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'Gonna drill down': GOP senator to probe legality of Trump's lethal drug boat strike

A combination image shows two screen captures from a video posted on the X account of The White House on September 15, 2025, depicting what U.S. President Donald Trump said was a U.S. military strike on a Venezuelan drug cartel vessel that had been on its way to the United States, the second such strike carried out against a suspected drug boat in recent weeks. The White House/Handout via REUTERS. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IMAGE BLURRED AT SOURCE Verification lines: Reuters checked the footage through our AI detection tool and found no evidence of manipulation. however, the footage is partly blurred, making it impossible to confirm if the video is manipulated. Thorough verification is an ongoing process, and Reuters will continue to review the footage as more information becomes available.

Daniel Hampton
September 15, 2025

The top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee didn't quite take President Donald Trump at his word Monday about the legality of a recent lethal drone strike on an alleged drug boat in international waters.

Trump has ordered at least two U.S. military strikes on boats from Venezuela that he has claimed contain narcotics bound for the United States. The first strike this month killed 11 people on a Venezuelan speedboat, which the Trump administration said contained large amounts of cocaine and fentanyl.

A second strike was conducted on Monday morning, killing three men on another alleged drug boat in international waters. Trump described the strikes as “kinetic strikes” against violent drug trafficking cartels and narcoterrorists threatening U.S. national security.

The Guardian reported that Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS) said Monday he plans to investigate the legality of the Trump administration’s strike.

"I need more information," Wicker told reporters. "I’m going to drill down and see what I can find out before I comment on that."

Meanwhile, Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI), the committee’s top Democrat, expressed serious concerns that the strike may have broken international law. He said the Pentagon needs to provide lawmakers with more details before such strikes.

“We’re certainly not getting a definitive legal justification which would be necessary,” Reed said, according to the report.

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