0:01that are showing up in the northwestern part of Mexico. Um, these IDs have a a very specific trigger setup. Uh, the a plunger from a syringe. So, these plastic plungers from a syringe. So, these bombs, uh, these mines are actually plastic. A lot of them are actually mostly made of plastic with a very small amount of metal in them.
0:20>> They're that delicate then.
0:22>> Yeah. This thing you can buy. Um, and we're like, that's a curious style.
0:26That's not something that's not something you'll see.
0:29>> We don't have ordinance laying around all over the place like Iraq or Afghanistan. So, they're utilizing mining level explosives or some homemade stuff. Um, that actually comes from Colombia.
0:41So, at some point, the Colombian FARC units and and forces hired a bunch of IRA members to >> like the IRA in Ireland.
0:50>> Yeah, the IRA in Ireland who also were supplied and trained by US people.
0:55[laughter] Um, the IRA basically trained a bunch of the Colombian art forces and the the methodologies and systems of how the great IDs and explosives are making the way north.
1:04>> It's a [ __ ] petri dish.
1:06>> It is. And it's it's an insane uh school of modern fourth generation warfare, I guess, is what you would call it. But uh Mexico is a petri dish and it is is something that is now creating um I mean people were surprised by the uh drones being utilized as weapons in the Ukraine the Ukrainian war. Like >> why were they surprised about that?
1:30>> I don't know. Like it was like a novelty thing for people like I was seeing them in Syria and in Mexico before that.
1:35>> Yeah.
1:36>> Yeah. It was like drones. Uh >> they've been around.
1:38>> Yeah. Yeah. Like uh 20 2011 I think is when I found I don't I don't I don't remember exactly again. a lot of brain injuries. Um, we found this quad drone near Sanro uh with a giant brick of meth [laughter] because they were utilizing them to like cross drugs uh into the US. This is 20.
2:01>> They're using drones to do drops basically.
2:03>> Yeah, this is and this is 2013 era. I don't remember exactly late. Um but you you the and then they landed one with a grenade.
2:15Uh they landed a drone with a grenade in the backyard of a a former government official in Baja. So this [ __ ] has been happening a while and a lot of the stuff again I mentioned all this because I I I feel in a lot of ways that Mexico is a Mexico has been utilized as a training ground or as a center of creation for a lot of the stuff you're seeing.
2:34>> It's experimentation.
2:36>> Yeah.
2:36>> That's what you're describing >> because it's it's it's a place. It's a it's a it's a wild west place. There's no authority realistically.
2:43>> Um you might go into a town where the >> local cops are working with one cartel, the state cops are working with another and the federal cops are working.
2:51>> How does that even work though? How do they organize that? Cuz one is supposed to be outranking another.
2:57>> Hey guys, if you haven't already subscribed, please hit that subscribe button. It's a huge huge help. Thank you. So if you if you go Tiju I'll use Tijuana as an example because I was there. So um in Tijuana we had the issue that the local municipal police was working with a was working with cartels but it was a weird thing because the city was like the guys in the north part of the city were working with one cartel. So this the guys in this other precinct were working with another one.
3:25So my former boss and one of my mentors uh Lieutenant Colonel Ezola, fascinating guy, um he said like, "Well, how do we deal with that?" Well, he would change where they would so the head of this this precinct would be moved to the rival cartel precinct and the head of this precinct would move to this precinct over here. So either they resigned or they were killed.
3:50So that's a way to clean up that in in in a heartbeat. But sometimes you would you you would go into places where the city was favoring one cartel, the army is favoring another.
4:02>> So like it's it's a [ __ ] show. Nothing realistically would change for a long period. either you would eliminate one of the competing cartels and have a little weird agreement with the one that survived or it it only dawned on me may years later that a lot of the stuff that I was doing was pro favoring one cartel right in a lot of ways so >> and funny enough it's the one that dominates right in the regions some of the regions that are operated in now so you it's it's it's it's this case of chopping one head off to emerging or chopping a head off and thinking that's the hole of a snake when you realize
4:44that [ __ ] snake leads all the way back to the government. Um it's a mess and there's responsibility on both sides.
4:54The thing that I want to just knock home in this interview is there's a clear line of responsibility from the US to the origin point of a lot of this a lot of these issues in Mexico. meaning it multifaceted through the potential training that's been happening through the potential utilization for espionage purposes to allow these things to grow and continue and through the uh lack of border security to allow products to be able to easily get into the United States and also through the use of the actual substances in the United States and the demand for that.
5:24>> Yeah. I mean the the most corrupt federal institution, police institution in the US is the Border Patrol >> and >> you've worked with them, right? You've trained them a little bit. I've I've trained the border patrol.
5:34>> What makes them the most corrupt?
5:35>> Convictions. I'm not saying that as a like they're the ones that have the most convictions for corruption issues because they're right on the border, right? So, I mean, somebody saying, "Hey, look that way and I'll give you 100 grand. I'll leave it in the parking lot over there just so you have to look that way so we can cross people through here."
5:51>> I mean, that's happens all the time. It sounds like >> it's not I mean, it's not an uncommon thing. Um, also the fact that high level government officials said it was a good idea to just open the border >> and have these waves of people just going across.
6:09Like somebody at a high level in the government said, "We should do this."
6:13And speaking to people from the Border Patrol that were involved in some in some of that uh time of history, I mean, they were completely like just just imagine. I mean, their >> Yeah. They had their balls cut off.
6:25>> Yeah. So where are the investigations there?
6:30>> Yeah.
6:31>> Where's the outrage there by the the American populace?
6:34>> I had our mutual friend Roco Vargas here a few months ago and obviously he was there during during I guess like the starts of this kind of stuff happening and it's they're already forget the corruption for a minute. That kind of blows my mind that they're the most convicted.
