Dan Crenshaw targets cartels in Homeland Security chair push

U.S. Rep. Dan Crenshaw is pushing legislation to further crack down on drug cartels as he continues his push for the Homeland Security Committee chairmanship. The Houston Republican on Wednesday filed the "Declaring War on the Cartels Act," which would target cartel finances in the U.S., increase federal penalties for crimes their members commit and even go so far as to strip accused cartel members of U.S. citizenship if they are convicted of certain crimes. The bill is an indication of the aggressive approach Republicans are likely to take to the border in the next Congress, when they are expected to hold a slim majority in the House. Crenshaw could play a significant role in that if he is picked for the top spot on the pivotal Homeland Security Committee, a position for which he has been campaigning for weeks.

"We must take the cartels seriously and deter them and target them the same way we do terrorists," Crenshaw, a former Navy SEAL who fought in Afghanistan, said in a statement about the legislation. "They are more than a criminal threat — they are a national security threat, and we should treat them that way." The bill would set a minimum of 10 years in prison for cartel members convicted of a slew of federal crimes, including drug-related and violent crimes and human and sex trafficking. Cartel members convicted of those crimes could be prohibited from using U.S. financial institutions and face asset forfeiture, with any money seized going to the Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Drug Enforcement Administration. Those convicted could also face denaturalization, and the legislation would bar cartel members' families from entering the U.S. The legislation comes after President Joe Biden last year signed executive orders targeting criminal networks by allowing the Treasury Department to levy sanctions against those benefiting from drug trafficking, such as foreign manufacturers, whether or not they have direct links to cartels.