GOP blocks Senate effort to rein in Trump’s cartel drug boat strikes

Straight Arrow News

Watch GOP blocks Senate effort to rein in Trump’s cartel drug boat strikes - Straight Arrow News on Dailymotion

Transcript

00:00The Senate voted down a War Powers Resolution that would require the Trump administration

00:04to cease military strikes against alleged drug cartel members in and around the Caribbean

00:09Sea.

00:10You've probably seen some of the footage from military planes as they bomb boats that are

00:15allegedly carrying drugs.

00:17The vote was largely along party lines.

00:19Democrats voted in favor of the resolution.

00:21They believe the strike should stop.

00:22Republicans voted against it.

00:24They believe the strikes can continue.

00:26We spoke with Senator Tim Kaine, who was the resolution's sponsor, about the next steps.

00:31Is there a next step to your War Powers Resolution?

00:35Well, I think the next step will be the next time the president does a strike.

00:40Because I think what's going to happen is the vote of the Republicans is sort of telling

00:45him, hey, you can do whatever you want.

00:47But I don't really think that's what Republicans think.

00:50So if he were to do something on land, for example, I think that's a very different matter.

00:54So Schiff and I are going to keep renewing this.

00:58I'm not sure we'll renew it after every strike of a of a boat.

01:02But for example, if it turns out that President Petro is right and one of the strikes was a

01:07Colombian vessel, wasn't a narco trafficking vessel at all, that might be a reason to renew

01:11it.

01:11But we can there's no limit to our ability to file this resolution.

01:16So I think we would have to have some kind of a I'm very concerned that some of the strikes

01:22thus far may not have been accurately going after narco trafficking vessels.

01:28But if there is a strike where we think we have some really good facts to show, hey, look,

01:32this is unlawful.

01:32The president's gone too far.

01:34He's attacked the wrong people.

01:36So we are we are very open to renewing Congress's the muscle of exercising oversight over the

01:45president of war powers is deeply atrophied in the way you strengthen a muscle is by exercising

01:50it more.

01:51Are you concerned at all that there's a potential some of the boats may have civilians on it

01:55that are not drug traffickers?

01:59Every briefing I've got, there's no question that they're drug traffickers and they're killing

02:02American citizens and they're causing problems in our country.

02:06I'm for, you know, I think the Trump and Marco Rubio and the military, they're doing the right

02:11things.

02:12I'm glad they're doing it.

02:13And let's all remember Maduro is not the president of Venezuela.

02:16He wasn't elected, reelected as president.

02:17And Monaco is president.

02:19He's the head of drug cartels.

02:21He's indicted in New York.

02:23And so I hope at some point that he's in prison.

02:27I've got a bill that would take the amount of money that would that would go to his prosecution

02:32to a hundred million dollars.

02:33It's Venezuelan money and I hope it happens.

02:35What would you say to Republicans who currently think that the Trump administration is right

02:39to strike drug cartels?

02:41I think we need to strike drug cartels.

02:44The question is how, with what authority?

02:48The Coast Guard and other authorities ought to be used to apprehend any kind of cartel movement,

02:55any transportation of drugs, any illicit activity.

02:58It's a law enforcement function and we ought to use it to the full extent of the law.

03:02And there ought to be funding which this administration has cut for pursuit of drug

03:08enforcement and other criminal activities in the United States.

03:12They've cut tens of millions, in fact hundreds of millions of dollars from the Justice Department

03:18and other agencies.

03:19I'm Ray Bogan for Straight Arrow News.

03:21For more unbiased reporting straight from our nation's capital, download the SAN app.

03:28We'll see you all in the next one on the next one on the next one.

Category

Transcript

Be the first to comment

Recommended