President Donald Trump said Sunday that Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum is so intimidated by drug cartels that “she can’t even think straight,” which he claimed was the real reason she rejected his proposal to deploy U.S. troops to combat the cartels in Mexico.

Trump made the remarks in response to a question about reports that he had extended the offer. On Saturday, Sheinbaum confirmed she had declined, citing concerns that accepting such assistance would undermine Mexican sovereignty, the Daily Wire reported.

“It’s true,” Trump told reporters. “[The cartels] are horrible people that have been killing people left and right. They’ve made a fortune on selling drugs and destroying our people. We lost 300,000 people last year to fentanyl and drugs. They are bad news.”

“If Mexico wanted help with the cartels we would be honored to go in and do it,” he added. “I told her that, ‘I’d be honored to go in and do it.’ The cartels are trying to destroy our country. They are evil! And you know, we had 300,000 people die last year from fentanyl and all that. We had millions of people brought into this country that shouldn’t be here. The cartels brought them in.”

He believed that Sheinbaum was kind, but she declined American assistance because she feared the cartels.

“So if she said that I offered to do that, she’s 100 percent right,” Trump said. “She’s so afraid of the cartels she can’t walk so you know, that’s the reason. And I think she’s a lovely woman. The president of Mexico is a lovely woman. But she is so afraid of the cartels that she can’t even think straight.”

On Friday it was reported that Sheinbaum and Trump had a heated phone call in April after he urged the U.S. military to take the lead in combating cartels.

“He said, ‘How can we help you fight drug trafficking? I propose that the United States military come in and help you.’ And you know what I said to him? ‘No, President Trump,’” Sheinbaum said on Saturday, confirming the conversation.

“Sovereignty is not for sale. Sovereignty is loved and defended,” she added. “We can work together, but you in your territory and us in ours.”

Trump has designated foreign cartels as terrorist organizations. The designation unlocks a range of presidential powers and authorities he can employ against them.