Shortfalls in the illicit drug trade could be very problematic for the DNC who receive funding through Mexican drug cartels. Apparently, according to the cartels, the coronavirus is having an impact. Will Speaker Pelosi look for bailout options?
Additionally the U.S. military operation to target illicit drugs is entering its fourth week creating even more havoc in the system.
NEW YORK (AP) — Coronavirus is dealing a gut punch to the illegal drug trade, paralyzing economies, closing borders and severing supply chains in China that traffickers rely on for the chemicals to make such profitable drugs as methamphetamine and fentanyl.
[…] – Along the 2,000-mile U.S.-Mexico border through which the vast majority of illegal drugs cross, the normally bustling vehicle traffic that smugglers use for cover has slowed to a trickle. Bars, nightclubs and motels across the country that are ordinarily fertile marketplaces for drug dealers have shuttered. And prices for drugs in short supply have soared to gouging levels.“They are facing a supply problem and a demand problem,” said Alejandro Hope, a security analyst and former official with CISEN, the Mexican intelligence agency. “Once you get them to the market, who are you going to sell to?”Virtually every illicit drug has been impacted, with supply chain disruptions at both the wholesale and retail level. Traffickers are stockpiling narcotics and cash along the border, and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration even reports a decrease in money laundering and online drug sales on the so-called dark web. (read more)
President Trump broke the OPEC+ stalemate by agreeing to decrease U.S. production by 300k/barrels allowing Mexico to drop a more manageable 100k/barrels. Trump and AMLO reached an undisclosed agreement where Mexico will reimburse the U.S. later on.
♦As we shared last week… CTH suspects the “reimbursement” will be more, well, strategically geopolitical than financial. [*nudge-nudge*, *wink-wink*, *say-no-more/say-no-more*] President Trump has an uncanny knack of collecting leverage for later, more strategic, purposes. Just sayin’.
♦Three Weeks Ago…. President Trump and Defense Secretary Esper announced a major deployment of U.S. military to interdict narcotics trafficking from Central America.
On the surface the effort to deploy naval assets to the Caribbean and southern pacific is justified based on intelligence drug cartels will exploit the coronavirus pandemic to ship more narcotics into the U.S.
However, in the bigger picture there’s also a likelihood the Chinese Communist Party would work with their geopolitical allies in Central American regimes to further weaken the U.S. during a time of increased vulnerability.
In times of war, or severe geopolitical confrontation, exploiting a vulnerability is a common strategy. Therefore it’s a smart and prudent geopolitical move for President Trump and U.S. military to take very aggressive action against the cartels and their communist sympathizers. There’s more going on here than appears on the surface.
Barr: “The president is very thankful for your cooperation“…
AMLO: “So you’re saying this is an offer I cannot refuse?“..
Barr: “The President is very thankful for your cooperation“…
What headlines appear next?…
Funny how that happens...
(1) Trump launches military anti-narcotics effort. (2) AMLO asks Trump for help with oil pricing. (3) Trump helps AMLO with oil pricing. (4) Cartels report supply chain issues.