Texas Senator Ted Cruz launched an online petition to rally support for his effort to use seized Mexican cartel funds to pay for the border wall between the U.S. and Mexico. The petition, “Build the Wall and Make El Chapo Pay for It,” seeks to support a proposed bill by the senator to do just that.

Specifically, the effort refers to Sinaloa cartel boss Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman and his roughly $14 billion in assets.

Readers interested in signing the online petition or viewing the effort can do so HERE.

“Fourteen billion dollars will go a long way toward building a wall that will keep Americans safe and hinder the illegal flow of drugs, weapons, and individuals across our southern border,” Senator Cruz stated, according to a statement obtained by Breitbart Texas from the senator’s office. “Ensuring the safety and security of Texans is one of my top priorities.”

The issue of a border wall, or more accurately, portions of a border wall, has been controversial in both the U.S. and Mexico. President Donald Trump promised that Mexico would pay for the costs of the wall, but has since backed away from such claims and changed his position to U.S. taxpayers footing the bill and Mexico paying it back eventually. Senator Cruz and his proposed “El Chapo” bill provide a means for the Trump Administration to keep its promise to U.S. taxpayers while also providing a means for Mexico’s corrupt elite to pay, rather than the majority of Mexicans who live under tyranny.

Breitbart Texas covered the proposed bill when the senator first announced it. Bob Price wrote:

The Texas senator said that leveraging criminally forfeited assets from El Chapo and other Mexican cartel members and drug dealers can “offset the wall’s cost and make meaningful progress toward achieving President Trump’s stated border security objectives.”

Senator Cruz introduced the Ensuring Lawful Collection of Hidden Assets to Provide Order (EL CHAPO) Act on Tuesday. “The U.S. Government is currently seeking the criminal forfeiture of more than $14 billion in drug proceeds and illicit profits from El Chapo, the former leader of the Sinaloa drug cartel who was recently extradited to the U.S. to face criminal prosecution for numerous alleged drug-related crimes, including conspiracy to commit murder and money laundering,” Cruz stated.