The former head of the Drug Enforcement Administration in Chicago, who brought down drug kingpin Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, is praising President Donald Trump for pushing to designate Mexican drug cartels as terrorist organizations, Fox News is reporting.
"The president is showing real leadership if he can get that done," Jack Riley said. "There are so many people inside and outside of Congress, the pundits, that will be against it. But this is exactly what is necessary. We have the tools. This would be a game-changer."
Riley, who spent years fighting the Mexican drug cartels and had also been in charge of the DEA's El Paso Field Division, added: "If Trump can pull this off it would be a home run.
"The cartels really fear this, and it would make a substantial hit. We need to use all of our resources to fight these guys."
If the cartels are designated terror organizations, it would mean additional funding from the state department and help form U.S. intelligence agencies, he said.
"Lastly, it opens up the legal prowess to pursue these organizations," said the DEA veteran.
Trump said he will designate the cartels as terror organizations because of their role in drug and human trafficking.
"They will be designated . . . I have been working on that for the last 90 days," Trump said in an interview with conservative media personality Bill O'Reilly that was posted to his website Tuesday.