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Erik Prince: Letters of Marque Would Allow Private Organizations to Wipe Out Drug Cartels
Breitbart ^ | 1 Feb 2025 | ELIZABETH WEIBEL

Posted on 02/01/2025 8:52:32 PM PST by Mr. Mojo

Letters of Marque would allow private organizations to operate in the “dead space” in between government bureaucracies where the Mexican drug cartels operate, Erik Prince, an American veteran and the founder of Unplugged Technologies explained during an interview with Breitbart News Saturday.

Prince spoke with Breitbart News Washington Bureau Chief Matthew Boyle about a recent post from Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT), discussing what Letters of Marque and Reprisal were and how they could be used to weaken the drug cartels. Prince admitted that he had “helped put this idea in Senator Lee’s head.”

“Letters of marque and reprisal are government-issued commissions that authorize private citizens (privateers) to perform acts that would otherwise be considered piracy, like attacking enemy ships during wartime Privateers are rewarded with a cut of the loot they ‘bring home,'” Lee explained in his post.

When asked by Boyle “what the process would be for a Letter of Marque to be issued” and if it would come from the White House or Congress, Prince explained that the “last Letter of Marque” had been issued after Pearl Harbor “to a blimp operator who was authorized to hunt Japanese submarines.”

(Excerpt) Read more at breitbart.com ...


TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; Mexico
KEYWORDS: cartels; erikprince; marque; mercenaries; mexico; reprisal; sinaloa
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1 posted on 02/01/2025 8:52:32 PM PST by Mr. Mojo
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To: Mr. Mojo

A private organization large and vicious enough to defeat even a single cartel (let alone all of them) would be an undesirable thing.


2 posted on 02/01/2025 8:55:36 PM PST by BenLurkin (The above is not a statement of fact. It is either opinion, or satire, or both.)
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To: Mr. Mojo

This would also have made killing Bin Laden about a dozen times cheaper. Glad to see people advocating for what is actually in the Constitution.


3 posted on 02/01/2025 8:55:59 PM PST by EnderWiggin1970
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To: Mr. Mojo

The idea here is that an individual or entity operating under a Letter of Marque and Reprisal doesn’t have to have his every action vetted by a government lawyer. It gives greater freedom of action. It also puts distance between an operator and the government if blame is to be assigned for an action.


4 posted on 02/01/2025 8:57:32 PM PST by Publius
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To: Mr. Mojo

Erik is a little full of himself. The cartels have around 170-180k in manpower. That is roughly analogous to the average size of the Viet Cong. They have very well funded, skilled and techy intelligence divisions and they are in the pockets of nearly all Mexican and half of America’s politicians.

Despite today’s hit movies and podcasts, no team of commandos is taking down the cartels. You might kill or snatch a few leaders. So what? El Chapo Guzman is serving life in the Supermax. Sinaloa barely noticed.

He’s out of his league on this.


5 posted on 02/01/2025 9:04:39 PM PST by DesertRhino (2016 Star Wars, 2020 The Empire Strikes Back, 2025... RETURN OF THE JEDI...)
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To: Mr. Mojo

Sounds like what the CIA does all the time.


6 posted on 02/01/2025 9:05:52 PM PST by E. Pluribus Unum (The worst thing about censorship is █████ ██ ████ ████ ████ █ ███████ ████. FJB.)
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To: DesertRhino

Need to sick John Clark and Ding Chavez to take care of them.


7 posted on 02/01/2025 9:12:06 PM PST by Bikkuri (I am proud to be a PureBlood.)
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To: Mr. Mojo

This is a job for conventional forces with SF type support. But these are large, professional, well trained and heavily armed opponents. And they are ruthless to a degree most American’s are not prepared for.

If we start this, we had damned well better have a large serious military force to shut out border down. Because if it does some serious damage down in Mexico, there will be a flood bigger than ever seen that will flee to the US border.
And we will probably experience a targeted AND a random bombing campaign here. And then our military dependents, judges, local mayors, etc would need to think about kidnappings, assassinations, beheadings etc.

This isn’t some war to start with a bunch of commandos and the idea it will be easy and not come home to us.
It’s a job for a large conventional force.

And if you really wanna hurt the cartels, go after the banks and businesses that handle their cash.


8 posted on 02/01/2025 9:14:33 PM PST by DesertRhino (2016 Star Wars, 2020 The Empire Strikes Back, 2025... RETURN OF THE JEDI...)
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To: Mr. Mojo

This is a job for conventional forces with SF type support. But these are large, professional, well trained and heavily armed opponents. And they are ruthless to a degree most American’s are not prepared for.