6:48>> Yeah. As far as convictions go they're the most corrupt. I mean what I mean they're not I'm not saying that as to tell you that the of the border patrol is >> because again I' I've know some of them and >> I've seen them out of their [ __ ] pocket >> pay for candy or for toothbrushes and give them to people in detention and people wanting to [ __ ] about US detention centers come down to Mexico I'll show you some of the immigration detentions down in Mexico um >> I'm not saying that they're adequate and in any ways like they're [ __ ] horrible I won't want my kid to be in any of these places uh
7:24>> it's relative relative. You're saying >> it's relative. And also, you hear you hear all these people screaming about family separation and some of the horrible conditions in some of these detention sites. But why aren't they screaming for the people all the way in the south that said, "Come, come, here's money. Here's buses to bus you all the way there. Here's some here's some cash money." um you know or or all these uh Americans coming down to Tijuana to give them money or donations in in the in these mar migrant caravan camps that they had >> and then that those guys selling the the the donations in the in the open air
8:02markets and making cash not giving to the kids who were props there >> or the NOS's that just allow the coyotes to bring people over and they know they're coyotes and help them out do their job to say nothing of the fact that these are the same people putting some of those people they're bringing over who they don't hand to the NOS's into [ __ ] indentured servitude. I mean, it's it's crazy.
8:23>> It's crazy. And the the again, I'm trying to bring home the level of corruption on both sides of the border.
8:29>> Oh, yeah.
8:30>> It's wild. [sighs] >> It's wild. And as somebody that's experienced it, I get we every time I say a cop in Mexico, I'm a corrupt guy.
8:40All the cops in Mexico are corrupt.
8:42Yeah. Yeah. Okay. I get it. You know, like I [ __ ] live like a [ __ ] homeless person. And I don't know where I did I did with all the [ __ ] millions that the cartels gave me, but whatever. Um, >> yeah, now you're [ __ ] them and and reporting on them. [laughter] >> I I'm just I'm just speaking about my experience with them. And again, like I don't [snorts] people that know me and people that have kind of seen my process like uh like I'm friends with some of the people that I went after in the past because I know how [ __ ] feudile and just stupid a lot of the conflict was.
9:13>> Wait, wait, wait. You're friends with some of the cartel guys you went after?
9:16>> I'm I'm friends with some of the criminals that I went after. Yeah. Like >> today, are they still criminals?
9:20>> No. Like one of them is an actor.
9:23One of them is uh one of them is a rapper, Ko. Uh I I I uh my group arrested him on murder charges uh while he was hiding in Tijuana. And we're friends now.
9:33>> So I guess he didn't get convicted.
9:34>> He got off. Um >> did he do it?
9:37>> I don't know. I don't I don't think he [laughter] did. He seems like a nice guy.
9:42Um um I don't I I don't think he did.
9:46>> But you're friends with him now. He left the life. What's his perspective now?
9:49>> Like it's like uh I remember when we got him. Um I I' I've always tried to like I'm my mom raised me Catholic like with a ruler >> like the nuns.
10:07That's that that's from that's from doing the sign of the cross with my left hand of Catholic school.
10:13>> Nice.
10:14>> So, um I I I I I don't like dehumanizing anybody even if they are criminals or like they were like a perceived enemy.
10:24Um you you would have this programming that we talked about how to how people get brainwashed. I was brainwashed in a lot of ways by this >> um training that I went through and the group that I was in. You know, they brainwash you into thinking that you're, you know, I don't know, indestructible or that you you're right, righteous in what you're doing and that the people that are in charge of you know what you're doing and you shouldn't question orders and all this yet.
10:51>> For people out there who aren't familiar with your story, what group are you talking about?
10:55>> Uh Baja State Police. Uh back then there was an operations group that was kind of the initial start to that experiment. It was a weird inst institution at the start.
11:04>> How did they get to you? Did you want to join them or did they find you?
11:07>> Uh this is post 911. Uh the economy was in the toilet. I was uh I was on my second year of medical school and I just couldn't afford it anymore.
11:17>> M. So you had wanted to be a doctor.
11:19>> Yeah.
11:19>> Was that a lifelong dream?
11:21>> Yeah.
11:22>> What kind of doctor did you want to be?
11:23>> A general practitioner. I just want to be like a community doctor somewhere.
11:27Like my mom was a nurse so that's where I got that from.
11:29>> That's interesting. So you there's something in you that wanted to help people. Yeah. At a basic level.
11:33>> Yeah. And they use that.
11:37>> They use that. Um at some point in my career I realized that a lot of the people that I was being told were my enemies were I had a lot in common with them. Um because >> they were plucked too.
11:52>> Yeah. And it's it's also like a it's not like going like every now and then I talk to my u veteran friends here in the US. It's not the same.
12:02It's not the same. Um I spoke the same language as some of these kids. Um [snorts] I could recognize the breakfast that they had that morning by the smell.
12:13Some of them were shot in the stomach.
12:15>> Oh.
12:15>> So I could recognize what they had for dinner for breakfast. Like they had what was going. And that [ __ ] just gets in your mind. It just like, holy [ __ ] this is a human being. This could have been me and there's this weird there's it's it's a different war. It's a different war. Um, >> do you compartmentalize that?
12:34>> I'll tell you I'll tell you a story. Um, and this I've I've talked about this a few times, but never on a I don't think I've I've talked about this on a podcast. Um, there was I grew up with this red-headed kid.
12:48Um, it's like uh Canelo, you know, the boxer >> for some reason. We have a lot of redheads down there.
12:53>> The Irish, >> the Irish that betrayed the US and went to join us. The French, too. There was a bunch of French, but anyway. Um, we'd skateboarded together. Um, and we were, again, we grew up on the border, so we were very Americanized. This kid skateboarded with me. Um, cool kid. Used to do a very high alley. I was his whole thing. Um beautiful parents, their dad and mom still married. Um uh sister um great kid, strong um Catholic.
13:25It was at a cross on him. We'd make we would give him [ __ ] about that.
13:29[snorts] >> Um I didn't see him from 16. He disappeared from my life. He just, you know, we went separate ways. and all of a sudden I find him again in uh outside of a gas station.
13:44Um I'm working. I have a Glock stuffed down my pants.
13:51Uh I have a Nexel radio in my back pocket and I'm pretending to not be involved with anything. Walking past this gas station where there was a bunch of armed people parked.
14:05um Suburbans, uh Taho and [ __ ] like that. Everybody's wearing plate armor, AKs, not police issue, [laughter] just a bunch of uh random uh ARs and stuff like that. And I was sent there to walk by to walk through and to just just see what was going on.
