Trump says declaration of war not needed for strikes on alleged cartel boats
President Trump on Thursday dismissed the need to ask Congress for a declaration of war as the U.S. military continuously launches strikes on boats in the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean.
“I don’t think we’re going to necessarily ask for a declaration of war,” Trump told reporters. “I think we’re just going to kill people that are bringing drugs into our country. Okay? We’re going to kill them.”
Since September, the president has authorized multiple strikes on alleged drug boats off the coast of Venezuela, killing at least 32 people. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth also said Wednesday that a total of five “narco-terrorists” were killed in Tuesday and Wednesday strikes on two separate alleged drug-trafficking boats in the Eastern Pacific.
The administration has not provided evidence of its claims that the boats are smuggling drugs.
Trump also confirmed last week that he authorized the CIA to conduct operations in Venezuela, and the administration has boosted the U.S. military presence in the region, deploying Navy ships and Marines. The moves are part of a pressure campaign against Venezuela’s authoritarian leader, Nicolás Maduro.
On Wednesday, Trump said the administration may go to Congress for authorization to strike alleged cartel members that are smuggling narcotics on land.
According to Article 1, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution, Congress has the sole power to declare war. However, former Presidents George W. Bush, Obama and Biden bypassed the legislative branch in authorizing drone strikes against alleged adversaries during their terms. Obama and Trump, during his first term, both oversaw numerous drone strikes.
The strikes have garnered pushback from Democrats on Capitol Hill and libertarian Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), who have argued that the administration needs congressional authorization to conduct the strikes.
“We’ll probably go back to Congress and explain exactly what we’re doing when [they] come to the land,” the president told reporters while sitting alongside NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte.
Earlier this month, a resolution sponsored by Democratic Sens. Adam Schiff (Calif.) and Tim Kaine (Va.) to stop the strikes failed via a 48-51 vote. Paul and Alaska’s Lisa Murkowski were the lone Republicans to back the motion, while Pennsylvania’s John Fetterman was the lone Democrat to vote against it.
