Members of Congress attended a private briefing to learn about Trump’s military attacks on boats suspected of carrying drugs in the Caribbean. They wanted to understand the legal reasons behind these strikes, which have killed at least 61 people so far. But the meeting left both Republican and Democratic lawmakers angry because they didn’t get the answers they were looking for.
According to The Hill, the biggest problem was that Defense Department lawyers were supposed to be there to explain why these strikes are legal. But those lawyers never showed up. Without them, lawmakers said they only got basic details about the military operations but nothing about whether they follow the law.
Rep. Mike Turner, a Republican from Ohio, said lawmakers were “very frustrated” with what they heard. “People were very frustrated in the information that was being provided. It was a bipartisan briefing, but people were not happy with the level information that was provided, and certainly the level of legal justification that was provided,” Turner said during an interview.
The briefing was supposed to clear things up, but it only made matters worse
Democrats who were at the briefing said they heard about military tactics but got nothing deeper than that. Rep. Jason Crow, a Colorado Democrat who served in the Army, spoke plainly about his disappointment.
“You know what I heard today was a tactical brief. I heard no strategy, no end game, no assessment of how they are going to end the flow of drugs into the United States, which needs to happen, by the way,” Crow told reporters after the meeting.
The briefing included some policy officials and Rear Admiral Brian Bennett, who works on special operations for the military. But several lawmakers questioned if what they were told was even true. Rep. Sara Jacobs from California raised doubts about the whole purpose of these strikes.
“So they admitted that all of the narcotics coming out of this part of the world is cocaine. They, you know, talked a little bit about the connection between cocaine and fentanyl, although I’m not convinced that what they said was accurate,” Jacobs explained.
“And I think it goes to show that this is actually not about addressing fentanyl and the deaths of Americans, which is a really huge problem that we should be addressing.”
Turner said that everyone at the briefing understands how serious the drug problem is. But he pointed out that the government didn’t answer the most basic questions lawmakers had. “Yesterday, there were not very good answers as to what is the standard, what is occurring with the designation of cartels as terrorist organizations,” Turner said.
“We understand that the structure of these cartels and designating the terrorist organizations makes sense. But what is the standard? What is occurring – how is it being determined as to how military force is being utilized and being applied?” The question of how cartels are being labeled as terror organizations and what that means for military action has become a central concern for lawmakers on both sides.
The White House hit back at the complaints from Democrats. Spokesperson Anna Kelly said they were spreading “bogus claims” to “distract” people from the government shutdown. She pointed out that the Defense Department has held nine “bipartisan” briefings about these strikes and responds to requests from individual lawmakers.
The strikes are still happening, with the military killing four “narco-terrorists” in the Eastern Pacific just this week. There’s also a lack of proof showing what was actually on board the boats that were struck.
Published: Oct 31, 2025 06:30 pm