US secretaries of state, defense brief lawmakers on recent boat strikes

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth briefed top congressional leaders Wednesday on President Donald Trump's orders for a series of US military strikes on alleged drug boats in the Pacific Ocean, amid mounting criticism from lawmakers demanding legal clarity and greater transparency.

The closed-door session included the so-called "Gang of 12" — Republican and Democratic leaders and the heads of intelligence and armed services panels from both the House and Senate, according to CNN.

Senate Intelligence Committee Vice Chairman Mark Warner, a Democrat, said he trusted US intelligence but urged the administration to share more with the public. "The notion on the kinetic strikes, without actually demonstrating to the American public that these are carrying drugs and they're full of bad guys, is a huge mistake," he said, quoted by CNN.

The strikes have been on fishing boats alleged to be smuggling drugs, but the Trump administration has not provided any evidence of involvement with drugs. The strikes have also drawn criticism for the summary execution of those on board the boats, without arrest or a trial in which to defend themselves.

House Intelligence Committee ranking member Jim Himes, a Republican, said he was confident the targets were linked to trafficking but questioned whether safeguards were in place to avoid civilian casualties.

Rep. Gregory Meeks, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told CNN that the administration failed to provide proof linking the vessels to the drug trade or a convincing legal basis for the attacks, not even in the closed session, where lawmakers are often given access to confidential intelligence.

"It seems to me that what they are doing is they're making mental gymnastics to figure out and to justify circumventing Congress' role on matters of war and peace," he told CNN, adding: "With some of their legal, what they say is legal authorization, I don't buy it all."

CONSTITUTIONAL AND LEGAL PROVISIONS

Under the US Constitution, Congress has the sole power to declare war. Under the 1973 War Powers Act, the president must seek congressional authorization for military action abroad lasting more than 60 days, but the Trump administration argues that this does not apply to the recent airstrikes.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, a firm Trump loyalist, defended the strikes as "a necessary, appropriate and legal response," citing what he called "exquisite intelligence."

"If you look statistically, cocaine has been the cause of death for more Americans in the last two years than all of the casualties that we suffered in the Vietnam War combined," he said.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries called for broader briefings, insisting that Congress and the public need far more answers about the scope and legality of the operations.

The US conducted a strike on Tuesday in international waters in the Eastern Pacific against a vessel the Defense Department said was engaged in narcotics smuggling.

"Today, at the direction of President Trump, the Department of War carried out a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by a Designated Terrorist Organization (DTO)," Hegseth said on the US social media company X, using the department's rebranded but unofficial name.

US intelligence indicated that the vessel was involved in "illicit narcotics smuggling, transiting along a known narco-trafficking route, and carrying narcotics," Hegseth said, without supplying this evidence.

No US forces were harmed in the strike, he said, adding that two male "narco-terrorists" on board were killed.

"We will find and terminate every vessel with the intention of trafficking drugs to America to poison our citizens. Protecting the homeland is our top priority. No cartel terrorist stands a chance against the American military," he said.