If we start this, we had damned well better have a large serious military force to shut out border down. Because if it does some serious damage down in Mexico, there will be a flood bigger than ever seen that will flee to the US border.
And we will probably experience a targeted AND a random bombing campaign here. And then our military dependents, judges, local mayors, etc would need to think about kidnappings, assassinations, beheadings etc.

This isn’t some war to start with a bunch of commandos and the idea it will be easy and not come home to us.
It’s a job for a large conventional force.

And if you really wanna hurt the cartels, go after the banks and businesses that handle their cash.


9 posted on 02/01/2025 9:14:33 PM PST by DesertRhino (2016 Star Wars, 2020 The Empire Strikes Back, 2025... RETURN OF THE JEDI...)
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To: Mr. Mojo

Just sick dog the bounty hunter on em lol


10 posted on 02/01/2025 9:15:14 PM PST by Bob434 (TTERIES IN THE FIRST ROOM)
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To: DesertRhino

+1


11 posted on 02/01/2025 9:26:50 PM PST by wardaddy (Elon ….damn boy….. bly in jou baan verdomp)
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To: Mr. Mojo

Erik Prince knows how to do it.


12 posted on 02/01/2025 9:40:51 PM PST by little jeremiah (https://qalerts.app/)
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To: Mr. Mojo

PS. No wonder the demsheviks want to prevent this.


13 posted on 02/01/2025 9:41:18 PM PST by little jeremiah (https://qalerts.app/)
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To: DesertRhino
The cartels are very well funded, very well armed and they are very well trained.

They have experience in some pretty nasty forms of violence and they are specialists at reprisals against LEO, politicians and family members of opponents.

They are operating on their home turf, usually in the interior of their countries.

They have infiltrated much of our government, court systems and law enforcement.

Fighting them is going to be like fighting a combination of Al Capone in Chicago, ISIS in Syria under Obama and FARC or the Sandinistas back during the cold war.

It can be done but it will not be as easy as some think.

14 posted on 02/01/2025 9:45:09 PM PST by rdcbn1 (TV )
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To: EnderWiggin1970

You think that pimp O’Dimwit actually allowed his muslim brother to be killed? That’s funny.


15 posted on 02/01/2025 9:47:23 PM PST by LouAvul (1 John 2:22: "Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ?" )
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To: DesertRhino

“One of the systemic problems we have — call it a structural problem of the U.S. security apparatus is all kinds of stove pipes. Because now you have China organizing fentanyl. So, you have a paycom area interest, pushing chemicals into Mexico, where they’re now fabricated into fentanyl and then pushed north. So, is it a northern command issue? Is it a DEA issue? Is it a border patrol issue? Is it a paycom issue?” Prince said.

“The problem is, you have so many different bureaucracies involved that no one is able to swim in between those bureaucracies in that dead space — the cartels do, but no government entity can move that quickly. So, the cartels basically operate inside of the OODA Loop of the U.S. government. And, really, only a private organization is going to be able to move that decisively with the flexibility required.”

“The cartels make enormous amounts of money that let’s them buy very good technology, very high end talent, very high end weaponry. They out gun Mexican law enforcement. I feel terrible for a state or local cop, or a federal cop in Mexico, because within days of coming on to a certain drug team, their family members are getting visited,” Prince continued.


16 posted on 02/01/2025 10:11:54 PM PST by freepersup (“Those who conceal crimes are preparing to commit new ones.” ~Vuk Draskovic~)
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To: freepersup

17 posted on 02/01/2025 10:12:33 PM PST by freepersup (“Those who conceal crimes are preparing to commit new ones.” ~Vuk Draskovic~)
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To: Mr. Mojo

Maybe the Crips and Bloods could join forces under a letter of marque to take over the cartels’ lucrative drug distribution operations.


18 posted on 02/01/2025 10:23:20 PM PST by Nachoman (Proudly oppressing people of color since 1957.)
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To: Nachoman

Maybe the Crips and Bloods could join forces under a letter of marque to take over the cartels’ lucrative drug distribution operations.


“Can you dig it?”


19 posted on 02/01/2025 10:30:47 PM PST by dfwgator (Endut! Hoch Hech!)
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To: freepersup

In for a penny, in for a pound!

If the USA goes all in for prosecution of the cartels, then we better go, ALL IN!

Logistically, it’s tempting. That’s the catch. Don’t be over confident, because we will get asymmetric warfare on our door step. I repeat, asymmetric warfare, on our door step.

Arm the population. Ready them. Brief them. Recruit them. Maybe, this has to happen in about 24-48 hours, pre deployment.

The initial kick off, has to come bearing an all-in, TRUMP/USA, MURDER DEATH PUNCH~!


20 posted on 02/01/2025 10:35:15 PM PST by freepersup (“Those who conceal crimes are preparing to commit new ones.” ~Vuk Draskovic~)
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