Donald Trump Backs Down on Plan to Designate Mexican Cartels Terrorists

President Donald Trump decided Friday not to officially designate Mexican cartels as foreign terrorist organizations, deferring instead to Mexico.

“We will temporarily hold off this designation and step up our joint efforts to deal decisively with these vicious and ever-growing organizations!” Trump wrote on Twitter.

The president said that although he was fully prepared to take the tough step against the cartels, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador asked him not to.

Trump said he liked and respected President Obrador, who has been working with him to help stop the flow of migrants crossing the Southern border of the United States.

Trump announces massive oil, gas and mineral exploration plans in Greenland, touts national security benefits

Trump administration slashes time refugees have to challenge loss of legal status

NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani says he won’t fire NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch despite socialist pressure

Trump signs pardons for Alaska diesel mechanics onstage during rally touting major energy deals

Trump Energy Department issues emergency order to prevent blackouts across 13 states amid unusual October heat

Florida executes inmate who killed cellmate because he wanted death penalty

Campaign Blunder Causes Ad for Key Senate Race to Air in the Wrong State on the Opposite End of the Country

Breaking: DOJ Subpoenas Ilhan Omar’s Sister, Other Family Over Evidence of Fraudulent Immigration Paperwork

Watch: Indiana Dem Accused of Being Drunk On Air After Eye-Popping Interview Makes Kamala Look Like Stone Sober Genius

Daily Wire Reveals New Movie Featuring Star-Studded Cast, Including Rob Lowe and James Franco

Jen Psaki Gets a Tough Reality Check After Catty Shot at Katie Zacharia’s White House Press Briefing Debut

Watch: Omar’s April Interview Contains Devastating Admission – If DOJ Investigated Her, They’d Know She’s Guilty

Pentagon pushes hypersonic weapons production as startups slash costs

Bill Allowing Victims to Sue Judges, Others Who Let Illegals Run Wild Is Quietly Advancing in Congress

‘Bonnie and Clyde’ illegal immigrant couple accused of brazen jewelry theft spree across four states

President Trump was expected to meet with his advisers on Friday to discuss the designation, which he has been previewing for months.

“All necessary work has been completed to declare Mexican Cartels terrorist organizations,” he confirmed on Friday. “Statutorily we are ready to do so.”

The cartel slaughter of nine American citizens in Mexico last month — six children and three women — prompted Trump to speed up the process.

U.S. Attorney General Bill Barr met with Obrador on Thursday to discuss the president’s proposal, which the Mexican president criticized as “interventionism” and a “flagrant violation of our sovereignty.” Obrador also cited President Obama’s failed gunrunning operation “Fast and Furious” as an example of how the United States only made violence worse in Mexico.

In March, Trump told Breitbart News that he was thinking “very seriously” about the idea.

“It’s psychological, but it’s also economic,” Trump said about the cartels. “As terrorists — as terrorist organizations, the answer is yes. They are.

The designation would allow law enforcement to act swiftly against the cartels as well as target their weaponry and financial resources. The federal government would also be allowed to prosecute friends and family members of the cartels supporting them in the United States, as well as organized gangs such as MS-13.