As narcotic enforcement professionals, the members of the National Narcotic Officers’ Associations Coalition believe that the United States and all Americans are currently under attack from foreign based enemies. We are faced with daily acts of terrorism that make the bombing of the Murrah building in Oklahoma City or the World Trade Center in New York pale by comparison. With the cost to Americans reaching more than $50 billion annually and thousands of lives lost each year, it is clear that the greatest threat to the security of this nation is drug abuse and the crime, violence, and social ills that accompany it. Quite simply, drug trafficking is an act of terrorism.

Between 1979 and 1992, through a strategy of drug education and the strong enforcement of our nation’s drug laws, we reduced drug abuse in this country by 50%. That is a victory by any standard. But sadly, interest in the war on drugs has steadily diminished during the past several years. The fight against drug abuse no longer seems to be a priority for our government. Yet when polled, average Americans continue to describe drug use, violent crime, and gangs as their major concerns. Every American deserves the opportunity to live and raise a family in communities that are safe and drug free.

This foreign threat that we face is particularly evident in California and throughout the remainder of the Southwest border. America is especially vulnerable to the terrorism waged by international drug cartels operating along our very porous 2,000 mile border with Mexico. An explosion in the migrant work force, and reduced scrutiny of commercial vehicles at points of entry as a result of NAFTA have resulted in a tidal wave of illicit drugs entering the United States from Mexico. 23 metric tons of cocaine is smuggled into the U.S. annually, of which two-thirds enter across the U.S. Mexico border. Fourteen percent of this nation’s heroin is now produced in Mexico. The Drug Enforcement Administration currently estimates that 80% of the methamphetamine in the United States is either

manufactured in Mexico or in the United States by Mexican National drug criminals working under the command and control of drug lords operating from the relative safety of Mexico.

The United States and Mexico have had a mutual extradition treaty since 1980, yet the Drug Enforcement Administration reports that the major cartels in Mexico, the Arellano-Felix, Carrillo-Fuentes and Caro-Quintero Organizations continue to expand their power and operate with virtual impunity. The government of Mexico has long described itself as an ally of the United States in the fight against illegal drugs and narco terrorism. If Mexico is our ally, a true proof of their counter narcotics cooperation would start with the actual extradition of major Mexican drug traffickers to the United States. This would be the single most important contribution that Mexico could make. Every significant drug kingpin operating a drug trafficking organization in the United States has been indicted by United States courts. United States law enforcement has done a good job in arresting U.S. based drug traffickers. But we will never achieve true success until non-cooperating governments aggressively search out, arrest and extradite these drug kingpins to the U.S. The return of Mexican drug kingpins and other major narcotic traffickers to the United States to stand before the bar of justice is the single most important way to destroy these drug mafias. To date, the government of Mexico has never conducted a legal extradition to the United States of any drug kingpin. The only way that we are going to deliver a death blow to the drug trafficking organizations operating outside the borders of the United States, is to have the key leaders of those organizations arrested and extradited for prosecution.

The National Narcotic Officers’ Associations Coalition (NNOAC) believes that extradition is one of the most effective weapons we have in dealing with foreign nationals involved in drug trafficking in the United States. Organizations in many parts of the world, including Mexico, Colombia, Burma, Cambodia, Nigeria, and elsewhere have used violent means to pursue their deadly trade. They are the common enemy of all civilized nations and we need to work together to meet this threat. We must bring the power of this nation to bear upon all countries that refuse to come to our aid to stop the narco terrorist that threaten the citizens of the United States and people everywhere. The NNOAC strongly supports legislation introduced to the United States Senate by Senators Coverdell and Feinstein which would expand the "Emergency Economic Powers Act" to include specially designated narcotic traffickers. This act would completely isolate targeted drug traffickers by making it illegal for persons who do business with the cartels to also do business in the United States. The NNOAC

believes that Congress needs to codify this act and expand it to address any narcotic trafficker that poses a threat to the security of this nation.

We would encourage the United States House of Representatives to pass companion legislation to that introduced in the Senate in an effort to force the extradition of drug kingpins. The NNOAC also suggests that the Congress consider a system of economic sanctions against those countries that refuse to aggressively search out, arrest, and extradite significant drug violators.