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[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 72 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

111th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. RES. 72

   Expressing the sense of the Senate regarding drug trafficking in 
                                Mexico.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 10, 2009

    Mr. Menendez (for himself, Mr. Kerry, Mr. Dodd, and Mr. Lugar) 
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
                          on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION

 
   Expressing the sense of the Senate regarding drug trafficking in 
                                Mexico.

Whereas Mexico is 3 times the size of the State of Texas and has a population of 
        approximately 110,000,000 people;
Whereas Mexico has the 12th largest economy in the world, with an annual gross 
        domestic product of just under $1,000,000,000,000;
Whereas Mexico is the 8th largest exporter of crude oil in the world and 
        provides approximately \1/3\ of the oil imported by the United States;
Whereas Mexico is the 2nd largest buyer of exports from the United States;
Whereas Mexico has the largest Spanish-speaking population of any country in the 
        world;
Whereas there is a tragically consistent demand for heroin, marijuana, 
        methamphetamines, and cocaine from drug users in the United States;
Whereas the Government of Mexico is locked in an extremely violent struggle 
        against drug trafficking organizations that produce and transport 
        narcotics;
Whereas the drug trafficking organizations in Mexico are well organized, heavily 
        armed, and wealthy criminal enterprises, with estimated criminal 
        earnings of more than $25,000,000,000 every year;
Whereas it is estimated that Mexican drug trafficking organizations produce 8 
        metric tons of heroin and 10,000 metric tons of marijuana each year;
Whereas, in confrontations with the Government of Mexico and with each other, 
        the drug trafficking organizations have adopted tactics intended to 
        intimidate the public at large, corrupt law enforcement officials, and 
        create a perception of increased violence among the people of Mexico;
Whereas, in 2008, approximately 6,200 people in Mexico died as the result of 
        violence related to drug trafficking, more than twice as many as in 
        2007;
Whereas drug-related killings continued in Mexico during 2009, and on February 
        9, 2009, a total of 35 people were killed in drug-related violence in 
        Mexico;
Whereas drug trafficking organizations in Mexico have brazenly targeted and 
        executed many high-ranking public officials in Mexico;
Whereas more than 800 police officers and soldiers in Mexico have been killed in 
        the line of duty since late 2006;
Whereas efforts by the Government of Mexico and the United States Government to 
        combat drug trafficking organizations and power struggles between the 
        drug trafficking organizations themselves have resulted in growing 
        violence along the 2000-mile border between the United States and 
        Mexico;
Whereas drug-related violence affects cities and towns on both sides of the 
        border, as drug trafficking organizations from Mexico form partnerships 
        with criminal organizations based in the United States;
Whereas law enforcement authorities in the United States have reported an 
        increase in the number of killings, kidnappings, and home invasions 
        linked to Mexican drug trafficking organizations in a number of cities 
        in the United States, some of which are thousands of miles from the 
        Mexican border;
Whereas a 2008 report by the Department of Justice indicated that Mexican drug 
        trafficking organizations now operate in 195 cities in the United 
        States;
Whereas the 2008 National Drug Threat Assessment by the Department of Justice 
        identified drug organizations from Mexico as the greatest criminal 
        threat to the United States;
Whereas the Government of Mexico is strengthening the institutions of a 
        democratic state that adheres to the rule of law, supports a free press, 
        and is committed to human rights;
Whereas the inauguration of President Felipe Calderon in December 2006 
        represented another step forward in the process of strengthening 
        institutions in Mexico;
Whereas President Calderon has made defeating drug trafficking organizations a 
        top priority of his administration, increasing the security budget of 
        Mexico from $2,000,000,000 in 2006 to $4,000,000,000 in 2008 and 
        deploying nearly 36,000 federal troops to carry out anti-drug 
        operations;
Whereas the Government of Mexico has undertaken reforms that, together with 
        significant changes to the code of criminal procedure and the penal 
        code, could transform the justice system in Mexico to be more open and 
        transparent, protect human rights, and devote resources to investigating 
        and prosecuting crimes;
Whereas President Calderon has taken significant steps to crack down on 
        corruption within the police forces and other government institutions of 
        Mexico;
Whereas officers of the Government of Mexico have succeeded in seizing record 
