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Designating Gangs/Cartels as Terrorist Groups is Pointless
Despite his reservations, Secretary of State Marco Rubio fulfilled a Trump promise to designate cartels as terrorist groups
The Department of State has officially designated several Latin American gangs and cartels as terrorist organizations, making the dangerous leap that could lead to the violation of several nations’ sovereignty. Despite Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s reservations during his Senate confirmation hearing, calling the designations an “imperfect tool” against what he called “sophisticated transnational terroristic organizations,” he made good on Trump’s promise.
At his confirmation hearing (video below), Rubio mentioned that he preferred to work with the Mexican government to tackle crime syndicates in Mexico rather than employ “terrorist” designations. Presumably, Rubio was referring to the work the two countries have committed to in tackling cartels.
For example, while recent reporting highlighted how U.S. military drones have been…
