White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller told a gathering of Latin American military leaders on Thursday that drug cartels operating across the Western Hemisphere should be treated as terrorist organizations and defeated with brutal military force. Speaking at a conference hosted by U.S. Southern Command, Miller argued that “not a single one of your nations should tolerate the existence of even a single square mile of territory that is under the control of any entity other than the sovereign governments of your country.” Read more from The National Interest: The Shield of the Americas Summit and Donald Trump’s Latin America Strategy “The idea that we would have areas in this hemisphere under the physical control of foreign terrorist organizations or paramilitary organizations is completely unacceptable,” he said. “The cartels that operate in this hemisphere are the ISIS and the al-Qaeda of the Western Hemisphere, and they should be treated just as brutally and just as ruthlessly as we treat those organizations.” Miller framed the fight against organized crime as a prerequisite for economic development. “The West only achieved the place it did in human history because it spent previous centuries eradicating the criminal elements within its territories,” Miller said. “By the time you arrive at the 18th or 19th century in England, there had already been centuries in which ruthless means were used to eliminate those who raped, murdered, and defied systems of order and justice.” “For too long, we’ve been caught in a vicious cycle in this hemisphere where countries from Mexico down to the tip of South America do not provide their citizens with basic physical security,” Miller said. “Those citizens, in search of economic opportunity, illegally immigrate to the United States. They pay the smugglers. They pay the cartels. The cartels grow richer and more powerful.” “Meanwhile, your countries become poorer because you’ve lost your citizens. You’ve lost your human capital. You’ve lost opportunities to develop and grow. The cartels grow more powerful. Nothing changes. Nothing improves.” “The mission is very simple,” he said, “To eradicate the criminal cartels and terrorist organizations, to deprive them of control over weapons, spaces, institutions, and territory.” “The human rights we are going to protect are not those of the savages who torture, rape, and murder. The human rights we will protect are those of the peaceful citizens who have an absolute right to live in physical safety and security every day of their lives. In that mission, I promise you, we will be your closest partner.”

STEPHEN MILLER: There has been a paradigm shift under President Trump in the Western Hemisphere in the last 14 months. Some of that was touched on by the earlier speakers, but just to restate it: we are not going to cede an inch of territory in this hemisphere to our enemies or our adversaries. Our national security, our homeland security – the safety and well-being of our people – begins at home. It begins in our neighborhood. It begins in our home region. For too long, we have allowed foreign enemies, foreign adversaries, and terrorist organizations to control territory and spaces in this hemisphere where they can project power, project threats, and directly threaten the lives of your citizens and our citizens. Under the leadership of President Trump, we are using hard power – military power, lethal force – to protect and defend the American homeland. Not a single one of your nations should tolerate the existence of even a single square mile of territory that is under the control of any entity other than the sovereign governments of your country. The idea that we would have areas in this hemisphere under the physical control of foreign terrorist organizations or paramilitary organizations is completely unacceptable. The cartels that operate in this hemisphere are the ISIS and the al-Qaeda of the Western Hemisphere, and they should be treated just as brutally and just as ruthlessly as we treat those organizations. What we have learned after decades of effort is that there is not a criminal justice solution to the cartel problem. There are elements of the problem that require a criminal justice solution, to be sure. But just as we fought al-Qaeda and ISIS with the tip of a very lethal spear, the reason this is a conference with military leadership – and not a conference of lawyers – is because these organizations can only be defeated with military power. I see some heads nodding up front, because they understand you’re dealing with a lot of lawyers in your own country. You have my permission not to listen to them. The key condition of human flourishing – of prosperity – is order and security. A country cannot pursue economic growth, cultural enrichment, art, architecture, education, or science if it does not have fundamental security first. For too long, we’ve been caught in a vicious cycle in this hemisphere where countries – from Mexico down to the tip of South America – do not provide their citizens with basic physical security. Those citizens, in search of economic opportunity, illegally immigrate to the United States. They pay the smugglers. They pay the cartels. The cartels grow richer and more powerful. Meanwhile, your countries become poorer because you’ve lost your citizens. You’ve lost your human capital. You’ve lost opportunities to develop and grow. The cartels grow more powerful. Nothing changes. Nothing improves. You have to break that cycle. And that begins by dismantling these organizations that deal drugs, deal violence, assassinate, extort, blackmail, and traffic illegally in human beings. That is a form of terrorism, too. Illegal immigration facilitated by criminal networks is a form of terrorism. Those who are stealing your children, stealing your families, and stealing your human capital are part of that terrorist continuum and should be thought of as such. It is not a victimless crime when people pay human smuggling organizations, because that money fuels assassinations, violence, instability, and the continuation of this cycle. For decades, many organizations were sent to your countries – NGOs, non-governmental organizations. They gave you very bad advice for a very long time. In short, they told you that you needed to be softer, gentler, and nicer to criminals; that you needed to demilitarize your approach and extend more rights and opportunities to the people sabotaging and destroying your society. I would make the point – as others have before, including the president of El Salvador – that the West only achieved the place it did in human history because it spent previous centuries eradicating the criminal elements within its territories. The West we came to know – the one with great music, architecture, science, and the most powerful economies – spent centuries establishing order first. By the time you arrive at the 18th or 19th century in England, there had already been centuries in which ruthless means were used to eliminate those who raped, murdered, and defied systems of order and justice. Once people could live freely and peacefully – once children, families, and women could be safe – then it became possible to pursue the higher elements of life. So when people come to countries like yours – countries that have faced struggles, challenges, and pain – and they tell you anything other than to secure your country and territory first, they are giving terrible advice. If someone had gone to Europe centuries ago and offered the same advice, Europe would never have become what it eventually became. And the reason many Western countries struggle today is that they have forgotten the eternal truths and wisdom they once followed. That is why, under President Trump, America is returning to those fundamental truths and those fundamental principles. I will close by saying this: you will have, in President Trump – in the White House, in the Department of War, in the Department of State, and across the whole of our government – unwavering support, unwavering commitment, and unwavering fidelity in achieving this mission. That mission is very simple: to eradicate the criminal cartels and terrorist organizations, to deprive them of control over weapons, spaces, institutions, and territory. The human rights we are going to protect are not those of the savages who torture, rape, and murder. The human rights we will protect are those of the peaceful citizens who have an absolute right to live in physical safety and security every day of their lives. In that mission, I promise you, we will be your closest partner.
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