(ReclaimingAmerica.net) – The administration of President Joe Biden has come under pressure from US lawmakers to take decisive action against drug cartels after four US citizens were abducted in Mexico and two of them were found dead.
Four Americans were kidnapped on Friday after going to Mexico for a medical procedure. On Tuesday, Mexican authorities found the bodies of two of them in the city of Matamoros.
The other two were discovered alive, but one had been injured, The Hill reported.
According to the FBI, the unknown gunmen started shooting at the four Americans’ car soon after it had crossed the US-Mexican border.
The armed men then kidnapped them, but the agency has not made it clear whether the group of four had been targeted deliberately or by chance.
Biden administration officials have reacted to the discovery of the dead bodies by declaring the killings “unacceptable.” The report forecasts the incident could escalate tensions in US-Mexican relations, which are already strained by border security issues.
“Attacks on US citizens are unacceptable no matter where or under what circumstances they occur,” reacted John Kirby, the White House National Security Council spokesman.
“And we’re going to work closely with the Mexican government to make sure justice is done in this case,” he told reporters on Tuesday.
At the same time, Kirby insisted potential policy changes connected with the abductions and killings of the four Americans in Mexico should be discussed later.
Meanwhile, on Tuesday, Biden’s Attorney General, Merrick Garland, told reporters that US law enforcement agencies were taking the necessary measures to respond to the killings of American citizens.
“[The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the FBI] are doing everything possible to dismantle and disrupt and ultimately prosecute the leaders of the cartels and the entire networks that they depend on,” Garland said.
However, Republican US legislators saw the matter differently.
US Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) declared he was prepared to initiate legislation to classify some Mexican drug cartels as terrorist organizations, enabling the US to resort to military force in Mexico.
“I would tell the Mexican government if you don’t clean up your act, we’re going to clean it up for you,” Graham stated.
Other Republicans, including US Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX), have renewed their earlier calls to designate cartels as terrorist organizations.
“Four Americans were kidnapped by a Mexican cartel. Two are dead. There’s no chance the cartel would be SO BOLD if America had a president who took border security seriously. We are a laughingstock because of Biden’s weak leadership,” tweeted Rep. Kevin Hern (R-OK), chairman of the influential Republican Study Committee.
What is your opinion? Should Biden use the military to eradicate Mexican drug cartels? Why or why not? Share your view by emailing [email protected]. Thank you.
Deaths of US citizens put pressure on Biden over handling of Mexican cartels https://t.co/JOK4HbEsRa pic.twitter.com/2LeThG3NgC
— The Hill (@thehill) March 7, 2023
