# Trump Administration Shouldn’t Designate Drug Cartels as Foreign Terrorist Organizations 

President Donald Trump signed an executive order earlier this year to create a process to designate some international criminal organizations and drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations.

February 6, 2025 • News Releases 

President Donald Trump signed an executive order earlier this year to create a process to designate some international criminal organizations and drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations.

In [a new blog post](https://www.cato.org/blog/trump-administration-shouldnt-designate-drug-cartels-foreign-terrorist-organizations), [Alex Nowrasteh](https://www.cato.org/people/alex-nowrasteh) argues that the Trump administration shouldn’t do that. He writes, “Drug cartels are vicious criminals, but they are profit-seeking criminals who are not motivated by political, economic, religious, or other social goals.”

If you would like to speak with Alex about this, please reach out to [pr@​cato.​org](mailto:pr@cato.org).

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