Trump Tells Mexican President Our Military Isn’t Scared to Invade

In a call with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto, President Trump reportedly told his counterpart that he wasn’t afraid to send U.S. troops into Mexico to “deal with” the “bad hombres down there”. The Associated Press obtained a partial transcript of the conversation Thursday, which gave limited context but provided a brief, alarming window into a conversation meant to patch up relations following Pena Nieto’s canceled visit over the ongoing border wall battle.

While the White House denied the allegations and the Mexican President’s office immediately denied claims that the call was anything but “constructive”, the AP is confident in their source who had access to an official transcript of the call. In the excerpt provided, President Trump told Pena Nieto “You have a bunch of bad hombres down there.” and “You aren’t doing enough to stop them. I think your military is scared. Our military isn’t, so I just might send them down to take care of it.”

The threatening remarks come amidst a back-and-forth between the two men which began when President Pena Nieto canceled a planned visit to the U.S. after President Trump tweeted “If Mexico is unwilling to pay for the badly needed wall, then it would be better to cancel the upcoming meeting.” After Pena Nieto canceled the meeting, the Trump Administration floated the idea of a 20% tariff on Mexican imports and has now apparently threatened to invade their Southern neighbor.

While use of the term ‘bad hombres’ is characteristic of Trump, who would frequently invoke a narrative of dangerous Mexican immigrants flooding North into the U.S. throughout his campaign, it takes on a new meaning now that he is President. Just how serious is Trump when he makes such bold threats? Who exactly the President is referring to when he says ‘bad hombres’ is unclear, however his schoolyard bully-ish language as he flippantly invokes the U.S.’s military might in a conversation with a foreign leader shows just how similar his governing style is to his campaign one.