President Trump’s decision to use U.S. military power against suspected drug-running vessels in the Caribbean is the kind of no-nonsense action Americans wanted when our cities were being overdosed and our children were targeted by fentanyl. Since early September the administration has publicly acknowledged multiple strikes that it says hit narco-trafficking vessels, operations the White House frames as life-or-death interdictions to keep poison off our streets. Many patriots see this as a president finally treating the cartels like the transnational killers they are instead of coddling them with endless paperwork and political sermons.
Faced with a crisis of mass addiction at home, President Trump even informed Congress that the U.S. is in a “non-international armed conflict” with designated narcotics networks, a legal posture he and his team argue gives necessary authority to stop the flow of deadly drugs. Conservatives who believe in robust executive action applaud the clarity of purpose: when the law fails to protect Americans, a commander in chief must act to defend the nation. Critics will howl about procedure, but Washington’s failure to stop the fentanyl tidal wave for decades demands decisive remedies rather than polite debate.
The strikes have not been without complications, and the situation has strained relations in the hemisphere when survivors were taken from the water and repatriated to their home countries rather than paraded as trophies by the media. Ecuador has publicly said one survivor it received was not charged after being returned, and Colombia has registered complaints and even recalled its ambassador as diplomatic tensions mount. Patriots should be honest about mistakes and demand transparency, but we should not let diplomatic squeamishness paralyze the country while cartel poison continues to kill Americans every day.
Of course, the left and many establishment legal scholars scream that these operations are unlawful and a slide into extrajudicial killings, and whistleblowers warn that intelligence is being kept secret under the guise of national security. There is legitimate debate about the legal framework and the CIA’s role in identifying targets, but anyone who cares about American lives must weigh that debate against real-world fatalities from cartel shipments. The risk of legal wrangling never justified inaction when tens of thousands of Americans were dying from synthetic drugs; accountability can come after the traffickers are broken.
What many in the patriotic camp suspect — and what even some analysts now acknowledge — is that there’s a broader strategic logic behind these operations: America is reasserting its muscle in its own backyard to blunt not only criminal networks but also malign foreign influence tied to the Maduro regime and its partners. The administration has authorized covert operations inside Venezuela and publicly tied strikes to degrading narco-networks that have long been embedded in the Maduro state, and it is no secret Beijing has deep financial ties to Caracas going back years. If these missions help reset the balance of power in the region and deny adversaries a foothold in our hemisphere, then tough-minded foreign policy should be celebrated, not vilified.
Patriotic Americans should demand two things at once: fierce, effective action to stop the fentanyl epidemic and full transparency and legal clarity from our government so that power is not abused. Congress must do its job by providing clear authorities and oversight rather than staging virtue-signaling hearings that leave our borders and neighborhoods vulnerable. President Trump is doing what too many presidents promised but never delivered: protecting ordinary Americans from criminals and foreign predators, and for once conservatives should stand proud and rally behind results that save lives.
