Trump plans to ELIMINATE threat of cartels: 'The ISIS of the Western Hemisphere'

President Donald Trump has said that his administration's objective is to "eliminate" and "eradicate" the threat of the drug cartels, labeling the groups the "ISIS of the Western Hemisphere."

The president hosted a roundtable with the Homeland Security Task Force on Thursday, where he kicked off the event saying that the administration has had a "sweeping, unprecedented, and historically successful operation" in the last few weeks to "arrest, prosecute, and permanently remove members of foreign drug cartels from American soil." 

"These groups have unleashed more bloodshed and killing on American soil than all other terrorist groups combined. These are the worst of the worst. It should now be clear to the entire world that the cartels are the ISIS of the Western Hemisphere, in addition to their monstrous violence, such as cutting off heads, burning their enemies alive and burning innocent people alive too," Trump said. 

He later announced that the objective of the administration will be to "eliminate" the threat of the terror groups. "Past administrations have tried to mitigate this threat, and our objective is to eliminate it. We're not mitigating. We're eliminating. We're getting them out, the bad ones we're putting in prison. We hate to do that, because that means we're stuck with them for 50 years or more."

Trump said that the former administration allowed for cartels and other criminal organizations to run rampant under Biden, and that the former president "surrendered our country to the cartels."

"We're finally treating the cartels as the core national security threat that they really are. The cartels are waging war on America, and just as I promised in the campaign, we're waging war on them like they've never seen before," Trump added. 

The president was also asked if he would get a declaration of war from Congress if he did plan on waging war against the cartels. Trump responded, "I don't think we're going to necessarily ask for a declaration of war. I think we're just gonna kill people who are bringing drugs into our country. Okay? We're going to kill them. You know, they're going to be, like, dead. Okay?"

Trump was joined by Attorney General Pam Bondi, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, as well as Secretary of War Pete Hegseth during the roundtable.  

"We're dismantling the cartels, and we are taking the leaders into custody, and all of the gangs. We are going to supercharge this work," Bondi said. 

Noem posted, "Through the Homeland Security Task Force, President Trump is taking the fight directly to the terrorists, cartels, foreign gang bangers, and other evildoers by taking them off our streets and seizing their assets so that Americans no longer have to live in fear and danger."