I think it’s necessary. The Mexican cartels are running massive and extremely violent operations all over the US (not just near borders), but the bosses are all in Mexico, shielded by corrupt authorities. Fighting the foot soldiers here in the US is futile, as there’s an inexhaustible supply of disaffected kids waiting in the wings. The cartels have to be dismantled from the top.
The cartels have amassed resources that dwarf those of the Mexican authorities. They won’t be defeated without our aid.
One simple and cheap thing we could do would be to close the loophole that allows shills to purchase weapons for the cartels at US gun shows without a background check.
An alternative would be legalization of drugs, but I don’t think the public will support such a move.