Clinton calls for new phase in Mexico drug war

1.4 Billion over the next three years ? For an unsuccessful campaign to fight drugs in another country ?
Makes a lot of sense , but they could save that 1.4 Billion by protecting the border the way it should be , and let Mexico figure it out themselves ! let the Border patrol do the job they should be doing And give them the proper Firepower to do it . ( Yes proper Firepower , What are you supposed to do when you are being shot at on a daily basis )


(Reuters) - Secretary of State Hillary Clinton promised on Tuesday to help Mexico broaden a drug war that has failed to curb traffickers' increasingly deadly power along the U.S.-Mexican border.

Clinton, leading a top-level U.S. delegation in Mexico City for a day of talks, said it was necessary to tackle the deeper social issues that fuel the narcotics trade as both nations battle to outmaneuver powerful smuggling cartels.

"This new agenda expands our focus beyond disrupting drug trafficking organizations -- which will remain a core element of our cooperation -- and encompasses challenges such as strengthening institutions, creating a 21st century border, and building strong, resilient communities," Clinton said.

She was joined by Secretary of Defense Bob Gates, Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano, military Joint Chiefs of Staff chair Admiral Mike Mullen and other high-level U.S. officials, underscoring Washington's concern over the raging drug violence south of its border.

"You rarely see this kind of meeting with this kind of array of cabinet officials on both sides. So I think it indicates this is the real deal," Napolitano told reporters aboard Clinton's airplane before arriving in Mexico City.

The visit follows the shooting deaths of two U.S. citizens in the violence-plagued Mexican border city of Ciudad Juarez, an attack that raised the thorny question of what Washington could do to bolster security without being seen as interfering in Mexico's internal affairs.

The United States is deeply involved in Mexico's struggle with drug traffickers and has pledged some $1.4 billion over three years in a thus-far unsuccessful effort to crush cartels who ship $40 billion worth of illegal drugs north each year.