Fact-check · Oct 15, 2026 · Donald Trump
“We have it down 97%”
MISLEADING
What the record shows
CBP air and marine seizures dropped 98% from July 2025 to November 2025 (224,805 lbs to 4,476 lbs). However, July was an outlier month with unusually high marijuana seizures. Coast Guard seizures increased 200% in FY2025. DEA assessment found boat strikes have not reduced cocaine entering the U.S.
The 97% figure conflates drug seizures with drugs actually entering the country. The baseline (July 2025) was cherry-picked for its anomalously high seizures. Coast Guard data contradicts the narrative. DEA found no reduction in drug flow.
Sources
- Is President Donald Trump right that drugs entering the US by sea have dropped by 97%?
- Trump’s Killing Spree Isn’t Stopping the Flow of Drugs Into the U.S.
- Trump aims to expand efforts against cartels as effectiveness of deadly boat strikes draws criticism
- Rapid Response 47 on X: ".@POTUS: We designated the cartels as Foreign Terrorist Organizations — something no other President had the courage to do. The flow of fentanyl coming across our border is down by 60% — and coming in through the oceans, seas, and most importantly, the Gulf of America, drug… / X
- PolitiFact FL: Is Trump right that drugs entering the US by sea have dropped by 97%?
- Boat strikes have not reduced drug smuggling into the U.S., DEA finds : NPR
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