14:27Um, somebody among the crowd that was there armed whistles to me and says my name and my [ __ ] stomach drops to my balls. It's him. Like I turn to him and I can see his freckly [ __ ] nose and red hair peeking out of a little [ __ ] hat that he had on sideways. Uh he's wearing uh this chess rig with AK AK-47 magazines on there. He comes over and gives me a big hug. Sticks some of these [ __ ] things in my you know like what are you doing? Like a man I'm just you know >> just passing through.
15:06>> Just passing [laughter] [ __ ] you know. I just I give him some [ __ ] story about me looking for a job and just not knowing what to [ __ ] do and [ __ ] like that and he you know he smiles and kind of like he knows I'm full of [ __ ] How many years have passed since he was 16 and you didn't see him again?
15:22>> I was 23 back now that at that time um >> Wow.
15:26>> He uh you know we we exchange pleasantries. We ask we ask each other about each other's parents and [ __ ] like that.
15:34Um before he goes he says, "I know what you do for a living. You should probably leave here. It's pretty dangerous for you." And I said, "Thank you." You know, so I walk off. I didn't have my my my my next cell was going off the [ __ ] vibrating.
15:52Uh the army showed up as soon as I got back to where I I came from. The army showed up and got into a firefight with all of them. Um you could hear it from blocks away. The roar of these G3 rifles and AK just [ __ ] going.
16:10[ __ ] kip. Grab Grab my plate. Put it on. Grab all my [ __ ] Everybody's [ __ ] rolling rolled out roll to where this was happening. Well, by by the time we got there, it was over. It was a few minutes. Um, I spent probably like 40 to 40 minutes to an hour looking for him. I couldn't find him. Like I was trying to pretend that I was like securing the area and [ __ ] like that, but I was like look I was looking for my friend. Uh, he was he was under a car. He tried to escape under a car.
16:46Um, the only way I recognized him was his hair because his face was gone.
16:53[snorts] How can you How can I dehumanize him or like the enemy?
16:59>> Um, I stayed I I stayed with him in his body until late into the night. Um, and I um I I received his parents so they can recognize him.
17:17Um, [snorts] it's a it's it's a different war down there. It's not it's not it's not overseas. It's not an enemy that you can't recognize. These are kids.
17:33These are [ __ ] kids shooting at each other for what?
17:37>> Allegiance to a cartel to supply the US with a substance. Uh because they are they are living in a country that is rife with corruption and that has people in power that don't give a [ __ ] about its citizenship.
17:54uh and allow young people like myself at that time to be drug dragged into this war. I mean, are the people that trained me to do what I had to do in that time any different than the people that went and trained them to do what they had to do for these cartels at one time? What's the difference there?
18:17>> [snorts] >> Um, that's just one that's just one kid that was eaten by this. This kid had a lot of potential.
18:27He's like athlete kid, but just there's no opportunities.
18:32Um, >> now you now he disappeared from your life when when you were 16 and you don't know exactly what happened, but you could probably guess, correct me if I'm wrong, >> he was recruited, >> right? Someone came and tapped him on the shoulder. 16-year-old kid say you come with us now. So here here's why I say that.
18:50What choice does that kid have?
18:52>> Zero.
18:54Not a lot. Um but what choice did I have? You know, it was either going and going to where this [ __ ] newspaper told me that I was going to be a part of something special or to finally cave in to some of my friends who were driving loads across loads across the Santoro border into San Diego >> saying, "Hey, Ed, it's easy money. All you have to do is just drive this car and leave it in this parking lot over here."
19:21>> And those are your friends.
19:22>> And those are my friends.
19:23>> Those are your friends. Now, imagine if the wrong guy came to the skate park though when you were 16. Not your friend.
19:28>> Yeah. older guy.
19:29>> Yeah.
19:30>> You wouldn't be here right now. Be down there doing this [ __ ] >> Probably not. But like the the the like I I want Americans to like realize there is no safety net. There is no unemployment check. There is no social security in Mexico. There is no outreach program. There is there is no uh say no to drugs kids. And if there is, it's a joke, you know. Um it is survive. Mhm.
19:56>> It is figuring out how to get what you need and then leave everything leave every everybody else to the side, you know, me first.
20:05>> And the level of just dehumanization that has and normalization that has happened. Um, again, Americans are just learning about this Awitz in Hilisco and like that's the way they call it because they have no other way of calling it because all the shoes and all the people that were burned. So Ashwitz is what they come up with. Uh this has been happening for decades down there. During the first parts of the Ukrainian conflict, Mexico had performed that war with bodies. Like there were more there were more bodies in Mexico in the first three days of the Ukrainian war than >> in Mexico than there were in the
20:45Ukrainian conflict.
20:47>> Um and somehow there's no war going on down there. Um, you have a federal government in the in Mexico stating that the US should do this, should do that, and all this rhetoric about uh this not that they're do that Mexico's sovereignty and all this. Uh, meanwhile, uh, there's, you know, a European cartel head guy in Mexico City got assassinated because he was a direct link between those Mayos and their their influences in Europe.
21:18Um, you're seeing u Chinese uh manufactured and produced uh precursors and chemicals coming into Mexico through its ports which are military manned and nothing is happening. Uh you get a lot of people assassinated that uh work those ports from the military but nobody's asking questions like hey how is all this [ __ ] getting into the country? Um, you have now a US utilizing that as a threatening device to Mexico and and those tariffs are not going to affect anybody but us. The government, they're going to be fine. Um, those tariffs are going to affect the small companies that sell, do, and move
22:00things. Uh, that's who's going to be affected, the small people. Cartels aren't going to give a [ __ ] about those tariffs. Um, and again, these organizations were created and fostered by the same governments that are now going after them. That's I think that's the that's a reality that I don't think gets talked about. And again, maybe Trump wasn't responsible directly for the the origin of the Zeta cartel or the origin of the Cena law cartel.
22:27>> Uh, but he's he's there now and he's pointing the finger at them as a terrorist organization.
22:33Um ju and just like we pointed the finger at al Qaeda at some point and figured out that oh we created al Qaeda.
22:41>> Yeah.
22:42>> Uh or just how we pointed the finger at some of the stuff that was going on in Syria and now we're coming to learn that a lot of these um freedom fighters that were in Syria fighting were actually former al Qaeda people that are now being paid and trained by the US government to do all all this [ __ ] is coming out now.
23:00I c I can't I can't wait to see what other type of involvement and stuff comes out from the Mexico side of things.
23:09>> From the Mexico side of things.
