Trump Mulls Using Seized Cartel Assets to Pay for Wall

Trumps says he can build the wall for $8-10B.
Using seized drug Cartel assets to pay for it...sounds like the ideal solution for many reasons.

1.) It still makes Mexicans pay for the wall...but it makes Mexican drug Cartels pay instead of Mexican citizens.
2.) It will intensify the war on drugs from both sides of the border, while punishing cartels.
3.) It will eventually help to reduce the flow of drugs into the U.S....saving lives on both sides of the border.

This idea sounds like a Win/Win for both the U.S. and Mexico...and I could see it bringing BOTH countries closer, while joining them together to fight crime and drug abuse.
What say you, ATS?

Joint effort eyed to combat flow of drugs, guns and people would be a 'win-win' for both Mexico and U.S.

To fund construction of a new U.S. border wall, Donald Trump and senior advisers are considering various ideas, including the use of assets seized from drug cartels and others in the illicit drug trade.

As the debate over who will pay for the wall dominates the discussion on cable news, sources involved in the pre-planning of the GOP nominee’s Mexico trip told LifeZette the Trump camp is looking for innovative ways to pay for the construction of the border wall that both countries can support. Sensitivities in Mexico regarding Trump’s visit, and specifically paying for the border wall, are running high.

A senior Trump policy advisor stressed the proposal was just one of several funding options being discussed and said the idea was not raised during Trump’s meeting with Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto.

Advocates of the “make the cartels pay” plan believe it has the added benefit of punishing the “worst of the worst who bring violence to our streets and prey on innocent Mexicans and Americans,” while giving political cover to both leaders to accomplish their objectives. Sources close to both the Mexican government and the Trump campaign have confirmed that this proposal exists, but wish to remain anonymous given the preliminary nature of the discussions.

Full Article:
www.lifezette.com...

I wonder how difficult it would be to get that money away from whoever or which department is using it now. It's probably a cash cow for some group.

originally posted by: roadgravel
I wonder how difficult it would be to get that money away from whoever or which department is using it now. It's probably a cash cow for some group.

$400M of it was probably just flown to Iran.

Good possibility this could work.

All he has to do is step-up the confiscations at the border, and get Mexico to step-up their confiscations.

But this could cut into the Mexican bribery zone.

originally posted by: xuenchen
Good possibility this could work.

All he has to do is step-up the confiscations at the border, and get Mexico to step-up their confiscations.

But this could cut into the Mexican bribery zone.

I agree. There will be some upset government officials...and some even more pissed off drug lords.

Talk about the art of the deal, Donald Trump and the Mexican president are going to take out the cartels and use the seized money to build the wall, and make Mexico safer for Mexicans. All in one shot. I don't have a problem with this, does anyone else have a problem with this?

Has Hillary responded to this yet?

Can't wait for the deflections and blaming.

She might have to downgrade Obama policies again.

originally posted by: roadgravel
I wonder how difficult it would be to get that money away from whoever or which department is using it now. It's probably a cash cow for some group.

It mostly funds the Border Patrol and if any other agencies are involved they get a percentage. They plan their budgets on it. So really you would have increase funding to those agencies to make up for the short fall. In other words we would still being paying for it.

And as for cost. again I point to the 700 miles of double fencing that was suppose to built using 1.8 billion. A single layer has been built for some of it but, to finish the need 4.8 billion. Congress ceased funding it because a 2007 study said to finish the fencing for those 700 miles and maintain it for 25 years the cost would 49 billion. That is a total of $50.8 billion to build and maintain 700 mile of double fencing for 25 years. Also the legal battles to get the land have proved long and costly as well.

Look at those numbers and make it a wall twice a long that needs twice as much to maintain. The cost will be massive. And to stop what percent of illegals or drugs? Half of illegals come by plane on visas. Most drugs and illegals that do come from the southern border do so at PoEs Points of Entries either hidden, with fake paper work, or by paying off border agents. Drugs use a lot of tunnels now as well because use rails and can move tons in a few hours right into a city.

The wall would be a expensive waste of money.

Reading this I am reminded of Bernie Sanders making stump speeches about the opioid epidemic in this country being at an all time high.

He talked a lot about big pharma getting people hooked on oxycodone but failed to address the elephant in the room - which was the Mexican cartels cultivating poppy and manufacturing/distributing heroin into the US to fill the void left from opioid regulations.

So yea, I think it's a great strategy. Brilliant, in fact.

a reply to: MrSpad

That's about 13,500 per foot. Sounds like the government pays well.

If you're going to build a wall, then do it right. To build a rebar reinforced poured concrete wall 2000 miles long , 40 ' high ( 20' below ground, 20' above ground ) and 4' thick it would cost somewhere around $16,000,000,000 just for materials, assuming the contractors don't gouge. We could probably get away with a 2' thick wall, but 4' thick is impenetrable. That would mean a rebar reinforced footing would need to be at least 8' wide and 8' deep. Doing that would cut some cost, as instead of 20' of wall below ground you would need only 12. Still, when you figure in labor, seismic sensors, motion detectors, surveillance systems, and anti-drone measures, I can't see a pricetag below
$30 billion for a proper wall.

originally posted by: roadgravel
a reply to: MrSpad

That's about 13,500 per foot. Sounds like the government pays well.

Well one problem is location. Many of these areas are remote with no access beyond dirt roads. So you need to build roads, build work camps, build supply depots, set up water, food, medical, security. Then move and start all over again. That does not take into consideration areas they can build on, mountains terrain, rivets lakes etc.

You were saying about how much it's going to cost to build the wall, by my estimates, after they build the wall there is going to be $348,000,000,000 left over for Mexico and the United States to split after your $30,000,000,000 estimated cost of building the wall, but it's so nice of you to be looking out for the taxpayer and the cartels

originally posted by: xuenchen
Good possibility this could work.

All he has to do is step-up the confiscations at the border, and get Mexico to step-up their confiscations.

But this could cut into the Mexican bribery zone.

So you're pro civil forfeiture now?

originally posted by: DonVoigt
Talk about the art of the deal, Donald Trump and the Mexican president are going to take out the cartels and use the seized money to build the wall, and make Mexico safer for Mexicans. All in one shot. I don't have a problem with this, does anyone else have a problem with this?

Yes, very much so... there's about $3 billion seized annually right now through civil forfeiture which is what Trump is talking about. $1.5 billion of that goes to the feds. It goes to fund programs that are considered wants rather than needs, but under Trump the wall is considered a need. This means there's pressure to bring in more money to fund it.

The only way civil forfeiture can maintain some semblance of honesty is when the people seizing the funds aren't the people getting the funds. This however would let the border patrol seize and keep anything they find. Most of what's seized comes from people on the road as their property gets charged with a crime. This creates an incentive system that is very dishonest.

Civil forfeiture needs to be done away with, not expanded to start funding areas of the government.

Lastly, remember that if you take $1.5 billion in funding from other departments, they're probably not shrinking their budgets, so we'll just pay $1.5 billion more in taxes each year to cover it.

a reply to: IAMTAT

It's also illegal....

Money for the wall must be appropriated by Congress and budgeted annually as all other government spending is. To obligate funds not appropriated by Congress finds you running afoul of the Anti Deficiency Act. Just another example of Trump not knowing the basics of government.

And I'll bet if Oblameo had suggested this idea you'd be screaming we need to do this because it's the right thing to do, Congress can just change the law to make this work for our failed king, puleeze