{"podcast":{"title":"American Thought Leaders","slug":"american-thought-leaders-1056274","podcast_index_feed_id":1056274,"rss_url":"https://feeds.captivate.fm/american-thought-leaders/","website_url":"https://www.theepochtimes.com/podcasts","image_url":"https://artwork.captivate.fm/ab93518e-950a-4751-832e-480566fa5ad9/49nazhCbYD-76srv2uuWdJ8Z.jpg","author":"The Epoch Times","episode_count":200,"summary":"At a time when our nation is portrayed as increasingly polarized, media often ignore viewpoints and stories that are worthy of attention. American Thought Leaders, hosted by The Epoch Times Senior Editor Jan Jekielek, features in-depth discussions with some of America’s most influential thought leaders on pertinent issues facing our nation today.","last_synced_at":"2026-06-14T20:19:59.941877+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/american-thought-leaders-1056274"},"episode":{"title":"How Cartel Mega-Tunnels Move Hundreds of Millions in Narcotics Into America | Sara Carter","slug":"how-cartel-mega-tunnels-move-hundreds-of-millions-in-narcotics-into-america-sara-carter","published_at":"2026-06-13T21:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/american-thought-leaders-1056274/how-cartel-mega-tunnels-move-hundreds-of-millions-in-narcotics-into-america-sara-carter","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/american-thought-leaders-1056274","url":"https://www.theepochtimes.com/podcasts","audio_url":"https://episodes.captivate.fm/episode/970dff07-f647-4c69-9e9a-f87c49a60aa7.mp3","summary":"🏆Sponsor: FreedomProject Academy enrollment open now! 10% discount on tuition w/code: EPOCH10 Click here: https://ept.ms/ATL—FPE U.S. federal investigators recently discovered a sophisticated tunnel 55 feet underground between Mexico and California—among the largest ever found—with electricity, a rail system, ventilation, reinforced walls, and a complex hydraulic lift system. White House “drug czar” Sara Carter estimated that it was used to transport narcotics worth hundreds of millions of dollars. This is just one of the over 200 tunnels of varying sizes and sophistication that have been discovered in the last four decades, with many more likely still undetected, she said. As Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), Carter is fighting to end the narcotic epidemic killing Americans, seize cartel finances, and make a drug-free life the new norm in America. Deaths from illicit narcotics in America have been rising for decades and reached an all-time high in 2022, with 112,000 Americans dying in a single year. Since the Trump administration took office, that number has dropped to about 68,000 for the 12-month period ending in November 2025. But Americans of all ages are still dying. In this episode, Carter breaks down the complex pipelines that are driving this epidemic and how the Trump administration has been going on the offensive to attack both the supply and demand sides of this crisis. How exactly do illicit narcotics and precursor chemicals make their way into the United States? How have America’s enemies weaponized these deadly drugs? And how can we begin to comprehend the truly devastating human cost—the many young lives that were abruptly cut short and the families left behind? Carter revealed that she always thinks to herself, “This could…","meta_description":"🏆Sponsor: FreedomProject Academy enrollment open now! 10% discount on tuition w/code: EPOCH10 Click here: https://ept.ms/ATL—FPE U.S. federal investigator…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":2953,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/american-thought-leaders-1056274/episodes/how-cartel-mega-tunnels-move-hundreds-of-millions-in-narcotics-into-america-sara-carter/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/american-thought-leaders-1056274/how-cartel-mega-tunnels-move-hundreds-of-millions-in-narcotics-into-america-sara-carter.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}