23:10>> Yeah. The war that is going on and has been going on in Mexico and the US's direct involvement in aspects of it.
23:18Again, Fast and the Furious is just tip of an iceberg, I think, of the US basically arming a single cartel force in Mexico. The zetas are trained by US special operations and they're also school of the America graduates. Some of them I I've heard. So there's a responsibility there. Former presidents of Mexico being CIA u bankrolled people.
23:44There's definitely some sort of interaction there. uh some major um government officials being touted as incorruptible and being showered with uh awards and accolades by federal officials in the US are now in federal custody on cartel charges.
24:01>> Mhm.
24:03And >> it's hard not to get cynical. And we have Elmo Sambala, the historical figurehead head of the Cena law cartel, issuing a statement of warning to the Mexican federal government that if he doesn't get released and tried for his crimes in Mexico, it's going to destabilize the region.
24:22And while that's happening, a bunch of pictures of both the president of Mexico and a lot of his top officials.
24:29>> Mhm.
24:31like this with all of of of SBA's lawyers and uh direct representatives.
24:39The rat's nest is large and crosses the border. How would if all if in a perfect world you waved a wand and all of it came out, how would there not be a massive explosion into itself in Mexico for the entire system? Meaning all the rats would be running off the ship and they'd be killing everyone while they run off the ship. And I'm not just talking cartels. I'm talking the people in the government. I'm talking the military. I'm talking if it all came out like the system's bad right now.
25:15It's violent. There's death happening every day, right? But I'm just making round numbers to make this simple. If there's 10,000 deaths happening in the country right now, which is objectively horrible a day, you know, who's to say that if that if you pulled the rug out from this thing, there wouldn't be a period of two years where it's just a war torn country where 200,000 people are dying a day.
25:37>> I I think >> you know what I'm saying?
25:39>> Yeah. Well, again, I I I I keep looking at the government's rhetoric right now of invasion and military operations still being on the that's still an option. So, I think the US itself and and people in charge right now are planning for something like that. I think >> to invade >> um to cause a change in Mexico that is very dramatic.
26:05>> Okay, let's go let's go to this now.
26:07I've been waiting to go to this throughout this whole conversation.
26:09You've mentioned it several times.
26:11>> We did just >> declare them a terrorist organization.
26:15>> Yeah. There there was there is now on the books a clear designation of that these organizations are terrorist organizations, cartels, >> which is and they and they issued a list of all the cartels that that uh are included in this designation.
26:31>> Were there any left off that you were surprised?
26:33>> Uh not really. Um, I think most I was surprised that a lot of the names that are on that list or or the organizations that are on that list have a clear representation in the US. I mean, they're clearly here in the US.
26:48>> But that it's it's somehow this designation just it's it's >> what makes it weird cuz it's like if you're going to designate the or I've heard people talk about this. I was talking with Matt Hedger about this.
26:58It's like if you're going to designate them terrorists over there, it would be so obvious like if we had known that there's al-Qaeda cells here, like they go to take them down. So why are they taking them down?
27:08>> Let's let's say that you found out this this post 911 world.
27:13>> Yeah.
27:14>> And we find out and again I'm just going to be example, you know, that Taylor Swift has been laundering money for al Qaeda, right? Let's let's this is a this is a fictional story.
27:26>> We find out to get that on the record.
27:28It's fictional story. We We figure out that Taylor Swift is laundering money for Alcada.
27:34>> What should happen to Taylor Swift?
27:37>> Somebody's going to be >> again, it's a fictional story, but she's she's going to get a knock at the door probably and there's going to be some hate. Okay, so we we currently have >> a Mexican popular singer >> by the name of Pesluma >> who is clearly and like this he's he sings about it. This guy sings about his relation Bess pluma.
27:59>> He sings about it.
28:01>> He sings about it in his songs and it it's clear as day that he has some sort of >> that he has some sort of tie.
28:08>> This guy does. He's in the US.
28:10>> Yeah, he's in the US. He's then and >> No, he's on the cover of Rolling Stone.
28:14>> Yeah.
28:14>> Nice. Um, now this designation puts one of the organizations that basically fostered his rise is on that terrorist designation list.
28:29>> How do we know they foster his rise?
28:31>> Because he sings about it.
28:33>> I mean, I if people are like, "Hey, Ed, come on. He's he sings about it."
28:40>> Now, devil's advocate here. There's rappers who sing about doing [ __ ] they didn't do.
28:45>> But this is if if if I if I am saying something that isn't true, we'll hear about it, I guess. But >> there's there's a clear line there. So I'm I'm asking if this is a serious attempt by the United States to actually go after these organizations, >> why aren't we hearing anything on this side about, you know, tequila companies that are funded by them?
29:15>> Funded by political figures in the US.
29:17They have to have somebody in politics out here. Um >> Oh, yeah. We just saw the arrest of Elmo uh not Mayo um [sighs and gasps] Neio Sea Cvantes, the head of the uh New Generation cartel who may or may not be dead because nobody knows. Um >> but he was arrested and now he may or may not be dead.
29:36>> His son-in-law faked his death in Mexico.
29:40>> Okay.
29:41>> And miraculously resurrected himself and was arrested in Riverside, California.
29:47>> Oh.
29:49So what are we doing realistically with this designation? Is this an attempt by the United States to actually eliminate the cartel problem uh and this fentinel epidemic which the United States created by the way? This [clears throat] >> why why do you say we created it?
30:08>> Uh because the you prescribe fentinyl in the US for a long period of time to people and then >> talking about like the Sacklers >> the opiate epidemic and all that America. though. And then when they realized that a lot of the orchards that were being populated with marijuana marijuana grows were no longer necessary because you guys are growing weed up here, >> we cut that off and now we put uh heroin in there and then we mix it with fentinel to make it give it a kick. So there's some sort of involvement from China. There's some sort of involvement from the US.
30:40>> Yeah, we'll come back to China. Yeah, >> we'll talk about that in a bit. But so like what's going like what's going on?
30:46Is this an attempt by the US to actually get things in control as far as drug and cartels? Or is this an attempt by the US to control its biggest trade partner?
30:57Is is this an attempt by the US to create an industrial plan in Mexico?
