In an appearance on ABC’s This Week, Sen. Mark Kelly (D‑AZ) sharply criticized the Trump administration’s deployment of naval assets and use of military force in the Caribbean, calling the push against suspected Venezuelan drug smuggling vessels “questionable” and warning it risks miscasting a law‑enforcement issue as armed conflict.
Kelly told host Martha Raddatz that when lawmakers—including Republicans—pressed the White House and the Department of Defense for legal justification, officials offered shaky answers. “The White House and the Department of Defense could not give us a logical explanation on how this is legal,” he said. “They were tying themselves in knots.”
At issue is a list of roughly two dozen groups now subject to “kinetic action” authorized by the administration—essentially treating drug‑trafficking networks as if they were combatants in a war. “You don’t move a carrier strike group unless you’re planning on conducting combat operations,” Kelly said. “Starting a war against Venezuela over what is a law‑enforcement action does not make any sense.”
Kelly acknowledged drugs were found on some boats, but he disputed the administration’s framing of the campaign, especially the claim that the maritime route used was a major conduit for U.S.-bound fentanyl. “Those boats in the Caribbean do not carry fentanyl. The story that this is about fentanyl killing people is false,” he said.
He proposed redirecting funds to the U.S. Coast Guard and other law‑enforcement agencies instead of deploying military warships. Meanwhile, Democrats continue demanding clarity on Congressional authorization, oversight, and the legal basis for the strikes.
