The opioid addiction crisis changed the United States and its relationship with Mexico, opening a new chapter in the war on drugs. On Dec. 15, 2025, President Trump issued an executive order designating illicit fentanyl and its core precursor chemicals as “Weapons of Mass Destruction” and has made it clear that this is America’s new globalized War on Terror. Although drug overdose deaths started a steady decline in 2023, they are still the leading cause of death for adults 18-44 years old in America.
Reporter Sam Quinones was one of the first to tell this story—on both sides of the border—in his 2015 book “Dreamland,” followed in 2021 by “The Least of Us,” about the epidemic of fentanyl and meth addiction. Quinones lived and worked as a freelancer in Mexico from 1994 to 2004, and in our conversation, we discuss his experiences at that time, how the shift from plant-based to synthetic illicit drugs has supercharged both addiction and trafficking profits, and how he thinks unchecked capitalism has contributed to the expansion of an addiction economy—legal and illegal—in the world today.
Episode Notes
Subscribe to Sam’s The Dreamland Newsletter here.
For more background on Mexican cartels, weapons trafficking and illicit drug flows, check out my 2025 interviews with Ioan Grillo and Chris Dalby.
LA Times report referenced by Sam in the interview: “Mexico says it doesn’t have a fentanyl problem. New data reveal a hidden epidemic.”
You can listen to the audio-only version of this interview on Apple Podcasts or Spotify and the video version is also available on YouTube.
Questions, commentary or feedback? Email me: hola@themexpatriate.com. And if you enjoyed this conversation, please share it.