31:00Because Mexico is probably the next China. It's on its way to be the next China. China is lagging behind economically. China is getting a drop off. We don't hear a lot about people immigrating to China. I think China's probably going to gonna going to go out of I think >> I don't hear about a lot of people immigrating to Mexico though too in all fairness.
31:20>> Well, there's a bunch of Venezuelans and Haitians right now cla trying to seek asylum in Mexico. So, we need to >> and then they're probably trying to find their way here >> because they were trying to find their way here. Now the border is closed. So, now they're trying to stay in in Mexico.
31:31There is like there's >> but meaning it's not it's not like good talent like there aren't engineers for to your example going from here to China.
31:40>> I I want to correct you.
31:41>> Okay. Please. That's why you're here.
31:43>> There are a [ __ ] ton of immigrants in Mexico right now from a very impoverished country. I want you to try and guess which country this is.
31:53>> It's not someone in South America.
31:55>> It's the United States.
31:57>> What?
31:58>> 90% of all new housing in Tijuana, for example, is being bought off bought bought off by Americans who can't afford to live in San Diego.
32:05>> Okay. But that's also right on the border. But there's a bunch of communities elsewhere like Dulum is ruined by all the Americans living down there.
32:14>> Just went there. [laughter] >> Mexico, Mexico City has open [snorts] revolt against all the Americans who are living down there who are all, if we're honest about it, economic migrants. So yeah, Mexico fosters a [ __ ] ton of migrants.
32:30>> So I just wanted to get that >> shoes on the other foot now.
32:32>> I just want to get that clear. Um what I think the US is trying to fix think what I think the US is trying to do long term is that I think the the US sees in Mexico the potential that it has to be a economic superpower. I think it has a potential I think one Mexican worker equal three or four Chinese workers as far as uh productivity.
32:54>> One Mexican is better than three or four Chinese.
32:56>> Yeah.
32:56>> Chinese got to get it together. Um, and there, you know, the US, the first time Trump came into power, he had this whole, you know, bring bring manufacturing back to the US, you know, >> which was stupid in a lot of ways.
33:13>> Wow.
33:14>> We did that in Mexico. And one of the one of speaking purely as a like strategist I guess um the the trade agreement he came up he came up with with Mexico the renegotiated trade agreement was brilliant for the US not for Mexico for the US. So that was a pretty strong deal for him.
33:34>> Great deal.
33:35>> Great deal. Like he he [ __ ] yeah he hit it on the park with that again from the US perspective not Mexico. Um but uh he told a bunch of companies in Mexico to leave Mexico and come back and manufacture in the in the United States.
33:51China took full advantage of this.
33:53>> Yeah.
33:54>> I mean it uh it was viewed as a punishment to Mexico but then we saw a giant in like influx of Chinese investment.
34:04Um during the Biden administration the peso was one of the strongest currencies in the planet. like it it uh it didn't fluctuate and it was because of all this foreign investment coming into Mexico fostered by that first Trump administration.
34:17So I think what Trump figured out and started seeing or some of the people around him started seeing is that a lot of these Chinese companies, manufacturing companies to try and get around tariffs started saying, "Hey, we're going to build the first Mexican electric car."
34:35But all the parts of that Mexican electric car are made in China. most of them.
34:40>> So that's a way to get around the tariffs.
34:42>> So in a lot of ways I think he realized that the Chinese were trying to get around a lot of this to by >> figuring out a control andor a good solid footprint as far as investment in collaboration with the Mexican government and basically cutting the US off. So, >> so I think a lot of the a lot of what we're seeing now as far as terrorist designation of cartels, tariffs being pressured against Mexico, >> the Mexican political block being at odds with the American political block as far as who's in charge. I mean, Trump represents some interest and claim represents clearly other different interests.
35:18>> What do you mean by that specifically?
35:20>> Uh, I mean, Claude Shaom is all the way to the left, >> right? is open chavista, open the supporter of Venezuela. So that's that's her.
35:30>> And on the Trump side, we have like completely the opposite of that.
35:35Yeah. So I think there's there that's >> it's literally just a political divide.
35:38You're saying >> that's a political divide. And also the US is realizing that Mexico is much more valuable than it wants to admit.
35:45>> And I think control is a big aspect of this. We're hearing a lot of expansionist talk about in the US about buying >> Yeah, we're going to buy Canada apparently. Uh, and I don't think you're going to buy Mexico, but I think you are going to and are exerting your control over it. And I think one of the first things you do as an opposing force to control the place is to cause [ __ ] and start [ __ ] in the area, >> destabilize it.
36:08>> So the main claim that the federal government has against the United States for the arrest, the illegal arrest of Elmo Sambaba is that it destabilized law. And it did. I mean, it started a [ __ ] war there.
36:23Um, so there is there's definitely some sort of highlevel game being played >> and Mexico is at the center of it.
36:33>> China is involved in it as well.
36:36Um, if you want to think about some of the conflicts that have been going on in Mexico, um, you have the new generation cartel who controls ports in and out of Mexico in a lot of ways, including one big one in in in Kol Lima.
36:52Um, who were not affected by the COVID lockdowns when that they happened as far as their supply of fentinel, for example.
37:02So, who's moving fentinel into Mexico even during the shutdowns? New generation cartel.
37:10>> So, are they being fostered or supported by some sort of entities in China that are keeping these shipments coming?
37:16>> Yeah, >> who knows? No, maybe it's the triads or like criminal organizations in China.
37:21Nothing happens in China without like >> That's right.
37:23>> the Chinese have the biggest intelligence oper operation on the planet because everybody who is Chinese is a part of this operation. So there's something going on there. Um on the Senoloa side of the cartel when the CO thing was happening they were smuggling fentinel from the US into Mexico to infuse their product and then ship it back. Like they caught a guy in I think in San Fedro with a [ __ ] ton of fentinel back then. So you start seeing these weird [ __ ] influences and games and you start realizing that there's a proxy war of a sort in Mexico going on. and Mexico is very much being utilized as a
38:03proxy war type setting.
38:05>> Yeah. Well, they're the middleman of it and the wars happening on multiple lens, not the least of which is also in America where the downstream effects of this are killing people. And to be fair, I'm glad you brought it up earlier like the market was also created by people here.
38:23>> Yeah.
38:23>> Through the opioid epidemic and the disgusting nature of what the Sacklers and Purdue Pharma did to this country, which you know, I try to like take the tinfoil hat off sometimes and and just be like, all right, you know, there's just evil people. But it is hard to look at a story like that and say there is not something coordinated there.