        quantities of narcotics from drug trafficking organizations;
Whereas law enforcement officials in Mexico are cooperating with law enforcement 
        agencies in the United States at unprecedented levels, with Mexico 
        extraditing 83 major drug traffickers to stand trial in the United 
        States in 2007, and another 93 major drug traffickers in 2008;
Whereas the police and army units of Mexico are often outgunned by members of 
        the drug trafficking organizations, who employ heavy machine guns, high-
        powered assault weapons such as the AK-47, 0.50 caliber sniper rifles, 
        military hand grenades, rocket-propelled grenade launchers, and 
        sophisticated technology like night vision goggles and communication 
        interception devices;
Whereas a large majority of the weapons and ammunition used by the drug 
        trafficking organizations come from sources in the United States, 
        particularly gun dealers and gun shows in Texas, Arizona, and 
        California;
Whereas approximately 90 percent of all firearms recovered at crime scenes in 
        Mexico are illicitly trafficked across the border from the United States 
        to Mexico;
Whereas the people of Mexico and the military and civilian officials of the 
        Government of Mexico have demonstrated tremendous courage in confronting 
        the drug trafficking organizations;
Whereas the United States Government, along with law enforcement agencies in the 
        United States and Mexico, has escalated its efforts to disrupt the 
        trafficking of narcotics, money, people, and arms across the border and 
        to combat drug trafficking organizations;
Whereas the United States Government can and should do more to reduce the demand 
        for illegal drugs in the United States and stop the illegal exportation 
        of money and weapons;
Whereas the efforts by the United States Government to combat trafficking are 
        outlined in the National Drug Control Strategy (2008), the Southwest 
        Border Counternarcotics Strategy (2007), and the U.S. Strategy for 
        Combating Criminal Gangs from Central America and Mexico (2007);
Whereas, on October 22, 2007, the United States Government and the Government of 
        Mexico announced a multiyear security agreement called the ``Merida 
        Initiative'', which is intended to combat drug trafficking and other 
        criminal activity along the border of the United States and Mexico and 
        in Central America; and
Whereas Congress has appropriated $465,000,000 for the Merida Initiative, 
        allocating to the Government of Mexico a total of $400,000,000 in 
        equipment, technical assistance, and training in fiscal year 2008, which 
        is now in the process of being delivered: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that--
            (1) Mexico is a key strategic partner of the United States;
            (2) a secure, prosperous, and democratic Mexico is 
        indispensable to the goal of the United States to have 
        prosperity and peace throughout the Americas and the world;
            (3) the people and the Government of Mexico have launched a 
        sustained attack on drug trafficking organizations based in 
        Mexico;
            (4) the increasing violence and criminality of drug 
        trafficking organizations threaten the well-being of the people 
        of the United States and Mexico and pose security challenges to 
        cities and towns in the United States;
            (5) drug-related violence is a ``cross-border'' problem 
        that requires close cooperation between the Government of 
        Mexico and the United States Government;
            (6) the United States Government and the Government of 
        Mexico have a shared interest and responsibility in defeating 
        drug trafficking organizations, and a comprehensive strategy, 
        jointly conceived and executed, is required for significant 
        progress to be made;
            (7) the Senate applauds and fully supports efforts by 
        President Felipe Calderon, the people of Mexico, and the 
        Government of Mexico to confront the drug trafficking 
        organizations, apprehend their members, and bring them to 
        justice;
            (8) the Department of State should--
                    (A) ensure prompt delivery of the equipment, 
                technical assistance, and training for which Congress 
                appropriated funds in fiscal year 2008 as part of the 
                Merida Initiative;
                    (B) continue to support the Government of Mexico in 
                its efforts to strengthen institutions and the rule of 
                law, root out corruption, and protect human rights; and
                    (C) ensure full accountability for all assistance 
                and equipment provided by the United States Government 
                to the Government of Mexico; and
            (9) the United States Government should employ its broad 
        diplomatic and law enforcement resources, in partnership with 
        the Government of Mexico and governments throughout the 
        Americas, to defeat drug-related criminal enterprises.
                                 <all>
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