Ryan (3:55)

I believe we should have a military presence at the very least on the southern border, if not across the border. You know, one of the things we learned post Trump presidency is that he had ordered a bombing of a couple of fentanyl labs, crystal meth labs in Mexico just across the border. And for whatever reason, the military didn't do it. I think that was a mistake.

Lindsey Graham (4:18)

In 2023, Trump ally Republican Lindsey Graham said he couldn't think of a better use of our military than to bomb Mexico. Watch this.

Ryan (4:28)

They're at war with you. You need to be at war with them. I can't think of a better use of our military than the blow up labs in Mexico killing young Americans. All right, we're back.

Lindsey Graham (4:42)

We're back. And if you Remember back in 2022, there was a whole lot of reporting out there saying that Trump frequently asked about bombing Mexico while he was president. There was this piece about reporter Maggie Haberman's book that said, quote, trump weighed bombing drug labs in Mexico after he mistook advisor. New book shows. Then there was Trump's former secretary of defense, Mark Esper, who came out with a book called A Sacred Oath. And in that book, he also mentioned that Trump spoke about attacking Mexico. Per Esper, Trump wanted to bomb Mexico and then lie about it. Esper wrote, quote, on at least two occasions in the summer of 2020, once in the Oval Office and a second time in his private room just off the Oval, the president approached me about a sensitive issue. Slightly hunched over with his hands motioning in front of him like a quarterback, gesturing for a long snap, he asked me if the military could, quote, shoot missiles into Mexico to destroy the drug labs and take out the cartels. Standing close to me as he spoke, the president complained that the Mexican government isn't doing enough, getting irritated as he spoke and adding, quot they don't have control of their own country. If we could just knock them the drug labs out, he said, this would do the trick. What do you think? He asked. These conversations were quite troubling, to say the least. On one hand, I shared his concern about illicit drugs being trafficked into our country and respected his passion for wanting to stop this dangerous trade. But asking the US Military to shoot missiles into a sovereign country and worse yet, our friend and neighbor definitely was not the way to go about it. Working hard to conceal my shock at this idea, I said, Mr. President, we. We could do that. And as much as I want to stop these drugs too, shooting missiles into Mexico would be illegal. It would also be an act of war. I recommended that we look for more ways to help the Mexican government deal with the problem, such as increasing the training, intelligence and equipment we are providing them. We should also take another look at ideas that were tabled in the past. But to simply launch air or missile strikes into Mexico would not only violate international law, it would also destroy our relationship with Mexico and damage our global standing. I said Trump took these objections in, pursing his lips as he listened. He then suggested we could just shoot some Patriot missiles and take out the labs quietly, adding preposterously that, quote, no one would know it was us. He would simply deny that we launched them. I had seen Trump spin his own reality before, so I had no doubt he was confident in his ability to persuade people we had not launched the attacks. However, we did not live in a world where the United States could strike another country and no one would believe the missiles were not ours. I also couldn't Imagine the president would resist taking credit for the attack anyway. It was nonsense, plain and simple. If I hadn't seen the look on the president's face, I would have thought it was all a joke. He wanted to get this planned and done by Labor Day. Around then, he said, just a few months away. I was speechless. Trump thought this was the only way we could really stop this terrible trade. I took a long pause and then said again, quote, this would be an act of war, Mr. President, and there would be no way to keep it quiet. Esper then went on Fox and Fox host Brian Kilmeade of course tried to justify these comments by Trump. And Esper again reiterated that what Trump was suggesting was illegal and an act of war. Watch this.

Brian Kilmeade (8:07)

These are almost like think tank questions when you guys are throwing out ideas. And do you think it's right to put that in a book? Well, he didn't propose sending a quarter million troops to the border. That was Stephen Miller. I never had that discussion with President Trump, but with regard to shooting missiles into Mexico, yes, I thought that was an act of war. It was illegal. It should not happen. And those things should be discussed. And we did have a meeting, a National Security Council meeting. I describe it in a book where we sat around the Situation Room and discussed how to address the issue with cartels.

Lindsey Graham (8:34)

