President Joe Biden’s failures on foreign policy, the supply chain and American exceptionalism combined to allow the Mexican military’s “insane” seizure of an Alabama-based materials company’s operations to go unanswered.
Security video from Vulcan Materials’ Quintana Roo, Mexico marine terminal reportedly showed the moment that federal investigators, local state police and “heavily armed” members of Mexican Naval forces arrived to seize operations, forcing them to allow Mexican-owned materials company CEMEX to unload their cement there.
According to Fox News, the Birmingham-based company, the United States’ largest producer of construction aggregates, had previously leased land to CEMEX, but their agreement had expired in December.
The March 14 seizure was met by Vulcan Chairman and CEO J. Thomas Hill with a letter to Mexican Ambassador Esteban Moctezuma Barragán Thursday and a court challenge. In his letter, Hill expressed that after two days Vulcan had “not been presented a single legal document, court order, or warrant justifying or ordering this act. Government forces and CEMEX personnel continue to illegally occupy Vulcan’s private property, as CEMEX unloads its ship supported by armed military and police forces.”
“The government’s participation in this gross violation of our property rights is yet another example of the government’s arbitrary and illegal treatment of Vulcan and its investments in Mexico,” he continued. “This occupation must cease immediately.”
Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador shut down Vulcan’s quarry in May 2022 after accusing them of not having the necessary permits to extract and export minerals. He then suspended their customs permits days later.
The Biden administration claimed to have been working on a solution with the Mexican government regarding the months-long legal battle, but freshman Sen. Katie Britt (R-AL) expressed to Fox News Digital that the president needed to be more direct with the escalation.
“President Biden must raise this directly with President López Obrador and assure the American people that this will not be tolerated,” she said. “The ramifications of this illicit seizure extend into the United States, significantly hamstringing important American infrastructure, energy and other construction projects that currently rely on Vulcan’s operations in Mexico for materials. My office and I will continue to monitor this situation and ensure this is not swept under the rug.”
The Alabama lawmaker also tweeted, “This forcible seizure of private property is unlawful and unacceptable. It is shameful that this Mexican presidential administration would rather confiscate American assets than the fentanyl killing hundreds of Americans per day.”
This forcible seizure of private property is unlawful and unacceptable. It is shameful that this Mexican presidential administration would rather confiscate American assets than the fentanyl killing hundreds of Americans per day.https://t.co/ti9V0d7DOL pic.twitter.com/SN24fctFCg
— Senator Katie Boyd Britt (@SenKatieBritt) March 20, 2023
Former Deputy Director of National Intelligence for Strategy and Communications Cliff Sims tagged Secretary of State Antony Blinken and White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan as he reacted to the video, “This is insane.”
Likewise, former DNI John Ratcliffe quote tweeted Sim and said, “Getting pretty used to the Biden administration letting China and Russia kick sand in our faces (covid and fentanyl deaths, spy balloons, taking down U.S. MQ-9 Reaper)–but now Mexico, too? The Biden administration needs to engage immediately to defend a U.S. company and to protect U.S. interests. This is the only deep water port on the Yucatán Peninsula. Significant geopolitical and economic implications.”
Getting pretty used to the Biden administration letting China and Russia kick sand in our faces (covid and fentanyl deaths, spy balloons, taking down U.S. MQ-9 Reaper)—but now Mexico, too? The Biden administration needs to engage immediately to defend a U.S. company and to… https://t.co/0ZmiGxBgdU
— John Ratcliffe (@JohnRatcliffe) March 20, 2023
According to Fox News Digital, Quintana Roo Second District Judge Angélica del Carmen Ortuño Suárez issued a court order Thursday for the military to cease actions at the Vulcan operation that has gone unanswered, as were requests for comment from the U.S. State Department, the ambassador’s office and CEMEX.
Native of Brooklyn, NY, Kevin Haggerty is a graduate of Hunter College where he studied Cultural Anthropology and Geography. An avid reader and truth seeker, he currently resides in Texas with his wife and their dog and, when he isn't researching current events and their impacts, you'll find him spending time with friends and family or working on his next novel.
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