U.S. Republicans Want America to Invade Mexico. That’s a Terrible Idea Antonio De Loera-Brust - Foreign Policy
go to original November 9, 2023

Update: Trump Is Returning to the US-Mexico Border as He Lays Out a Set of Hard-Line Immigration Proposals (Associated Press)

The United States’ generally friendly relations with its North American neighbors is one of its great geopolitical blessings. This fact seems so obvious, so intuitive, that to write an article arguing the point seems silly. “Bomb Mexico” should not be a policy proposal that merits any attention in these pages.

And yet here we are: There is a growing chorus of U.S. lawmakers, pundits, and presidential candidates proposing the United States use military force on Mexico’s sovereign territory, without Mexico’s permission if necessary, in order to combat drug cartels. In the early days of the 118th Congress, two Republican representatives introduced an Authorization for Use of Military Force bill to empower the military to conduct operations in Mexico against cartels. “We must start treating [the cartels] like ISIS,” explained one of the bill’s sponsors, Rep. Dan Crenshaw. Sen. Lindsey Graham followed their lead, telling Fox News that he would “tell the Mexican government, if you don’t clean up your act, we’re going to clean it up for you.” And at the first two Republican presidential debates, multiple candidates embraced the idea of using military force on Mexican soil as well. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis pledged to use military force in Mexico on “day one” of his hypothetical presidency. Even the supposedly moderate Nikki Haley proposed delivering an ultimatum to Mexico’s president on the use of U.S. military force on Mexican soil while on the campaign trail: “You know what you tell the Mexican president? Either you do it, or we do it.”

These policy proposals are among the most counterproductive, harmful, and just plain dumb foreign-policy ideas ever entertained in the discourse of the nation that brought us strategic masterstrokes such as invading Iraq. The loud discussion of it in Republican circles is already introducing unnecessary friction in the U.S.-Mexico relationship, which involves daily cooperation on a number of issues, from water rights to counterterrorism to trade.

It is tempting to simply dismiss this idea as political grandstanding from a handful of also-ran Republican presidential candidates looking to juice their poll numbers. But an idea this recurrent can unfortunately not be dismissed. Donald Trump, a former (and potentially future) commander in chief, has fantasized about using military force against cartels on Mexican soil. The idea has seeped into countless items of popular culture, from the Sicario movies to a recent Call of Duty video game. Even some Democrats such as Pete Buttigieg, now a member of President Joe Biden’s cabinet, flirted with the idea of sending U.S. troops to Mexico during the 2020 presidential primary. While starting a war in Mexico is a very bad idea, it’s important not to simply dismiss it as impossible. The proposal to use U.S. military force in Mexico should be taken as the real threat to U.S. national security and diplomacy that it is.

As we get deeper into a 21st century defined by complicated international challenges like pandemics and the climate crisis, as well as renewed great-power competition, the United States desperately needs Mexico to be on its side. Mexico is indispensable to the United States’ ability to near- and re-shore critical industries. Mexico is key to addressing shared challenges like migration and climate change. And any actually effective strategy for addressing the real challenges of fentanyl use and gang violence will require effective U.S.-Mexico cooperation.

Antonio De Loera-Brust is the former special assistant to the U.S. secretary of state. He previously worked for Rep. Joaquin Castro and on the policy teams of the Julián Castro and Elizabeth Warren presidential campaigns. He is a native of Yolo County, California.

Read the rest at Foreign Policy

Related: Here’s What Happens When the U.S. and Mexico Fight (Americas Quarterly)

Related: Donald Trump Could Bring Back Family Separations at US-Mexico Border if He Returns to the White House (Independent.ie)

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