The southern border has gone quiet. Imagine that.
Migrant encounters have plummeted. Border Patrol agents report a dramatic shift in their daily operations. Communities along the border are experiencing relief after years of being overwhelmed.
This remarkable transformation didn’t happen by accident.
The Donald Trump administration has unleashed a powerful enforcement campaign targeting the criminal networks that facilitated the years-long border crisis. In a sweeping operation, the Department of Justice has brought charges against 14 individuals accused of smuggling hundreds of illegal migrants into the United States.
Smugglers Get What’s Coming To Them
These smugglers allegedly transported illegal migrants from Central and South America between November of 2023 and February of 2025. During that time, they profited handsomely from human suffering. Court documents reveal the operation charged hundreds of dollars per migrant, accumulating thousands in illicit proceeds.
“Today’s indictment alleges that the defendants engaged in a sophisticated conspiracy to smuggle aliens into and throughout the United States at great danger to the aliens, resulting in the death of one person,” stated Supervisory Official Antoinette Bacon of the DOJ’s Criminal Division.
The criminal behavior of these smugglers reveals a shocking disregard for human life. According to the unsealed indictment, they would pick up illegal migrants near the U.S. side of the southern border and transport them to Albuquerque, New Mexico and other locations from various stash houses. When confronted by law enforcement, they would flee at high speeds, sometimes instructing migrants to jump from moving vehicles.
In one particularly disturbing incident, when a migrant died from heat exhaustion in August, one of the conspirators allegedly instructed the group to abandon the body in the New Mexico desert.
Let that sink in. These are the “compassionate” smugglers the left refuses to condemn. You truly can’t make this stuff up.
Biden’s Border Disaster
The current enforcement success stands in stark contrast to the previous administration’s approach. When Joe Biden entered office, he systematically dismantled the enforcement apparatus built during Trump’s first term.
The results? Absolutely catastrophic – just as any conservative with common sense predicted. Go figure!
The U.S.-Mexico border quickly descended into chaos as illegal migrants arrived en masse. Fiscal years 2023 and 2024 became the worst and second-worst years for migrant encounters in American history.
So much for the “adults in the room” running things.
While American communities struggled with the influx, cartels and smuggling operations reaped enormous profits. These criminal enterprises pulled in approximately $14 million per day by smuggling migrants, drugs, and other contraband across the border. Annual revenue from migrant smuggling alone ranged from $4 billion to $12 billion.
Border security collapsed as cartels effectively controlled who and what entered the United States. American sovereignty was undermined daily, with deadly consequences for both migrants and citizens.
And where was the mainstream media? Busy looking the other way.
Trump’s Enforcement Hammer Falls
President Trump’s return to office marked an immediate shift in border policy. Indeed, his administration has taken decisive action against the criminal networks enabling illegal immigration. No studies needed. No committees formed. Just action.
Beyond the fourteen individuals charged in the smuggling conspiracy, the DOJ also announced the extradition of Raul Saucedo-Huipio. He’s described as a Mexicali-based ringleader of an international migrant smuggling operation. Saucedo-Huipio allegedly helped smuggle foreign nationals into the U.S. from Latin America and across the world, including individuals from Yemen, Bangladesh, Egypt, and Pakistan.
The administration has also celebrated a successful bilateral operation with Mexican law enforcement that dismantled a cartel-linked migrant smuggling ring based in Juarez, Mexico. Many members of this organization are current and former cartel members. This only highlights the connection between drug trafficking and human smuggling.
“On her first day in office, the Attorney General [Pam Bondi] directed the Department of Justice to prioritize efforts to achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations,” stated Bacon.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: personnel is policy. When you put serious people in charge, you get serious results.
America First Border Strategy
These enforcement actions are part of a broader strategic framework implemented by the Trump administration. Upon returning to office, Trump issued executive orders declaring a national emergency at the border and deploying troops to secure the region.
In a significant policy shift, the administration designated Mexican drug cartels as terrorist organizations, enabling the deployment of additional resources to combat their operations. This designation acknowledges the reality that cartels function as paramilitary organizations controlling territory and threatening national security. Why didn’t previous administrations take this obvious step?
The administration also successfully pressured the Mexican government to deploy 10,000 of its own national guard troops to the southern border, demonstrating effective international diplomacy in service of American interests.
Turns out, other countries respect strength and clarity. Who would have thought?!
These coordinated efforts have produced remarkable results. Border Patrol encounters have dropped to levels not seen in several decades. The flow of illegal migrants has slowed dramatically, and smuggling networks find their operations increasingly disrupted.
The restoration of order at the border demonstrates the effectiveness of an enforcement-first approach to immigration policy. By targeting the criminal networks that enable illegal immigration, the administration has begun to restore America’s sovereign control over who enters the country.
Contrast Between Between Biden And Trump
The contrast between administrations could not be clearer. Under Biden, border chaos enriched cartels and smugglers while endangering Americans and migrants alike. Under Trump, enforcement actions have disrupted criminal networks and restored order. It really is that simple, folks.
The successful crackdown on smuggling operations proves that border security is achievable with political will and proper resource allocation. When America enforces its immigration laws, both citizens and legal immigrants benefit.
Most importantly, the dramatic improvement at the border demonstrates that national sovereignty remains a fundamental American value. A nation that cannot control its borders cannot protect its citizens or preserve its identity. The Trump administration’s enforcement actions have reaffirmed this essential principle of American governance.
Thank you, President Trump, and God bless you!
Key Takeaways:
- Trump’s DOJ crackdown on smuggling networks has dramatically reduced border crossings to levels not seen in decades.
- Criminal smugglers showed blatant disregard for human life, even abandoning a dead migrant in the desert.
- Cartels made $4-12 billion annually from migrant smuggling during the Biden administration.
- Enforcement-first approach proves border security is achievable with proper political will.
Source: Daily Caller
