How El Chapo’s Rise Exposes The Corruption Of The Mexican State – The Federalist

On this episode of The Federalist Radio Hour, journalist and author Noah Hurowitz joins Federalist Political Editor John Daniel Davidson to discuss his book El Chapo: The Untold Story of the Worlds Most Infamous Drug Lord.

El Chapos rise coincided with all of these big changes. In the 80s, with the advent of cocaine, theres just more money than ever because you can make a lot more money trafficking cocaine than marijuana and the ability to corrupt entire volumes at the Mexican state, Hurowitz said.

Corruption in the drug smuggling industry, Hurowitz explained, is institutionalized in the Mexican government.

In Mexico, theres certainly cops who are more or less dirty, but in law enforcement, the way that I found that it typically works is that someone higher up gets paid and they pay people below them extra to look the other way or even to go to sometimes escort drug shipments, Hurowitz said.

The reason that the drug trade generates so much profit is because its illegal. Because its ablack market. And the reason that the government in Mexico could have a certain degree of control over it was theyhad control over virtually every aspect of business in Mexico, but this was even easier because you know if youstepped out of line, they could just whack you.And that was done, you know, with pretty much the understanding of the U.S., he said.

Listen here:

Originally posted here:

How El Chapo's Rise Exposes The Corruption Of The Mexican State - The Federalist