“It's time for Congress to rein in a president who is deciding to wage war on his own say-so, which is not what the Constitution allowed. If colleagues believe that a war against the narco-traffickers in the ocean or a war against Venezuela is a good idea, then put an authorization of military force on the table and debate and vote it, but don't just hand the power over to an executive.
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Trump Military Strikes on Alleged Drug Boats in Caribbean and Pacific
September 2, 2025
Beginning September 2, 2025, the Trump administration launched a sustained military campaign of lethal strikes against vessels in the Caribbean Sea and Eastern Pacific that the administration described as drug-trafficking boats operated by designated narco-terrorist organizations, principally Venezuela's Tren de Aragua. The first strike — announced personally by President Trump — killed 11 people on a vessel that had departed Venezuela. By late March 2026, the U.S. military had conducted more than 47 strikes on at least 48 vessels, killing at least 163 people, under what the Pentagon branded "Operation Southern Spear." The campaign has triggered an escalating war powers and legality fight in Congress. The Washington Post revealed in November 2025 that on the very first strike Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had given a "kill them all" order, and that a follow-on "double tap" strike killed two survivors clinging to the burning wreckage. Both House and Senate Armed Services committees opened bipartisan probes. Sens. Tim Kaine, Adam Schiff, Rand Paul and Chuck Schumer forced repeat war powers votes, all defeated by the Republican Senate majority — most recently on January 8, 2026 (52-47 to advance, then defeated on final passage). Critics across both parties argue the strikes are extrajudicial killings without congressional authorization and may constitute war crimes; defenders, led by Secretary Rubio and Sen. Lindsey Graham, characterize the boats' operators as terrorists in an "armed conflict" with the United States.
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15 Statements
“The illegality of Trump's insane war in Venezuela is out of control.
“This strike sends a horrible and disturbing signal to other powerful leaders across the globe that targeting a head of state is an acceptable policy.
“This is an unjustified, illegal strike on Venezuela.
“There has been no authorization to use force by Congress in this way. I feel it is plainly unconstitutional. Killing two people who are shipwrecked at sea is morally repugnant. We should do everything lawfully to stop drugs coming into the country, but these strikes are not at all lawful or constitutional.
“I think shooting unarmed people floundering in the water, clinging to wreckage, is not who we are as a people.
“There's nothing remarkable in the video. The Pentagon should release it.
“If that reporting is true, it's a clear violation of the DoD's own laws of war, as well as international laws about the way you treat people who are in that circumstance. It rises to the level of a war crime if it's true.
“There is no doubt in my mind that we have the legal authority to blow up these boats. The president's campaign against narco-traffickers is lawful and necessary.
“Just as Al Qaeda waged war on our homeland, these cartels are waging war on our border and our people. There will be no refuge or forgiveness — only justice.
“People were attacking our country by bringing in poisonous substances. The people carrying those drugs were terrorists, plain and simple.
“What a despicable and thoughtless sentiment it is to glorify killing someone without a trial. Did he ever wonder what might happen if the accused were immediately executed without trial or representation?
“Killing cartel members who poison our fellow citizens is the highest and best use of our military.
“Instead of interdicting it, on the president's orders, we blew it up. And it'll happen again.
“A lot of drugs were on board. We blew it up. We have it all on tape.