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Trump Makes an Announcement on the Homeland Security Task Force Anti-Cartel Operation

October 23, 2025 · The White House · 1:22:21

Embedded from the source channel — never re-uploaded. Watch on YouTube

What happened

President Donald Trump announced the results of the Homeland Security Task Force’s anti-cartel operation at the White House on October 23, 2025, calling it “the most successful anti-cartel and anti-gang operation in American history,” as the White House broadcast records.

His framing: “On my first day in office earlier this year, I signed an executive order to officially designate the drug cartels and savage transnational gangs as foreign terrorist organizations… On that same day, I also signed an order directing the creation of the Homeland Security Task Force.” The task force, led by ICE and the FBI, includes the Department of Justice, the Department of War, DHS, the intelligence community, ATF, the DEA, and the U.S. Marshals, plus state and local partners — “in all 50 states,” fully operational since the prior month.

The figures, as stated: “the largest number of arrests of cartel leaders, operatives, and gang members in American history — more than 3,000 and counting,” including members of the “ultra-violent New Generation Cartel,” the Sinaloa Cartel, the LNFM Cartel, MS-13, and Tren de Aragua; “over 120,000” criminal arrests nationwide since January 20; “more than 70 tons of deadly narcotics” seized in recent weeks, along with “more than 1,000 illegal guns.” “The cartels are the ISIS of the Western hemisphere,” he said. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem were named as participants in the operation’s leadership, with FBI Director Kash Patel, Attorney General Pam Bondi, and Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller in the room.

The announcement closed with shutdown-era news: a donor he declined to name had sent a $130 million check to cover any military pay shortfall — “He gave us a check for $130 million… That’s what I call a patriot,” as he stated it — and a ballroom figure: “I think 350 million dollars… All donor money,” with the project costing “right in the neighborhood of 300 million,” all as he stated the numbers.

Why it matters

This is the administration’s flagship enforcement announcement of the fall: the task force’s first full operational report, with the 3,000-arrest and 70-ton figures as the headline record of the anti-cartel campaign.

Scoreboard watch

Scoreboard candidate: the Homeland Security Task Force’s first full operational report (October 23, 2025) — 3,000+ cartel arrests, 70+ tons of narcotics seized, 1,000+ illegal guns, 120,000+ criminal arrests since January 20, as stated. Flagged for the scoreboard editor; no entry is published from this page.

Sources: The White House, “President Trump Makes an Announcement, Oct. 23, 2025” (official upload, embedded above). Remarks and figures as delivered at the announcement.