Mexico has been stealing from American farmers for years.
Texas ranchers and growers watched their livelihoods wither while bureaucrats made excuses.
And Trump just made one promise to Texas farmers that sent Mexico into full panic mode.
Mexico shorted Texas farmers more than 800,000 acre-feet of water
President Trump slapped Mexico with a five percent tariff after the country violated the 1944 U.S.-Mexico Water Treaty yet again.
Mexico was supposed to deliver 1.75 million acre-feet of water to the United States during the five-year cycle that ended in October.
They delivered less than 30 percent of what they owed.
"Mexico continues to violate our comprehensive Water Treaty, and this violation is seriously hurting our BEAUTIFUL TEXAS CROPS AND LIVESTOCK," Trump posted on Truth Social.¹
The shortfall isn't just numbers on paper.
Texas citrus growers can't irrigate their orchards.
Ranchers are selling off cattle because there's no water for livestock.
The state's last sugar mill shut down in 2024 after sugarcane farmers couldn't produce crops without water.
That's 500 jobs gone because Mexico refused to honor an 81-year-old treaty.
Trump demands 200,000 acre-feet released before December 31
The President made crystal clear this ends now.
"The U.S. needs Mexico to release 200,000 acre-feet of water before December 31st, and the rest must come soon after," Trump wrote.²
Mexico hasn't responded.
So Trump authorized a five percent tariff on all Mexican imports effective immediately.
"That is why I have authorized documentation to impose a 5% Tariff on Mexico if this water isn't released, IMMEDIATELY," the president stated.³
Representative Monica De La Cruz (R-TX), who represents South Texas, told Breitbart the day after Trump's inauguration that the water treaty was critical to her district.
In March, she praised Trump for taking "decisive action to hold the Government of Mexico accountable for their lack of compliance with the 1944 Water Treaty."⁴
Representative Tony Gonzales (R-TX) called the water shortfall an "existential threat" to approximately 50,000 South Texas jobs.⁵
Texas farmers reduced what they planted or switched to different crops trying to survive.
Some couldn't hang on and sold out completely.
Biden administration let Mexico get away with theft for four years
This didn't happen overnight.
Mexico has shorted the United States on water deliveries three times since 1992.
They ended the 1992-1997, 1997-2002, and 2010-2015 cycles in deficit.
The 1944 Water Treaty requires Mexico to deliver 350,000 acre-feet annually from six tributaries of the Rio Grande.
Over each five-year cycle, that adds up to 1.75 million acre-feet total.
Mexico delivered only 885,000 acre-feet by October 2025 when the current cycle ended, leaving a deficit of more than 800,000 acre-feet.⁶
That's roughly two full years of water deliveries they simply didn't make.
The Biden administration did nothing.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken told Representative De La Cruz that Mexico was focused on its presidential election and wouldn't discuss the treaty until after the vote.
Translation: Biden let Mexico run out the clock while Texas agriculture collapsed.
In April, Biden's Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins claimed Trump had secured Mexican water delivery in his first 100 days.
Seven months later, Mexico still hasn't delivered.
The treaty gives Mexico escape clauses they've abused for decades
Here's what makes this even worse.
The 1944 Treaty includes language about "extraordinary drought or serious accident" as valid excuses for failing to deliver water.
But the treaty never defined what those terms actually mean.
Mexico has used that vagueness as a get-out-of-jail-free card for decades.
They claim drought prevents them from meeting obligations while simultaneously diverting Rio Grande water to Mexican farmers instead of U.S. farmers.
The Río Conchos in Chihuahua historically contributed 70 percent of the flow owed to the United States.
In 2020, Mexican farmers took over the Boquilla dam to prevent water payments to the U.S. while their own crops dried up.
Mexico's reservoirs hit historic lows, but they still found water for their farmers while stiffing Texas.
The International Boundary and Water Commission governs the treaty between both countries.
Texas officials have worked with the IBWC trying to get compliance for years.
Nothing worked until Trump brought out the tariff hammer.
"The longer Mexico takes to release the water, the more our Farmers are hurt," Trump said.⁷
¹ Bob Price, "Trump Vows that Texas Farmers Won't Be Cheated, Slaps Mexico with Tariff over Broken Water Deal," Breitbart, December 9, 2025.
² Ibid.
³ Ibid.
⁴ Ibid.
⁵ Ibid.
⁶ "Governor Abbott Demands Action On Mexico's Water Treaty Violation," Office of the Texas Governor, October 24, 2025.
⁷ Price, "Trump Vows that Texas Farmers Won't Be Cheated."
