Washington — President Trump is holding the ninth Cabinet meeting of his second term on Tuesday, as tensions with Venezuela escalate and questions swirl about the administration’s campaign against alleged drug boats in the region.
Scrutiny of the Pentagon’s handling of military strikes on the boats in the Caribbean and Pacific has increased in the wake of a Washington Post report that said the military launched a follow-up strike on Sept. 2 that killed two survivors of an initial attack. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed Monday that a second strike occurred, although she said a Navy admiral, not Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, gave the command to hit the boat again.
The report has prompted some members of Congress from both parties to voice concerns that the follow-up strike may have been a war crime. A Pentagon manual on the laws of war says combatants that are “wounded, sick, or shipwrecked” no longer pose a threat and should not be attacked.
The president also hasn’t ruled out ground action in Venezuela and has continued to express frustration with Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. Mr. Trump was expected to meet with his national security team on Venezuela and other matters on Monday.
Mr. Trump on Sunday confirmed that he’s recently spoken with Maduro, although he didn’t divulge what was said. The U.S. president has said Venezuelan airspace should be considered closed.
There is also an increasing military buildup in the region. In November, the Pentagon confirmed the nuclear-powered USS Gerald Ford — the largest aircraft carrier in the world — and other warships had entered U.S. Southern Command’s area of responsibility. That region includes the Caribbean.
Venezuela isn’t the only foreign policy issue on the table for the White House. U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and Mr. Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner are in Moscow Tuesday to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin on reaching peace in Ukraine, even as Russia continues to strike Ukraine with missiles and drones.
