Trump backs release of second Caribbean strike footage as scrutiny over ops intensifies
President Donald Trump is on board with releasing the video footage of the second strike targeting an alleged drug boat on Sept. 2. The Trump administration is currently facing heightened...
By Fox News · Fox News
President Donald Trump is on board with releasing the video footage of the second strike targeting an alleged drug boat on Sept. 2. The Trump administration is currently facing heightened scrutiny for its strikes against alleged drug smugglers in the Caribbean, amid confirmation from the White House that the U.S. military conducted a second strike against one of the vessels after the first strike left survivors. Trump shared footage of the first strike , and said Wednesday he supported releasing documentation of the second strike as well. "I don't know what they have, but whatever they have we’d certainly release. No problem," Trump told reporters on Wednesday. HEGSETH SAYS MILITARY CONDUCTED ANOTHER STRIKE ON BOAT CARRYING ALLEGED NARCO-TERRORISTS Secretary of War Pete Hegseth told reporters Tuesday that he watched the first strike live, but left for a meeting and did not learn of the second strike until later. The White House said Monday that Hegseth had authorized Adm. Frank "Mitch" Bradley to conduct the strikes, and that Bradley was the one who ordered and directed the second one. At the time of the Sept. 2 strike, Bradley was serving as the commander of Joint Special Operations Command , which falls under U.S. Special Operations Command. He is now the head of U.S. Special Operations Command. HEGSETH ERUPTS OVER WAPO ‘FAKE STORIES’ SMEAR, VOWS TO STOP ‘POISONING OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE’ According to Hegseth, conducting the subsequent strike against the alleged drug boat was the right call. "Admiral Bradley made the correct decision to ultimately sink the boat and eliminate the threat," Hegseth said Tuesday. Hegseth and the White House have faced additional questions about the legality of the strikes targeting alleged drug smugglers, after the Washington Post reported on Friday that Hegseth verbally ordered everyone onboard the alleged drug boat to be killed in a Sept. 2 operation. SPEC OPS CHIEF ORDERED DEADLY CARIBBEAN STRIKE ‘IN SELF-DEFENSE’ WITH HEGSETH’S S…