Ted Cruz wants El Chapo to pay for Trump's border wall by reallocating all of his forfeited assets

AP Photo/Eric Gay

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, address a crowd at a rally for President Donald Trump at the El Paso County Coliseum on February 11.

• Sen. Ted Cruz urged Congress to pass his Ensuring Lawful Collection of Hidden Assets to Provide Order (EL CHAPO) Act after Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman was convicted of drug trafficking on Tuesday.
• The proposed bill would reallocate seized assets from Guzman and other drug lords and put them toward funding border security and President Donald Trump's proposed border wall. 
• In a statement about the bill last month, Cruz said the move would "offset the cost of securing our border."
• Cruz's press release said that the US government is seeking more than $14 billion in forfeited assets from Guzman. 

Sen. Ted Cruz said on Tuesday that he wants to use Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman's forfeited assets to pay for the border wall after the cartel kingpin was convicted of drug trafficking.

The Texas Republican urged Congress to pass his Ensuring Lawful Collection of Hidden Assets to Provide Order (EL CHAPO) Act on Twitter on Tuesday.

"U.S. prosecutors are seeking $14 billion in drug profits and other assets from El Chapo which should go towards funding our wall to #SecureTheBorder," Cruz wrote on Twitter. "It's time to pass my EL CHAPO Act. I urge my Senate colleagues to take swift action on this crucial legislation."

Read more: Mexican cartel kingpin 'El Chapo' Guzman found guilty in New York trial

The proposed bill would take forfeited assets from Guzman and other drug lords and reallocate the funds toward "border security assets" and President Donald Trump's proposed wall at the US-Mexico border.

"By leveraging any criminally forfeited assets of El Chapo and other murderous drug lords, we can offset the cost of securing our border and make meaningful progress toward delivering on the promises made to the American people," Cruz said in a press release about reintroducing the proposal last month.

Guzman was found guilty on Tuesday on all counts of an indictment that included drug-trafficking, conspiracy, and use-of-firearms charges. He now faces life in prison in the US.

Cruz's press release said that the US government is seeing more than $14 billion in drug proceeds and illicit profits from Guzman.

Meanwhile, Trump's $5.7 billion demand for border wall costs prompted a record 35-day partial government shutdown.

He told reporters on Tuesday that he was "unhappy" with a proposed deal that would give him $1.375 billion for his border wall. Sources told CNN, however, that he will likely sign the deal to avoid a second shutdown.

Read more about the border wall:

• Trump is reportedly ready to sign the border deal to avoid another shutdown - but is hinting at finding other ways to secure more wall funding
• Top Republicans say Trump could still declare a national emergency to get money for the wall, even if he signs the bipartisan border-security deal
• Texas' lieutenant governor said if it wasn't for the border wall, people would be decapitated and their heads would roll down the streets
• Trump appears to have already soured on border-security plan, saying it would be Democrats' fault if the government shuts down again