38:45>> They were allowed to operate with total impunity and then they were able to make a deal where none of them are are in prison.
38:52>> It's wild. It's wild. Um, you know, who who who are their lobbyist? you know, what are they doing? Like, why why can't we look at that aspect of it?
39:03>> Um, the legalization of marijuana in the United States was was was was said to like bring it's it's going to put a dent in cartel finances was something you would hear a lot. [snorts] Cartels came to the US and started [ __ ] growing that we illegally in federal lands and mixing in it with the legal stuff. cartels started putting their money into moneyaundering operations in places like Colorado because [ __ ] it's cash only [ __ ] institution.
39:30>> So it didn't do [ __ ] It actually made it grow and it gave them another angle >> and it's also their lowest as far as like poundage that they can move and profit that they can make. It's at the bottom of their total >> pole and and that was at the start of legalization. Now you have Chinese gangs, which we don't hear a lot a lot about, doing some of the same operations and going into the illegal weed business being grown and then sold through other legal man.
39:56>> Yeah, Jorge talked a lot about that.
39:58>> So the Chinese Chinese uh gangs and and organizations and again we can't talk about Chinese criminal organizations that are kind of independent from the government. I don't. All of them have some sort of [ __ ] deal. So >> if we really look at it closely, it's not Chinese based gangs. It's [ __ ] >> Yeah. What we deem as criminal gangs though are effectively spies. They don't The same way that like you'll hear, you know, any spy you talk to in the United States government when they go on these podcasts, they'll say your job was to be a criminal on behalf of the United States somewhere else. I'll bet they
40:33were considered gangsters in some of the things they did in certain places. So, what's the difference here?
40:38>> Uh, there's a video of a line of Chinese nationals at the Mexico border >> in Tijuana.
40:44>> In Tijuana, >> I want you to if if you can find that u video.
40:48>> Um, I recognize a military haircut when I see one. And I recognize people not moving their right arm when they're moving around. Um, so like look at the luggage.
41:01>> Um, look at the clothing. I mean, they're they're not the poor and impoverished people. They're taking full advantage of a stupid government policy.
41:10>> Absolutely.
41:11>> To like, come on. Look at that.
41:14>> Yeah.
41:14>> Um I look the hands behind the back is, you know, very Asian, I guess. But there's videos of them walking around.
41:21[laughter] >> The the videos walking of them walking around. You you have a you have people basically walking around without moving their right hand, >> like a Secret Service kind of type deal.
41:32I mean, Putin walks around without moving his right hand because he's trapped. Putin is always trapped.
41:37>> Yeah.
41:37>> Uh I don't I'm not saying that these guys are trapped, but these some of these people that went across that border, if you could look at that, just that little element, I mean, these are people that have weapons training, >> of course.
41:47>> And these guys were welcomed. They were welcomed and they had uh orders issued in in in their native language as far as like, hey, this is how you have to go here. Oh, it's it's it's even So, we had Nick Shirley in here for episode 214 last summer. He he got a hold of those and he had it translated and we read it on that podcast. It is down to the to the smallest detail starting with where they start all the way to some random little court in Bumble [ __ ] town in the middle of the United States and people out there are trying to imagine every single thing between there. Yeah. It's all covered. Yeah. Every single And it's
42:25And it's easy. It's it's like there I I've used this a lot in other contexts talking about this before how foreign nations in the ideological warfare and stuff will use our democracy against ourselves. Another example with China would be Tik Tok. I don't like communism at all. Right? But one very useful thing that they can do with that totalitarian power is their kids have their Tik Tok turn off at 9:00 at night and they're watching nature videos and science videos. Our kids have it on 24/7 and they're watching titty videos. Same thing here. They're using our immigration system, which is obviously
43:00extremely broken and you've experienced that up close against us to be able to get people all the way through these nooks and crannies down the line to the legal process. Like have them use the legal process to once they're in the system and they're just allowed to stay here while that's going on now, they can go disappear.
43:16>> Yeah. And we're not even talking about uh real estate which they are definitely invested in and like go to places like LA and around there.
43:26>> Go to New York, look at these buildings.
43:27>> Yeah. So um and you know Tik Tok in Mexico is is a whole other thing. It's an interesting thing. That's one of the things that I don't get from the Trump administration why there was an effort to save Tik Tok. Tik Tok is not the friend of anybody as far as the um in Mexico. If you if you want to cross that the the US Mexico border, you go on Tik Tok. That's where that's where the classifides are.
43:51>> The classifides >> like, "Hey, who who who is the best uh smuggler to cross me at the border?" You go on Tik Tok to look them up. There's a bunch of videos on Tik Tok of successful smugglers basically showing off that they just have PE they just crossed somebody AC across the border and they're all over Tik Tok [laughter] and that somehow we need to save that, you know. Um, social media is what it is and I get it. Freedom of information. I'm I'm an anarchist by hard, man. I grew up punk rock. I get it. I get it. But some of these things are clearly and obviously being utilized to manipulate and just do bad [ __ ] to to people.
44:26>> Um, China is definitely an enemy.
44:30Mexico has definitely been infiltrated and used in a lot of ways by Chinese state operatives and a Chinese state to go after US interest or just being antagonistical to US interest in the past. Um, >> and they're running a reverse opium war, too.
44:46>> There you go. Which is pretty poetic if you kind of think about it.
44:49>> Oh, it's very poetic.
44:50>> It's very poetic. Um, I think one thing one thing that I've also kind of seen and you see that with the New Generation Cartel, there's a there's a video and pictures of the New Generation Cartel.
45:01They're then they're they're uh they're all kitted out in black and they have signal jammers on their shoulders.
45:08>> Signal jammers.
45:08>> Yeah. It's multi- multi-frequency signal jammers. Um um they have multiple antennas on them. Um so when when you see these videos, those things are meant to cut uh signals, cell phone signals, radio signals, uh any sort of signals coming out of an environment. Um and all of those are like when I saw those, those are like teu, you know, those are Chinese >> bootleg manufactured pieces of [ __ ] And the uniforms are all Chinese manufactured copies of US tactical [ __ ] Their their nylon gear is all so you you could you could see that there's a supply line of some sort from China to to Mexico that is supplying that cartel.
