In a Sunday interview on Face the Nation, Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) cast serious doubt on the legality of the Trump administration’s military strikes against alleged “drug boats” in the Caribbean Sea, describing the justification as “questionable at best.”

Host Margaret Brennan opened the discussion by noting growing internal concerns within U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM). According to multiple reports, SOUTHCOM’s senior judge advocate raised significant doubts about the legality of the strikes—doubts that were later contradicted by executive-branch lawyers. Brennan pressed Kelly on whether he had spoken with the SOUTHCOM commander and whether lawmakers were hearing indications of unlawful orders being issued.

Kelly said the administration has provided little information to Congress, but he has reviewed the available legal analyses. He argued they read like strained attempts to defend an operation that is difficult to justify:

“They’re tying themselves in knots trying to explain why what they’re doing with these drug boats is legal… and it’s questionable at best.”

Kelly also revealed that the United Kingdom has stopped sharing intelligence with the U.S. in the Caribbean due to concerns about the legality of the operations. France has gone further, publicly stating that the strikes violate international law and the law of the sea—signaling rising worry among key U.S. allies.

The senator emphasized that lawmakers have been requesting more briefings, but the administration has not provided any additional detail, leaving Congress to rely solely on publicly available information and deepening suspicion on Capitol Hill.

In short: While the White House continues to defend the anti-drug strikes as both necessary and lawful, Democrats—and increasingly, America’s closest allies—warn that the U.S. may be crossing serious legal lines, potentially triggering diplomatic fallout and operational complications across the region.