At today's Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) questioned Terrance Cole, nominee to be Administrator of Drug Enforcement, about the alleged knuckle tattoos of Kilmar Abrego Garcia.
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00:00Thank you to both of you and your families.
00:03Thanks for your distinguished service and you're willing to serve at the highest level in your field.
00:09Mr. Cole, you mentioned something that most Americans probably need to pay more attention to.
00:15300 Americans die every day.
00:17Did you say that from fentanyl poisoning?
00:19Yes, sir.
00:20And fentanyl comes across the U.S.-Mexican border, is that correct?
00:25Yes, sir, it does.
00:25And the precursors to fentanyl come from what country mainly?
00:31From China.
00:32Do you agree that China has done very little to combat the precursor problem that exists in China?
00:40I would agree, yes, sir.
00:41Do you believe that China is complicit in the fentanyl poisoning of America?
00:47Yes, I do.
00:48Do you believe the Communist Chinese Party, if they had more will, could do a better job?
00:54Yes, sir, I do.
00:54Okay, you're a great witness.
00:57Mexico.
01:01You say Mexico is your biggest problem.
01:03It seems like it is.
01:05Real briefly, what are the tools you need to combat the problems you see in Mexico that you don't have?
01:12Yeah, first, thank you for the question, Senator.
01:14And I enjoyed our discussion yesterday that started with talking about the border and keeping the border secure on the southern part and the northern part.
01:21And then we dove into talking about the cartels and their drive in Mexico, not only their drive in Mexico, but the corruption that's associated with the cartels from the government, from the financial institutions.
01:32Are there parts of Mexico that are pretty much governed by cartels?
01:37Yes, sir.
01:38What percentage of the country of Mexico would you say is dominantly governed by cartels?
01:46Well, I would say a majority.
01:48I left the EA in 2019 from Mexico City and saw the dominance that the cartels had at that time.
01:56CJNG controlled 24 of the states in Mexico.
02:01Let's just slow down for a second, you know, you're telling us, and I believe you've been on the front lines, that our neighbor in Mexico, when it comes to law enforcement and other activities, is pretty much controlled by cartels.
02:17They work hand in hand, yes, sir.
02:19Wow.
02:20So to our friends in Mexico, that is unacceptable.
02:23So what can we do to change that dynamic?
02:29We need to build capacity, similar to what we did in Colombia in the 80s.
02:33We need to continue with building the capacity with the Judicial Wire Intercept Program.
02:38And what that means is in Colombia, we started with 50 phone lines to conduct targeted investigations against cartel leaders, and we need to move that to Mexico.
02:49Currently, in Mexico, we do not have the process of a Judicial Wire Intercept Program, which allows both governments to share information.
02:58Well, very, very, my time's running out.
03:00Give me a list of what you need that you don't have.
03:04Do you think Mexico is willing to embrace what they have to do to change this dynamic?
03:10I think due to the tremendous diplomatic pressure and the president's pressure as well, they're going to have no choice.
03:15Because too many Americans are dying every single day.
03:20All right.
03:20Sounds good.
03:22Are you familiar with MS-13?
03:26Yes, sir.
03:27Briefly, what are they?
03:29They're a terrorist organization.
03:31Yeah, they've been designated a foreign terrorist organization?
03:34Yes, sir.
03:35They're involved in drugs, fentanyl?
03:37Extortion, kidnapping, drugs, intimidation, money laundering.
03:42In your time in the DEA, do they have, like, membership cards?
03:48Not necessarily the membership cards, but they are well-recognized based on tattoos and different...
03:54Do you have a photo I think our office provided to you?
03:58We spoke about it earlier.
04:00Yes, sir.
04:01Can you give this to...
04:02All right, this is a photo of tattoos of Mr. Ebreo Garcia.
04:14Much attention has been paid to his case.
04:17I think he's in Venezuela.
04:22Can you see the photo here?
04:25Yes, sir, I can.
04:25I have a copy of it.
04:26Okay, based on your time and experience and expertise in the DEA, what does that photo or those markings suggest to you?
04:38Well, they suggest that he's an MS-13 member, that those are his markings.
04:41That's his brand.
04:43Not only my time at the DEA, but currently I participate...
04:47So, the start with a leaf, what's that a sign of?
04:53Marijuana.
04:53Okay.
04:54The next one is...
04:56Your smiley face.
04:58Okay, and the next one is...
05:00I believe that's a one.
05:01I can't...
05:01It's a little blurred out for me, sir.
05:03And then the last one's a three backwards.
05:04Okay.
05:05From here.
05:05Yes, sir.
05:05So, based on your time as a DEA agent in the field, particularly in Mexico,
05:11these TAS-2s are consistent with MS-13 associations.
05:19Yes, sir.
05:20That's correct.
05:20Do you know of any other set of combinations that would suggest some other organization this represents?
05:28With this particular one, no, sir.
05:32Thank you, Senator.
05:33Senator Blum...