An ‘America First’ plan to prevent Haiti’s collapse | Opinion
From President Donald Trump’s attention to the Middle East, the Panama Canal, the Russia-Ukraine war, plus U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s travel throughout the Americas, this administration clearly understands that U.S. interests — including border security — depend on what happens in our backyard.
That is why the administration must act quickly to break from former President Joe Biden’s failed approach to Haiti and prevent a dangerous collapse unfolding just 700 miles from South Florida’s coast.
Haiti is no longer just an unfortunate humanitarian crisis — it is a rapidly escalating regional security threat. In just the last few weeks, Kenya’s security forces have suffered their first casualties. Gangs have seized armored troop carriers from Haitian police. Significant ground has been lost in and around the capital Port-au-Prince and gangs have opened fire on helicopters over the city.
Mirebalais — once a peaceful mountain refuge for families fleeing violence in Haiti — is now slipping under gang rule as well. Roads have been overtaken, kidnappings and extortion are surging, and the tactics used to cripple Port-au-Prince are expanding into new territory. The country is unraveling at breakneck speed.
Calculated efforts by the Haitian National Police, including drone strikes and tactical offensives, have proven largely fruitless. The gangs remain emboldened. The state is losing its grip. Violence is escalating.
This is not some noble ideological uprising. These gangs are foreign-funded, criminally trained and driven by profit. They are not philosophers or revolutionaries — they are narco-terrorists whose goal is to turn Haiti into a trafficking hub sending narcotics into the U.S.
Dimitri Herard, a former police official linked to the assassination in 2021 of Haiti’s President Jovenel Moïse, is now positioning himself as a nationalist leader. But Herard is no freedom fighter— he’s one of the architects behind the arming and training of these networks of gangs. His ambition is clear: convert gang violence into political power. Herard and other gang leaders have allegedly raped, murdered and extorted their way to personal dominance — and they’ve ignited a full-fledged fire just a stone’s throw from U.S. shores.
The Biden-Harris approach to Haiti — defined by disengagement — utterly failed. On the current path, murders and kidnappings will rise. Gang territory will expand. Phony elections will be staged. Foreign actors — particularly China — will invest in infrastructure and resources, turning Haiti into a narco-state governed by proxies and beholden to adversarial interests. America’s national security and borders will bear the consequences.
The last thing Haiti needs is another failed aid campaign or American boots on the ground. What Haiti needs is U.S. support for credible Haitian and Haitian-American partners to prepare to fight for their country’s freedom. These include trusted private-sector leaders, former law enforcement officials and military veterans with the experience and local relationships to reclaim ground, secure infrastructure, and restore order.
It is no longer a question of if Haiti falls — but when and how deep the collapse will be. Swift action now to contain the fallout will pay significant America First dividends down the road.
More than one million Haitians are already internally displaced. Likely twice that number have fled. Tens of thousands more are seeking refuge across borders — many illegally.
Imagine the consequence of complete government collapse in Haiti. I believe Haiti will become a trafficking superhighway into the U.S., a nearby narco-state aligned with foreign adversaries and a humanitarian catastrophe that destabilizes the region, overwhelms our neighbors and triggers another refugee crisis at our border.
This scenario is not hypothetical. It’s already happening.
The window to act is closing. But there is still time. With urgency, clarity and resolve, the administration can empower brave Haitians to reclaim their nation, prevent total collapse and protect the American people from becoming collateral damage.
Austin Holmes, a Florida native and former Haitian resident, has experience directing high-stakes humanitarian efforts, crisis management operations and disaster response efforts in Haiti and the Caribbean. He coordinated relief efforts for over 750,000 Haitians after Hurricane Matthew in 2016.