Tis the season, y'all, and we could all use a break. If you're looking for a great gift for somebody or for yourself, look no further than Cook Unity. Cookunity makes dinner easy, healthy and satisfying. These are fresh meals delivered directly to your door using local ingredients, allowing you to enjoy your meals at a fraction of the cost and time. Go to CookUnity.com Midas and enter code Midas M E I D A before checkout for 50% off your first meal. With over 350 meals made by award winning chefs to choose from, there's something for every craving. Whether you want something light, hearty or adventurous. You can browse the menu by protein, cuisine or dietary need. And new chefs are always joining the team. So there's always something exciting to try. I just had the Adobo chicken Mac and cheese. Oh, it was really, really, really good. It tasted awesome and took away all the stress. After my busy day, the convenience is just unbeatable. Meals are delivered fully cooked. You just heat them up in five minutes and you're good to go. No prep, no cleanup and no stress. And at prices starting as low as $11 per meal, it's a fraction of the cost of eating out Give the gift of delivering mouthwatering meals crafted with local ingredients and award winning chefs with CookUnity. Go to CookUnity.com Midas or enter code MIDAS M E I D A S before checkout for 50% off your first week. That's a 50% off your first week by using code MIDAS or going to CookUN Midas. And I'm not going to play this clip of Trump, but here's a screenshot of him from Bedminster in 2022 admitting that he did, in fact want to bomb Mexico. The caption to this video here reads, at Bedminster, Trump said he, quote, did not want to deny the leak, that he wanted to fire rockets into Mexico and was gleeful saying that, quote, people loved it. Let's dig back into this new reporting from Rolling Stone. They write, within Donald Trump's government in waiting, there is a fresh debate over whether and how thoroughly the elect should follow through on his campaign promise to attack or even invade Mexico as part of the war he's pledged to wage against the powerful drug cartels. Quote, how much should we invade Mexico? Says a senior Trump transition member. That is the question. It is a question that would have seemed baddie for the GOP elite to consider before, even during Trump's first term. But in the four years since, many within the mainstream Republican centers of power have come around to support Trump's idea to bomb or attack Mexico. Trump's cabinet picks, including his choices for secretary of defense and secretary of state, have publicly supported the idea of potentially unleashing the US Military in Mexico. So has the man Trump has tapped to be his national security adviser. So has the man Trump selected, as his borders are to lead his immigration crackdowns. So have various Trump allies in Congress and in the media. Trump, who has routinely and falsely promoted himself as the candidate who would stop endless wars, now wants to lead a new conflict just south of our new nation's border. But at this moment, it is, in the words of one Trump adviser, quote, unclear how far he'll go on this one. The source adds, quote, if things don't change, the president still believes it's necessary to take some kind of military action against these killers. Another source close to Trump describes to Rolling Stone what they call a, quote, soft invasion of Mexico, in which American special forces, not a large theater deployment, would be sent covertly to assassinate cartel leaders. Indeed, this is a preliminary plan that Trump himself warmed to in private conversations this year. For this story, Rolling Stone spoke to six Republicans who have each talked to the twice impeached former and now future president about this topic. Some of these sources have briefed Trump on these policy ideas in recent weeks. These proposals, of varying degrees of violent severity, include drone strikes or airstrikes on cartel infrastructure or drug labs, sending in military trainers and advisers to Mexico, deploying kill teams on Mexican soil, waging cyber warfare against drone drug lords and their networks, and having American special forces conduct a series of raids and abductions of notorious cartel figures. In some of these private conversations, including during this presidential transition period, Trump has told confidants and some GOP lawmakers that he plans to tell the Mexican government that they need to stem the flow of fentanyl to America somehow in a span of several months, or else he will send in the US Military. As Rolling Stone has reported, since at least last year, Trump has solicited specific battle plans and different military options for attacking Mexico. Senator Marco Rubio, whom Trump chose to serve as Secretary of State, has endorsed the idea of sending US Troops to Mexico to combat drug cartels under the conditions that, quote, there is cooperation from the Mexican government and that such operations are done in coordination with the armed forces and the Mexican police force. Fox News commentator Pete Hegseth, whom Trump chose to lead the Pentagon said last year that it could be in the national interest to deploy the military against the Mexican drug cartels, which he had referred to as, quote, terrorist like organizations poisoning our population. Quote, if it takes military action, that's what it may take eventually, said Hegseth. Obviously, you're going to have to be smart about it, obviously, the precision strikes. But if you put the fear in the minds of drug lords, at least as a start, and they can't operate in the open with impunity, it changes the way they operate. You combine that with actual border security, now you're cooking with gas and you got a chance. Trump's pick for national security adviser, Representative Mike Waltz, last year co introduced legislation to create an authorization for use of military force to target Mexican drug cartels, asserting it would, quote, give the president sophisticated military, cyber intelligence and surveillance resources to disrupt cartel operations that are endangering Americans. Trump's incoming border czar, Tom Homan, recently pledged that Trump would use the military against drug cartels in Mexico. Quote, president Trump is committed to calling them a terrorist organization and using the full might of the United States special operations to take them out, he said. Senator Lindsey Graham, one of Trump's top allies on Capitol Hill, similarly introduced the legislation last year to, quote, designate Mexican cartels and other transnational criminal organizations as foreign terrorist organizations. He did so after promising that America would, quote, unleash the fury and might of the US against drug cartels in Mexico and that Congress would, quote, give the military the authority to go after these organizations wherever they exist. Meanwhile, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has responded to Trump's tariff threats, basically saying that not only are Trump's accusations against Mexico false, but that the drug trade is driven by the demand from America and that 70% of the illegal weapons seized from criminals in Mexico actually come from the United States. This is a video of her with subtitles responding to Trump. Check this out.

Claudia Sheinbaum (16:11)

Es un problema de consumo ide Salud publica de la Sociedad de Supais the acuerdo con la de la patria fronteris aiduan as the Supa East CBP Los encuentros en la frontera entre Mexico y Estados Unidos siendre dusido ense tenta y cinco porciento de vicembre dos milvo entitres.

Lindsey Graham (16:36)

So can we agree folks that this is absolutely insane that we don't start wars with our closest allies and invade raid our neighbors? And can we finally put to rest this maga lie that Trump stands for peace Anyway, we are going to continue to call this new administration out every single day, but we can't do it without you. Remember to hit subscribe help us get to 4 million subscribers. Go ahead also and follow us on Blue Sky. Thank you so much for watching and I'll see you soon. Love this video. Make sure you stay up to date on the latest breaking news and all things Midas by signing up to the Midas Touch newsletter at midastouch. Com Newsletter.