REFLECTIONS

Trump Rumbles With MS-13

Feb 16, 2018 | 15:42 GMT

White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders stands in front of photos from the MS-13 gang during a White House daily briefing July 27, 2017.

White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders stands in front of photos from the MS-13 gang during a White House daily briefing July 27, 2017.

(WIN MCNAMEE/Getty Images)

Highlights

  • U.S. President Donald Trump's administration will press for more aggressive action from Central American governments against criminal gangs, drug trafficking and illegal migration.
  • Institutional inertia, competing priorities and the decentralized nature of criminal gangs are going to limit the White House's ability to come down hard on security threats from Central America.
  • The administration will probably press Central American governments to pursue individual criminal groups more, but the way Washington deals with crime from Central America overall is unlikely to change.

As U.S. President Donald Trump's administration moves to take a harder line against crime in Central America, it will likely run into the same problems that have vexed many previous presidents. On the campaign trail, Trump emphasized domestic security and indicated that illegal immigrants and criminal gangs from Central America would get more attention from law enforcement. As president, he has already followed through on some of these campaign promises domestically. Now, the White House appears to be shifting its attention abroad. But as Washington turns up the heat on Central America, it is likely to find its goals thwarted by poverty, corruption and the amorphous nature of gangs....

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