A week after the Trump administration killed suspected drug dealers in international waters, Democrats have some pointed questions. GOP senators do not.
MURDER AT SEA.
As Democrats press White House on deadly boat strike, Republicans sit on their hands!
A week after the Trump administration killed suspected drug dealers in international waters, Democrats have some pointed questions. GOP senators do not. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...
— drgk1 (@drgk1.bsky.social) 2025-09-11T19:52:35.222Z
https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/democrats-press-white-house-deadly-boat-strike-republicans-sit-hands-rcna230630
Complicating matters, The New York Times reported that the boat in question “
had altered its course and appeared to have turned around before the attack started.” And while the reporting hasn’t been independently verified by MSNBC or NBC News, it raised the possibility that U.S. officials, acting on the president’s order, launched a deadly military strike against civilians who were retreating — making it that much more difficult to suggest they were an imminent threat.
As The Washington Post reported, quite a few Senate Democrats have some questions in need of answers. From the article:
On Wednesday, more than 20 Democrats petitioned President Donald Trump to clarify a host of facts about the operation, including the military assets involved and how the administration confirmed the targets were part of a drug network. Their outreach followed a closed-door briefing by the Pentagon to bipartisan staff from the principal national security committees, a meeting that two people familiar with the matter characterized as vague and unsatisfying.
......n all, 25 Democratic senators asked the president 10 straightforward questions, including:
“Who were the individuals targeted in the strike, and what intelligence does the Administration have regarding their identities, any imminent threat they did or did not pose, what crimes they were accused or suspected of, and what alleged affiliations they had with a narcotrafficking criminal organization?”
“How were the individuals targeted in the strike positively identified as lawful targets for lethal military force? What legal review was conducted for assessing whether the use of lethal force in this context and against these particular criminal suspects was lawful under both domestic and international law?”
“What assessment, if any, was conducted regarding whether the use of lethal force in this context could undermine intelligence-gathering opportunities that would come from capturing potential traffickers alive?”
Zero Republicans signed on to the letter.
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