Top Democrat backs US intel on narco-trafficking strikes, faults Biden for ‘not going far enough’ on Maduro
Top Democrats emerged from a classified Capitol Hill briefing Wednesday expressing confidence in the intelligence behind recent U.S. strikes on suspected narco-trafficking vessels near Venezuela — but also faulted the...
By Fox News · Fox News
Top Democrats emerged from a classified Capitol Hill briefing Wednesday expressing confidence in the intelligence behind recent U.S. strikes on suspected narco-trafficking vessels near Venezuela — but also faulted the Biden administration for what they called a failure to confront Nicolás Maduro after Venezuela’s disputed 2024 election. The Office of Legal Counsel presented lawmakers with its written justification for a series of missile strikes in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific that U.S. officials say have killed 63 suspected traffickers. Lawmakers from both parties said the briefing reassured them the targets were legitimate, even as some voiced unease about the broader strategy. "The final comment I’ll make is just that nothing in the legal opinion even mentions Venezuela," said Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., the top Democrat on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. "I think they do have visibility into drug trafficking," Warner added, saying he trusted U.S. intelligence assessments but would prefer traffickers be "interdicted and taken to court rather than blown up." TRUMP TOUTS US STRIKE AS MADURO SLAMS MILITARY ‘THREAT’ OFF VENEZUELA Secretary of State Marco Rubio , War Secretary Pete Hegseth and senior Pentagon lawyers led the closed-door briefing for congressional leaders and the chairs and ranking members of the Intelligence, Armed Services and Foreign Affairs Committees. Lawmakers have complained for days about being left in the dark as the Pentagon launched multiple maritime strikes without first consulting Congress. Officials declined to discuss the intended scope or duration of the campaign and provided few details about who was killed or what evidence tied the targets to narcotics trafficking. "Lots of mistakes could get made," said Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., top Democrat on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. "But again, they are applying the eyes and ears of our intelligence community to these boats. I don’t worry too much that t…