Operation Intercept was an anti-drug measure engaged by President Richard Nixon from 21 September to 11 October 1969 that resulted in a near shutdown of border crossings between Mexico and the United States.
[4] The operation was prepared with G. Gordon Liddy (who was involved in Watergate and prosecutions against Timothy Leary) and Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio.
[5] The policy was instituted as a surprise move although Nixon had given Mexican President Gustavo Diaz Ordaz some advance warning when they met on September 8, 1969 to dedicate the Lake Amistad Dam International Crossing.
The effort involved increased surveillance of the border from both air and sea, but the major part of the policy was the individual inspection, mandated to last three minutes, of every vehicle crossing into the United States from Mexico.
[6] On the same day, Nixon's plan was leaked to the public by the White House correspondent for The New York Times Felix Belair, Jr.[1] The operation was deployed in all 30 border-crossing stations.
[7] The Nixon administration believed that it had largely achieved its goal of encouraging the Mexican government to begin an effort to stem domestic drug production.
[3][1] According to Kate Doyle, senior analyst of the National Security Archive, the operation was a success for Nixon on three levels: he gained law-and-order stamina, made Mexico bend to his demands, and started a war on drugs that would last for decades.