Texas Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R) appeared on Fox News this week during an interview with Jesse Watters. During the interview, the Texas Republican discussed his recent back and forth with Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO). Crenshaw further criticized AMLO, accusing him of “defending the cartels.”
Last week, Crenshaw took to social media to respond to AMLO’s threat that he would campaign against Republican lawmakers.
The threat came after AMLO received criticism for allegedly protecting cartels amidst the kidnapping of four Americans that resulted in the death of two.
During his interview with Watters, Crenshaw further directed criticism at AMLO, arguing that both Mexico and the United States should be working together to combat drug cartels and the threat they pose.
“The President of Mexico is clearly defending the cartels – the same cartels that killed tens of thousands of his own citizens,” shared Crenshaw on social media, posting a clip of his interview.
“They’ve been terrorizing the Mexican people for over 20 years and now they’re poisoning Americans by lacing street drugs with fentanyl,” Crenshaw added.
Referencing AMLO’s threat of campaigning against him and other Republicans, Crenshaw also welcomed AMLO to do that, adding “let’s see if defending deadly criminals will go over well with the citizens of Texas.”
AMLO further responded to criticism from lawmakers and U.S. Media outlets, accusing them of attempting to smear his administration. Instead, he expressed that “there is no problem in traveling safely in Mexico.” AMLO argues that “Mexico is safer than the United States.”
After reports informed that two Americans had been killed in a kidnapping, the Gulf Cartel issued an apology, arguing that some members of the cartel had acted on their own accord and had broken the cartel code.
Crenshaw has introduced legislation that would the U.S. to use military force against cartels.