Congressional testimony from Admiral Mitch Bradley on Thursday undermined a narrative pushed by some Democratic lawmakers and media outlets regarding a U.S. counter-narcotics operation carried out under the Trump administration.
A previous Washington Post report had suggested that Secretary of War Pete Hegseth told military officials to “kill them all” during a strike on suspected drug-smuggling vessels — a phrase that was interpreted by some as an order to target survivors in the water.
However, after a classified briefing with Bradley, both Democratic and Republican members of Congress said the admiral made clear that no such order was ever issued.
Rep. Jim Himes (D-CT), the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, told reporters:
“The admiral confirmed that there had not been a ‘kill them all’ order and that there was not an order to grant no quarter.”
Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR), chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, echoed the assessment, saying Bradley was “very clear” that he received no direction to kill survivors.
Bradley’s Reason for Authorizing Additional Strikes
Officials cited in reports indicated that Bradley ordered follow-up strikes because additional suspected drug boats were nearby, and survivors in the water were believed to be attempting to communicate with those vessels by radio. Lawmakers who reviewed video of the operation said the individuals in the water appeared to remain active participants during the engagement.
Political Reactions
Some Democratic lawmakers said they were still “troubled” after viewing the footage.
House Intelligence Committee Chairman Rep. Rick Crawford (R-AR) criticized those reactions, arguing that the strikes were consistent with counter-terrorism actions carried out under past administrations and accusing Democrats of applying different standards for political reasons.
Crawford said:
“Those who appear ‘troubled’ by videos of military strikes on designated terrorists have clearly never seen the Obama-ordered strikes, or, for that matter, those of any other administration over recent decades.”
He added that he was concerned lawmakers were ignoring the “realities of targeting terrorists” in order to score political points.
