By Alex Tabet - NBC News
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Thursday he is open to the possibility of launching drone strikes against Mexican drug cartels if he wins the 2024 presidential election. "We will absolutely reserve that right if they are invading our country and killing our people," DeSantis said when asked by a participant at an Iowa rally in his campaign to be elected as the Republican candidate for the White House.
Why did Ron DeSantis replace his campaign manager?
Aug. 8, 202300:30
When contacted by NBC News to confirm his remarks, DeSantis insisted, "I said I would use whatever force we needed to defend the country." "We would be willing to act against them, and we reserve the right to defend our country," the Florida governor added.
[Ron DeSantis says he wouldn't be Trump's running mate if they put his mind to it: "I'm not number two."]
DeSantis has focused on immigration as one of the main issues of his presidential campaign, leaning to the right in order to distinguish himself from former President Donald Trump, who leads him by far in the polls among Republicans.
In June, DeSantis endorsed the use of "lethal force" against migrants suspected of drug trafficking. He reiterated his view again Thursday as he spoke to a crowd of more than 150 voters at a packed Iowa restaurant.
"We are authorizing lethal force. Are they trying to enter our country? They will end up dead," he said to applause.
Activists Sue Florida Over Immigration Law Pushed by Ron DeSantis
July 18, 202300:26
In a recent interview, DeSantis talked about how he would distinguish between immigrants who traffic drugs and those who don't. "The same way a police officer would know," he explained, "the same way someone operating in Iraq would know. At that time, all the people in Iraq looked the same. It was not known who had a bomb. Those are the ones who have to make the decision."
[We explain what punishments it contains and what doubts it leaves DeSantis' immigration law that has plunged undocumented Floridians into panic]
In May, DeSantis authorized the dispatch of 1,100 members of Florida law enforcement and the National Guard to the Mexican border. And before announcing his candidacy for president, he flew a group of asylum seekers from Texas to Martha's Vineyard (Massachusetts), a maneuver he usually brags about at his campaign events.
"We banned sanctuary cities, sent support to Texas to help secure the border, and even helped transport illegal aliens to beautiful Martha's Vineyard," he said Thursday.
He has also pledged to end birthright citizenship, a policy under which children born in the U.S. automatically become citizens, regardless of whether or not their parents are citizens.
AMLO calls not to vote for DeSantis and accuses him of being among those who "despise migrants"
July 3, 202301:10
Other Republicans, such as Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia and presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, have also said they would support military strikes against Mexico.
The Pentagon has carried out drone strikes in Syria and Afghanistan, but none are ever known in Mexico.