Real News From The Blaze:' Mexican Drug War Goes National

TheBlaze published an exclusive piece Thursday featuring an interview with Jack Riley, special agent in charge for the Chicago Field Division of the Drug Enforcement Administration, on the growing presence of street gang activity and related Mexican drug cartel operations in the Windy City. The skyrocketing violent crime rates have stunned the northern city, as Riley says the cartels have designated Chicago as one of their main hubs of operation in America. Riley tells TheBlaze his belief that "a number of the Mexican cartels are probably the most organized, well-funded, vicious criminal organizations that [America has] ever seen”, as ruthless as Al Capone and the Italian mafia ever was.

While we usually consider the Mexican drug wars to be an issue for border states, where violence routinely spills over into American cities, the issue has really become one of nationwide significance.

On "Real News" Thursday the panel discussed the revelations in TheBlaze piece, and the evolution of Mexican cartels and the drug trade in the U.S.: