Coast Guard Seizes Enough Cocaine to Kill Population of 3 Large US States

The U.S. Coast Guard has seized more than 240,000 pounds of cocaine since the start of the Trump administration on Jan. 20, enough to kill the combined population of California, Texas, and New York, according to the Department of Homeland Security.  

President Donald Trump “is keeping his promise to Make America Safe Again. The Coast Guard’s tremendous work has guaranteed that these illicit drugs will never infiltrate America’s communities and take innocent lives,” Abigail Jackson, White House spokeswoman, told The Daily Signal.

“The Trump administration will never stop fighting to protect Americans from the scourge of dangerous drugs,” Jackson said.

The 240,000 pounds of cocaine seized in less than six months is equivalent to about the weight of 48 Ford F-150 trucks, or three fully loaded 16-wheelers. Just 1.2 grams of cocaine can be deadly, according to DHS, meaning the amount recently seized could kill over 91 million people.  

The latest seizures represent a 100% increase in cocaine seizures over the same period last year, DHS reports. The increase maritime drug smuggling efforts may be linked to the increased security at the U.S. land borders under Trump, according to the Coast Guard.  

“The U.S. southern border is an interconnected system, and as illegal migration and smuggling become harder across the southwest land border, cartels may try different routes,” Coast Guard acting Commandant Adm. Kevin Lunday explained.  

“Our message to the cartels is this: We own the sea, not you,” Lunday said. “Using every capability at our disposal, the Coast Guard will prevent threats from reaching our borders.” 

Law enforcement saw an increase in human smuggling under the Biden administration as border encounters reached record highs.  

During a ride along in the Tucson Sector of Arizona in 2023, Detective Shawn Wilson told The Daily Signal the cartels were opting to smuggle people into the U.S. over drugs because there are less severe legal penalties for human smuggling, and there is “a lot more money” to be made.    

In March, James Frietze, who spent 25 years serving in the New Mexico State Police, told The Daily Signal some law enforcement in New Mexico were anticipating a rise in drug smuggling due to Trump’s actions to secure the border.  

DHS announced the increase in cocaine seizures the same day Customs and Border Protection announced record low encounters with illegal aliens at U.S. borders.  

In June, CBP encountered 25,228 illegal aliens across U.S. borders, down from 204,932 in June 2024. 

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