In September, the first Trump administration strike was conducted against an alleged drug cartel boat carrying narcotics.
The reaction to the move was mixed, as some Republicans defended the president, while others said the action went way too far and violated due process obligations.
President Donald Trump has now officially declared war against the cartels, and that is creating quite a buzz in the media and among Democrats who think he is overstepping his authority.
I have long wondered why the government did not use our military to fight against drug cartels (although I firmly believe black ops have been going on for years).
So, I was not exactly surprised when the Trump administration announced that it had conducted a missile strike on an alleged cartel boat near Venezuela that was loaded with drugs.
The strike immediately came under scrutiny for the deadly force it employed. For example, Prof. Luke Moffett of Queens University Belfast stated, "Force can be used to stop a boat, but generally this should be non-lethal measures.”
But Prof. Michael Becker of Trinity College Dublin took things a step further, stating, "Not only does the strike appear to have violated the prohibition on the use of force, it also runs afoul of the right to life under international human rights law." He was referring to Trump's decision to label cartels and drug organizations as terrorists in order to allow him to use military force to fight them.
While many on the right applauded Trump’s new war on drugs, not everyone was on board. Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) went off on Vice President JD Vance after comments he made supporting Trump's move went public.
Paul wrote on X, "JD ‘I don’t give a s[---]’ Vance says killing people he accuses of a crime is the ‘highest and best use of the military.’ Did he ever read To Kill a Mockingbird? Did he ever wonder what might happen if the accused were immediately executed without trial or representation??”
The senator continued, "What a despicable and thoughtless sentiment it is to glorify killing someone without a trial."
Paul has been a problem for Trump during this term, as he has been pushing back against just about every policy, and he has voted against numerous pieces of White House-backed legislation, including the continuing resolution that Republicans are currently attempting to pass.
Trump's recent declaration of war on drug cartels is a move that will almost certainly draw criticism and attract pushback from Democrats in Congress (as well as some Republicans).
The White House stated, “The President directed the Department of War to conduct operations against them pursuant to the law of armed conflict.”
It continued, “The United States has now reached a critical point where we must use force in self-defense and defense of others against the ongoing attacks by these designated terrorist organizations.”
So, to be clear, Trump cannot invoke any war powers authorities without the approval of Congress. The wording of the entire order was rather interesting, as it seems that the president is trying to work it so that he doesn’t need congressional approval to conduct cartel-related missions, but Dems will fight him on that point, and I don’t see Trump getting enough support in Congress to make this policy official. But the debate itself will put Democrats in a tough position of defending drug cartels, and that is more than likely the president's ultimate goal.
