Back in September, the U.S. conducted a lethal attack on an alleged Venezuelan drug-smuggling vessel with fatal consequences. After the first attack, a second one was reportedly carried out to kill the two remaining survivors, The Washington Post had reported.
President Donald Trump, however, denied greenlighting the second attack and also mentioned Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth did not authorize it. Addressing the report that mentioned Hegseth ordering to go forward with the second attack, Trump said on Sunday, “I don’t know anything about it. [Hegseth] said, he said, he did not say that. And I believe him. But no, I wouldn’t have wanted that. Not a second strike. The first strike was very lethal. It was fine, and if there were two people around, but Pete said that didn’t happen. I have great confidence.”
While Trump stood his ground regarding Hegseth’s involvement in the second attack, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt mentioned something completely different than what the President had said. Answering a question about the attack and whether Hegseth ordered it, Leavitt said, “Secretary Hegseth authorized Admiral Bradley to conduct these kinetic strikes. Admiral Bradley worked well within his authority and the law, directing the engagement to ensure the boat was destroyed and the threat to the United States of America was eliminated.”
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She then defended the attack, adding, “And I would just add one more point to remind the American public why these lethal strikes are taking place. Because this administration has designated these narco terrorists as foreign terrorist organizations. The president has a right to take them out if they are threatening the United States of America and if they are bringing illegal narcotics that are killing our citizens at a record rate, which is what they are doing.”
It should be noted that “starting in September, the U.S. military has carried out at least 19 strikes against suspected drug vessels in the Caribbean and off the Pacific coasts of Latin America, killing at least 76 people,” as Reuters reported.
The legality of these strikes has been questioned, and both Democratic and Republican lawmakers have mentioned that they would look into whether these strikes should be conducted at all.
After days of denying the story as “fake news,” now Karoline Leavitt says OF COURSE they ordered a second strike, and it was very legal and very cool, and they found an Admiral to take the fall to protect Trump and Hegseth. I hope Admiral Bradley is lawyering up. pic.twitter.com/iHrijIQaAI
— David Pakman (@dpakman) December 1, 2025
Despite Leavitt’s claims that Hegseth had full authority over the second strike, the contradiction between her and Trump’s statements is striking. Hegseth himself took to X on Friday to bash The Post’s report that mentioned his involvement with the command to carry out the second strike, writing that the report was “more fabricated, inflammatory, and derogatory reporting to discredit our incredible warriors fighting to protect the homeland.”
He further added, “Our current operations in the Caribbean are lawful under both U.S. and international law, with all actions in compliance with the law of armed conflict — and approved by the best military and civilian lawyers, up and down the chain of command.”
As contradictory statements come from inside the White House, the legal basis for the attack appears even murkier. As Leavitt has now confirmed that the second attack was done completely based on orders from relevant authorities, it would be interesting to see what Trump and Hegseth have to say about this.