45:55Um I don't think they're dumb enough to send anything like a remote guided missile or anything like that. Although a lot of the stuff that was sold to the Ukrainians apparently and this I haven't seen any of it directly myself, but I'm I've heard rumblings in federal government in in in Mexico about some of those radiog guided missiles that were given to the Ukrainians to defend themselves against the Russians showing up in Mexico.
46:22>> Oh [ __ ] they made their way back here.
46:25Uh, a lot of the stuff that the US left behind in Afghanistan, including some high level vision, not optical, night vision stuff and stuff like that, is also ending up in Mexico. I mean, so yeah, it's a [ __ ] it's a [ __ ] show and there's responsibilities are everywhere.
46:43It's mistaken as Americans to view this as a Mexico versus US problem. There's high level politics going on. There's proxy war [ __ ] going on.
46:53>> Mhm. [clears throat] There is a responsibility that the United States has with some of the issues going on in Mexico that goes back a while.
47:01>> Yeah. Decades and decades and decades.
47:03>> Um, and there is a giant responsibility that the Mexican government and the Mexican people have themselves.
47:09Undoubted. I'm not here to uh play that say that Mexico is a victim of all this and and the US is the big bad. Both sides are [ __ ] have their hands bloody. Um, I'd say just is if you're viewing this objectively and you're looking at this problem and you have a MAGA hat on or you have a rainbow hat on or you have whatever hat you have on, you know, uh, division is part of this issue and it's been utilized for years. Um, us versus them.
47:40>> Yes. Um, but at the and the at the end of the day, um, you know, Trump's not going to show up to the se the to the cemetery to bury this, uh, 13, 14y old kid, um, who was experimenting with drugs and now he's in a grave somewhere.
47:55Um, Claom is not going to, you know, show up to one of these migrant caravan camps in Mexico to talk to some of the girls and ask them like, "Hey, how many times have you ever been raped on your way up here?" because that would be anti-immigration rhetoric and she's not going to be able she's not going to be able to say anything like that because we're supposed to be welcoming and and just fostering like oh people just want to move freely so we need to so there there's there's there's a dark effort on both sides of this border to keep some [ __ ] under wraps.
48:32Uh I think we're living in a day and age where truth is [snorts] whatever you want to make it I guess.
48:38Yeah.
48:39>> Um, you're >> right about that.
48:40>> But there are things that are coming into light now that have been festering at least that I knew about and I was talking about 5 years back >> from >> more than that.
48:50>> From mass rapes >> to government corruption and and and and participation in a lot of these things to the military being part of the the problem. 5 years ago, I was asked this question like, "Hey, if you could do something, what would you do like a magic wand thing?" like I I and I said well I really it's beyond my pay grade but I did say whatever effort is going to be done to stabilize Mexico from as from the perspective of America can't involve the federal government because they're part of the issue. I was laughed at.
49:26>> So how do you go around that? You shouldn't be laughed at for that. I fully understand why you say that.
49:30>> Yeah. But back then I was ridiculed for it um >> by people who have no idea what they're talking about. So, how do you go around that?
49:37>> Um, I think, and I think this is where the US is headed.
49:45>> I think they're going to make an example out of one or two former heads of state in Mexico.
49:51>> Make an example out of them.
49:52>> How many times have you ever heard of a Mexican president being arrested on cartel and corruption charges?
49:58How can you cause an immediate change from the top down?
50:02You chop the head off a king. So you think like I'm painting a hypothetical they'll have Claudia Shinbal arrested?
50:09>> I don't think they're going to have Claudia Shaman arrested. I don't think they're going to have anybody arrested in in office now. But they are going to look at somebody from the past administrations >> like Vicente Fox or something.
50:19>> Vicente is dirty. Um Calderon had a very dirty person in charge of national safety in his in his in his cabinet.
50:27>> Luna.
50:28>> Luna. And again, I don't know, but how can all this [ __ ] happen without anybody knowing about it?
50:35>> It can't. It can't.
50:37>> So, you have all the you have a line of presidents and you have uh Amllo there as well. And again, I'm going to have a lot of people on the left side of the political spectrum in Mexico saying, "What do you mean Amllo? Amllo's clean.
50:48He's >> he was the guy before, right?
50:49>> He was the guy before before Claudia, right?
50:52>> He was the one hugs not bullets.
50:54>> He was hugs not bullets." and he has >> which was probably invented by the [ __ ] cartel guys laughing in some room with him somewhere.
51:00>> But he repres but he represents more than half of Mexico because more than half of Mexico voted for him to be in power and there's a lot of people who are very passionate about him as a figure of change and a figure that transformed Mexico and somebody that's going after all these corrupt officials and all that. But we can't lose sight of the fact that most of the people that are in that party used to belong to all these parties that he's saying that were corrupt, but they're not. Uh we have to realize that his abasalos pause in this efforts against these criminal organizations made [ __ ] worse.
51:34>> Yes.
51:35>> Made the problem grow.
51:36>> Couldn't have predicted that.
51:38>> Um this this uh this Awitz that was found was probably active during his administration.
51:43>> Yeah. Whereas who is he going to blame about he's going to blame like his whole thing was blaming Calderon about everything like Calderon kicked off this drug war. He was stupid like he should be in jail in prison. He did everything like exactly the same on his in his administration.
52:00He militarized the drug war. He militarized uh the federal police. He >> militarized the drug war. The same guy who's saying hugs not bullets. How does that work?
52:09>> Um he made a federal So there was a federal police unit in all Mexico.
52:14was civilian unit. Uh and the first thing he says, well, we're going to get rid of all the military and we're going to soldiers going to go back to their cart to their uh their bases and no more militarized persecution of the cartels.
52:28And the first thing he does is makes the gu national, which is a national federal police that is part of the military.
52:36>> People need to realize this. Mexico is has two people in charge. The military as a whole is one person and the president of Mexico. Those are the people who are in charge of all Mexico.
52:48The military number one and the president number two.
52:51>> Are they separate?
52:52>> They're separate. And if if people are want to know how much power the Mexican military has in Mexico, you had a figure by the name of General Sin Fuego. If you can pull him up. [snorts] General Sin Fuego was active uh was was active during the >> Sabador Sin Fuego.
53:12>> Yeah.
53:12>> Okay.
