Washington, DC -- Today, Representatives Gregory W. Meeks, Ranking Member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Joaquin Castro, Ranking Member of the Western Hemisphere Subcommittee, and Greg Stanton, sent a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio strongly opposing the Trump administration’s threats to undertake unilateral military action in Mexico without Mexico’s consent and congressional authorization. 72 House Democrats joined the effort.
“Any unilateral U.S. military action inside Mexico without Mexico’s consent would destroy trust, eviscerate cooperation with Mexican authorities, and make it harder to keep drugs out of the communities we represent,” the lawmakers write.
The letter comes one day after President Donald Trump told Sean Hannity on Fox News, “We are going to start now hitting land with regard to the cartels.”
The full letter is here and below.
Dear Secretary Rubio,
We write to strongly oppose the unauthorized use of military force in Venezuela and threats from the President and administration officials alluding to U.S. military action inside Mexico without Mexico’s consent and without congressional authorization.
President Trump has falsely claimed he could legally order military action against Mexico without congressional authorization. In a January 3, 2026, interview with Fox News after the illegal strikes against Venezuela, President Trump asserted that “the cartels are running Mexico…we have to do something.” When asked in a December 9, 2025, interview with Politico whether he would consider taking action in Mexico, he replied “Sure. I would.” Unilateral military action against Mexico would be disastrous.
Mexico is America’s number one trading partner and critically important security partner with whom we share longstanding familial and border connections. Under President Claudia Sheinbaum, Mexico has dramatically increased its cooperation with the United States. Any unilateral military action would violate Mexico’s sovereignty, and tarnish the new era of cooperation that Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has ushered in.
The impacts of military action on American business interests would be far-reaching. U.S. foreign direct investment into Mexico surpassed $14.5 billion last year. More than one million American jobs are tied to cross-border commerce, and over five million U.S. jobs depend on commerce with Mexico.
Military action would also undermine our decades-long effort to address shared security interests, particularly those posed by transnational criminal organizations (TCOs) that traffic guns, illicit drugs, people, and more across the U.S. border. Over the past 20 years, the United States has launched programs to support progress in areas that have a high impact in fighting the fentanyl supply chain: strengthening the rule of law, limiting precursor chemicals, combatting corruption, limiting financial flows, and strengthening port-of entry enforcement. Last February, Mexico extradited 29 individuals sought by the United States for alleged cartel ties—one of the largest extraditions in the country’s history. In August, Mexico again transferred 26 inmates suspected of holding senior roles in some of the nation’s most powerful drug cartels, marking the second major extradition of the year.
No doubt Mexico still faces political and rule-of-law challenges that threaten its progress. Yet, with renewed efforts of President Sheinbaum’s government, Mexico has bolstered intelligence for fighting organized crime; significantly reduced homicide levels; overseen the largest seizure of fentanyl in Mexico’s history; and worked with the legislature to ban the production, distribution, and acquisition of fentanyl and its precursor chemicals.
U.S. policy should recognize this renewed progress and that our bilateral cooperation with Mexico is increasing enforcement capacity and getting results.
Any unilateral U.S. military action inside Mexico without Mexico’s consent would destroy trust, eviscerate cooperation with Mexican authorities, and make it harder to keep drugs out of the communities we represent.
At a time when we need to build trust and work with our allies in the face of global competition, we urge the Administration not to undertake unilateral, kinetic action that could violate Mexico’s sovereignty, increase the flow of migration as Mexicans seek safety, disrupt business that supports large swaths of the U.S. economy, or undermine the security progress we have made together. We ask you to commit to no unilateral U.S. military action inside Mexico without congressional authorization.
“Any unilateral U.S. military action inside Mexico without Mexico’s consent would destroy trust, eviscerate cooperation with Mexican authorities, and make it harder to keep drugs out of the communities we represent,” the lawmakers write.
The letter comes one day after President Donald Trump told Sean Hannity on Fox News, “We are going to start now hitting land with regard to the cartels.”
The full letter is here and below.
Dear Secretary Rubio,
We write to strongly oppose the unauthorized use of military force in Venezuela and threats from the President and administration officials alluding to U.S. military action inside Mexico without Mexico’s consent and without congressional authorization.
President Trump has falsely claimed he could legally order military action against Mexico without congressional authorization. In a January 3, 2026, interview with Fox News after the illegal strikes against Venezuela, President Trump asserted that “the cartels are running Mexico…we have to do something.” When asked in a December 9, 2025, interview with Politico whether he would consider taking action in Mexico, he replied “Sure. I would.” Unilateral military action against Mexico would be disastrous.
Mexico is America’s number one trading partner and critically important security partner with whom we share longstanding familial and border connections. Under President Claudia Sheinbaum, Mexico has dramatically increased its cooperation with the United States. Any unilateral military action would violate Mexico’s sovereignty, and tarnish the new era of cooperation that Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has ushered in.
The impacts of military action on American business interests would be far-reaching. U.S. foreign direct investment into Mexico surpassed $14.5 billion last year. More than one million American jobs are tied to cross-border commerce, and over five million U.S. jobs depend on commerce with Mexico.
Military action would also undermine our decades-long effort to address shared security interests, particularly those posed by transnational criminal organizations (TCOs) that traffic guns, illicit drugs, people, and more across the U.S. border. Over the past 20 years, the United States has launched programs to support progress in areas that have a high impact in fighting the fentanyl supply chain: strengthening the rule of law, limiting precursor chemicals, combatting corruption, limiting financial flows, and strengthening port-of entry enforcement. Last February, Mexico extradited 29 individuals sought by the United States for alleged cartel ties—one of the largest extraditions in the country’s history. In August, Mexico again transferred 26 inmates suspected of holding senior roles in some of the nation’s most powerful drug cartels, marking the second major extradition of the year.
No doubt Mexico still faces political and rule-of-law challenges that threaten its progress. Yet, with renewed efforts of President Sheinbaum’s government, Mexico has bolstered intelligence for fighting organized crime; significantly reduced homicide levels; overseen the largest seizure of fentanyl in Mexico’s history; and worked with the legislature to ban the production, distribution, and acquisition of fentanyl and its precursor chemicals.
U.S. policy should recognize this renewed progress and that our bilateral cooperation with Mexico is increasing enforcement capacity and getting results.
Any unilateral U.S. military action inside Mexico without Mexico’s consent would destroy trust, eviscerate cooperation with Mexican authorities, and make it harder to keep drugs out of the communities we represent.
At a time when we need to build trust and work with our allies in the face of global competition, we urge the Administration not to undertake unilateral, kinetic action that could violate Mexico’s sovereignty, increase the flow of migration as Mexicans seek safety, disrupt business that supports large swaths of the U.S. economy, or undermine the security progress we have made together. We ask you to commit to no unilateral U.S. military action inside Mexico without congressional authorization.