Mark Souder: “First off I know the gentlewoman shares a deep concern about the heroin and cocaine on the streets of Los Angeles and in…”

“First off I know the gentlewoman shares a deep concern about the heroin and cocaine on the streets of Los Angeles and in Fort Wayne in my hometown, but she maligned the name of the National Police. This hat belongs to Colonel Gallego who personally took down Pablo Escobar. He did not take him down because he was in on some kind of drug deal. They were trying to take out the Medellin cartel and then the Cali cartel. It has been difficult. You cannot make just random allegations about individuals. There are problems in Colombia. We know there are problems in Colombia. None of us are going to stand here and defend Mexico. She mentioned it. But she is failing to distinguish between the Colombian National Police and their defense units. General Wilhelm, the head of SouthCom, said that in Colombia, it is the number one priority in his command. I outlined earlier this afternoon the importance not only directly in Colombia but to the oil from Venezuela and the Panama Canal. DEA Administrator Tom Constantine said after his visit that General Serrano and the Colombian National Police are the first line of defense in the war on drugs. He called these policemen heroes.”