U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth briefed a small, bipartisan group of members of Congress on the Trump administration’s boat-killing campaign on Nov. 5. The briefing reportedly included access to the Justice Department’s opinion on the legality of the strikes. The contents of the briefing were secret, but Republicans left the meeting expressing satisfaction, while Democrats remained critical.
Democrats said Congress needs more information on how the strikes are conducted and the legal justification for its actions, reported AP. “What we heard isn’t enough. We need a lot more answers. And I am now asking for an all-senators briefing on this issue,” Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said as he left the meeting. Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA), who has been highly critical of the whole campaign, expressed some sympathy with the idea that the U.S. should be more aggressive toward Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. But he added that it is a “huge mistake” to carry out the strikes on the boats “without actually interdicting and demonstrating to the American public that these are carrying drugs and full of bad guys.”
Sen. Jim Risch (R-ID), the chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said: “The administration has kept me, other members fully advised. [I’m] fully satisfied with what they’re doing. They’ve got good legal justification for what they’re doing. The president really ought to be congratulated for saving the lives of young American people.”
