President Donald Trump has said he believes he has the legal authority to launch a campaign against illegal drug cartels in international waters, but said he may seek congressional approval for any land-based operations.
“We have — we have the legal authority,” Trump said Wednesday in the Oval Office when asked about the attack.
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced earlier on Wednesday that the U.S. military had carried out an attack on a ship in the Eastern Pacific the previous day, the eighth known attack on a vessel suspected of drug smuggling.
South American leaders have questioned the legality of Trump's attacks, and Colombian President Gustavo Petro recently accused the United States of murdering an innocent Colombian national.
Trump defended the attack, saying: “Every ship destroyed saves 25,000 American lives.”
Last week, Trump admitted that he would Authorize the CIA conducts covert operations in Venezuela and has stated that the United States is considering an attack on Venezuelan territory. But on Wednesday, he suggested some openness to briefing Congress on future land operations.
“We're allowed to do that, and if we did it overland, we'd probably go back to Congress, but we have, this is a national security issue. They killed 300,000 people last year. Drugs, these drugs came in, they killed 300,000 Americans last year, and that gives you legal authority,” he said.
“When we come to this land, we'll probably go back to Congress and explain exactly what we're doing. We don't have to do that, but I think Marco, I would like to,” Trump added, referring to Secretary of State Marco Rubio.