Did J.D. Hayworth inspire Fox News' new “Third War” series about the border?

On November 9, Fox News hosted former Republican congressman J.D. Hayworth to discuss drug-related violence near the border with Mexico. Fox & Friends host Brian Kilmeade introduced Hayworth by stating: “Our next guest says this is America's third war and we're losing”:

KILMEADE: One person's head found in a giftwrapped box. Seven gunned down at a birthday party and dozens more killed in gang-fueled shootouts in the city of Juarez. And that's just this weekend. Our next guest says this is America's third war and we're losing.

DOOCY: Former U.S. congressman and former candidate for US Senate, J.D. Hayworth joins us live from Phoenix. Good morning to you, J.D.

HAYWORTH: Morning Steve. Morning Brian. It's not so much that we're losing a war. We're failing to fight it.

Hayworth has called for Obama to produce his birth certificate and opposes birthright citizenship for Americans whose parents were illegal immigrants.

A week after Hayworth's appearance, Fox News debuted a “new series” about the Southern border called “America's Third War.” On November 15, Fox's “straight news” programs America's Newsroom, Happening Now, and America Live all featured reports from, in the words of anchor Martha MacCallum, “our new series called 'America's Third War.'” FoxNews.com also published an article titled, “America's Third War: National Guard's New Mission.”

And they made graphics:

America's Third War graphic

The Fox News series has touched upon both illegal immigration and drug trafficking but has yet to delve into the disparate causes and solutions of these two problems. What the series has done so far is provide more national publicity for Fox News' favorite Republican sheriff from Arizona, Paul Babeu, who is predictably quoted as saying the Obama administration's border security measures are insufficient.

Babeu, who campaigned for McCain, previously made news after appearing on a white supremacist radio show and making exaggerated and unverified statements about the mysterious shooting of one of his deputies.