53:13>> Um he was basically heading up all military operations against cartels during the uh Enrietto administration.
53:19>> Okay.
53:21>> And uh the United States uh Justice Department figured out that he was actually talking to um high level cartel people over the phone and coordinating things.
53:32>> How did they figure that out? They tapped his phone. somebody somebody somewhere like I I'm not I haven't had access to what they had. Um but he he like he left that job and he went to Disneyland with his family I think or something like that and he got picked up by the DA at the airport. They were going to charge him um they were going to throw the book at him um make an example out of him. Uh and then the state department issued a letter to the justice department saying that for reasons of international security and and relationship, we need to send this individual back with all the evidence so
54:10he gets tried in his own country, Mexico.
54:13Uh so let him go. So all charges were not dropped, but he was basically put into the custody of Mexico. Mexico said, "Yeah, we'll try him." This is Andres Manel Lopez of Yeah, we'll we'll try him. He landed in handcuffs. Those get taken off, put him in a car, and he gets a military escort to his house and that's it. [snorts] >> Never charged.
54:35>> Nope.
54:36>> Hey guys, if you haven't already subscribed, please hit that subscribe button. It's a huge huge help. Thank you.
54:41>> Um, so that that's that's that's so if this is so if the basically the Mexican army pressured the US government to let one of their own go, that's what happened. That's there's no ifs and and they use the presidency of Mexico to like, hey, get him out or or we're going to be sad about this, I guess.
55:02>> I wonder what chits they had to call home on that one.
55:05>> I mean, [snorts] so if people want to look at the whole of this issue, the army is involved, the presidency is involved, state, local government is involved, the US is involved. Like everybody, everybody has a hand in this. Um, it's not an issue of us versus them. And again, I keep saying this is a regional issue.
55:30This is not like a Mexico issue or a US issue. This is a regional issue. And the reason I say that is because we are economically tied to the hip.
55:39>> Yeah.
55:39>> We're just And also our families are like intertwined.
55:44It's like absurd. Americans live down in in in in in Mexico. [ __ ] ton of them.
55:49>> And how many of them live in America now? like we don't even know the number.
55:53>> We don't even know the number, but there's like a ridiculous number of Mexicans living out here. Um, >> most representative >> uh if if if if uh and again, illegal immigration, and I'm I'm I'm I may be called out for saying this, but illegal immigration in the United States is essential for the economy. It is essential.
56:13There there have been places where uh laws have been passed so that people can't [ __ ] show up to a grow and and and and do la pisca, you know, work on a field and the economies crashed there locally. So the laws were changed immediately.
56:26Illegal immigration in the United States is essential.
56:29>> But if if they're trying to stop it though, >> I'm that's that's what I'm saying that because I don't think they are really.
56:37>> You don't think they you seen this [ __ ] Tom Hman guy?
56:42I' I've seen them. I've seen some of those uh some of those uh raids and all that. Um I've seen some people being deported that had absolutely [ __ ] nothing criminal about them except their the way they crossed into the United States who have been working quietly for 20 years who were supporting families and [ __ ] like that being deported down to Tijuana and now they're what the [ __ ] to do.
57:02>> Yeah.
57:02>> Um so I've seen the injustices being done by some of these policies. Um, but on the other end, I've I've also seen some of the darker stuff that is being done by people like the Chinese government sending a [ __ ] ton of their citizenship through the border.
57:16>> Yeah.
57:17>> Or people who are consuming the lives of young people sexually.
57:21>> How do you if you don't stop illegal immigration though, how how do you stop that stuff?
57:29>> Brasto program. I mean, there were >> Yeah, there was there was worker programs and there are worker programs across the country that legally bring Mexican labor into into the United States to work >> and pay them at less than minimum wage.
57:42>> No, they they legalize they're they're working legal. They have their wages.
57:46They have they have their way. There's ways of doing this legally, but there are institutions, corporations, and companies that won't want to [ __ ] pay out. So, they don't want to [ __ ] do that, >> right? Because they can pay them less.
57:58>> Because they can pay them less. Or also if they just don't they're done with them, they can just call the [ __ ] immigration authorities up, >> right? And they're the people that pay off all the politicians who get into office and make the legislation.
58:07>> Yep. And some of them are, you know, Trump's Trump campaign uh finance here.
58:12Yes.
58:13>> Which is And again, that's when you just look at the money with all of these issues.
58:18>> Look at the money.
58:19>> Right.
58:20>> Look at the money. And >> I tell people all the time, I'm like, >> you're not going to get all good. You can get all bad.
58:27>> Yeah. But you [snorts] all these people I whoever your god is politically I don't care what candidate or what office they're in. I hate to be that guy to be cynical.
58:41They're dirty whether they want to be or not.
58:44>> Yeah.
58:44>> Period. End of story.
58:46>> Yeah.
58:46>> When I go and I vote, and I've done this since the last time I pulled the trigger for someone was in 2016, and I voted in every election except 2020. I have the great distinction in this job that other people do not have this luxury out there to where when I go in there down to every position including dog catcher I vote journalist abstain which is how I do my job.
59:08>> Okay. But if I didn't do this job and I actually had to make a decision and you know felt like I would want to be a part of the process I don't think I'd have anyone to choose because I do look at this stuff. I do look at who pays people and there is [ __ ] dirt on everyone.
59:23Let me let me like shift this conversation >> shift it away >> as as somebody from Mexico, right?
59:31I view the Trump phenomenon in like in different with different eyes like um [snorts] like I I'm from Tijuana where we we assassinated a political candidate for the presidency, you know. He was he was at the >> What was that?
59:46>> Colossio.
59:47>> When was this?
59:48>> This was in the '9s. Early 90s. He was uh he was walking around a place where he shouldn't have been walking around and somebody pulled a gun out in in a crowd and shot him in the head. Maybe one person, maybe two.
59:59>> Uh political assassinations of that nature usually uh have some sort of motivation behind them or an attempt to keep somebody from doing something that the greater powers don't want to have happen.
60:14>> That's right.
60:14>> Thank you guys for checking out this clip. If you haven't already subscribed, please subscribe and hit the like button on this video. So, it is a huge, huge help. And if you'd like to check out this clip's full podcast episode, that link is in the description below or right here. And finally, you can follow me on Instagram and X by using the links in my description below.
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