previous administration.
Homan joined Daily Wire Backstage to tout Trump’s success on the southern border. His comments came as President Trump has taken a wide range of actions to secure the southern border and enforce federal immigration law to deport illegal aliens already present in the United States.
“What he did in three weeks the Biden administration failed to do in four years,” Homan told The Daily Wire hosts before going on to celebrate the steep decline in illegal border crossings into the United States. “We’ve had the lowest border numbers in history of the United States border, and that’s not an exaggeration … President Trump did that in four weeks, so imagine what he is going to do in the next 47 months.”
Trump signed an executive order on his first day in office to designate the Mexican drug cartels as foreign terror organizations, a move that Homan said will allow the federal government to crush the cartels and free Mexico from the control of the violent criminal entities.
He also explained that the first step to crippling the cartels was to eliminate their funding through border security measures that cut off cartel smuggling routes. “If they don’t have money, they don’t have power,” he noted, pointing out that cartels lose the ability to pay off politicians and law enforcement once their revenue stalls.
“We’re going to shut them down one piece at a time. What President Trump did designating them foreign terrorist organizations is the first step to wiping these cartels off the face of this earth,” Homan said before adding that Mexico will be “more grateful than anybody” because “Mexico doesn’t want to be under the control of the cartels.
He also explained that the Biden administration willfully opened the border, allowing the cartels to rake in cash from their transnational human and drug smuggling operations.
“This administration knew how to fix it, they just didn’t choose to fix it,” he said of the Biden administration, adding that the Democrat didn’t simply mismanage the border but instead “ran on open borders,” Homan charged. “No one celebrated that election more than criminal cartels. They knew they were back in business.”
Daily Wire Host Michael Knowles and Homan took a playful jab at congressional Democrats after Knowles joked that the Trump administration official might be able to deport politicians who attempt to disrupt the 47th president’s speech tonight.
“Don’t tempt me,” Homan said.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/michaeljknowles?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@michaeljknowles</a>: &#8220;Democrat lawmakers are planning to interrupt this speech with all sorts of noisemakers and make a general nuisance of themselves &#8230; would it be possible for you to deport them as well?
HOMAN: &#8220;Don&#8217;t tempt me.&#8221;
😂 <a href="https://t.co/yINyipFyO7">pic.twitter.com/yINyipFyO7</a>
— Daily Wire (@realDailyWire) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDailyWire/status/1897106176262938719?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 5, 2025</a></blockquote>
But Homan explained that he’s been sparring with Democrats over immigration and deportations. Democrats like <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/aoc-admits-she-was-openly-advising-illegals-on-how-to-avoid-law-enforcement">Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez</a> (D-NY) and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/nevada-attorney-general-helps-chinese-illegal-aliens-dodge-deportation">Nevada Attorney General</a> Aaron Ford have told illegal aliens how they might be able to avoid deportations.
“I can’t believe that any member of Congress wants to educate an illegal alien, who has been convicted of a serious offense, who has an order of removal, and they want to educate them on how to evade arrest? Homan fumed. “To me they ought to resign from their position as a member of Congress.”
Homan turned his attention to other politicians who’ve worked to prevent the deportation of illegal aliens. The Trump administration official also added that politicians who lead sanctuary jurisdictions and knowingly harbor illegal aliens could be subject to prosecution by Attorney General Pam Bondi.
Homan closed by thanking members of Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement. “These are the men and women on the border 24/7” and who wear a “kevlar vest and a gun on their hip” as they bust illegal aliens in sanctuary cities.

Homan Backstage

Tom Homan Tells Daily Wire: Trump Will Use ‘Full Might’ Of Government To Crush Cartels

Tom Homan

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