Trump Calls Colombia President 'Drug Leader,' Forgetting US History
The Financial Times highlights Donald Trump’s recent declaration, labeling Colombian President Gustavo Petro a “drug leader” and threatening to cut U.S. funding. A bold claim, perhaps, from a former president whose administration oversaw a significant increase in cocaine production in Colombia, hitting record highs in 2017 and 2018 under his watch, according to the U.S. State Department’s own
International Narcotics Control Strategy Report. One might wonder if the U.S. has ever propped up leaders with questionable ties, like, say, Manuel Noriega in Panama, once a CIA asset despite known drug connections, until he became inconvenient. This selective outrage against 'drug leaders' often appears timed to political convenience rather than consistent moral principle, especially when
billions in 'aid' regularly fuel instability and corruption, only to be withdrawn when a left-leaning government takes power. It’s almost as if the 'war on drugs' has always been a convenient pretext for geopolitical control.