Politics Nov 30 Lawmakers voice bipartisan support for congressional reviews of Trump’s boat strikes By Kevin Freking, Associated Press
World Nov 16 U.S. aircraft carrier arrives in the Caribbean in major buildup near Venezuela The nation's most advanced aircraft carrier arrived in the Caribbean Sea on Sunday in a display of U.S. military power, raising questions about what the new influx of troops and weaponry could signal for the Trump administration's drug enforcement campaign in South America. By Ben Finley, Associated Press
World Nov 13 Watch 8:18 Military personnel seek legal advice on whether Trump-ordered missions are lawful Military service personnel have been seeking outside legal advice about some of the missions the Trump administration has assigned them. The strikes against alleged drug traffickers and deployments to U.S. cities have sparked a debate over their legality. Amna Nawaz… By Amna Nawaz, Dan Sagalyn, Winston Wilde, Liz Landers
World Nov 07 Trump has accused boat strike targets of being narco-terrorists. The truth is more nuanced, AP investigation finds In dozens of interviews in villages on Venezuela’s breathtaking northeastern coast, from which some of the boats departed, residents and relatives said the dead men had indeed been running drugs but were not narco-terrorists or leaders of a cartel or gang. By Regina Garcia Cano, Associated Press
Politics Nov 01 New Pentagon policy undercuts transgender troops’ ability to fight military ban, AP reports The Pentagon has rolled out a new policy that will severely undercut the ability for transgender troops who have been banned from the armed forces by the Trump administration to turn to boards of their peers to argue for their right to… By Konstantin Toropin, Associated Press
Oct 31 Hegseth vows in talks with China that U.S. will ‘stoutly defend’ Indo-Pacific interests By Eileen Ng, Associated Press The U.S. Secretary of Defense said Friday he told his Chinese counterpart during talks in Malaysia that Washington would “stoutly defend” its interests in the Indo-Pacific. He also signed a new agreement aimed at strengthening security ties with India. Continue reading
Oct 31 WATCH: Trump denies U.S. is considering strikes against Venezuela By Associated Press The Trump administration has carried out a series of strikes on boats in the Pacific Ocean that it contends were carrying drugs. The strikes have killed 61 people and the U.S. has also built up an unusually large force of… Continue reading
Oct 30 Hegseth orders military to send dozens of attorneys to help the Justice Department, AP learns By Konstantin Toropin, Associated Press Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered the military to provide dozens of lawyers to the Justice Department for temporary assignments in Memphis and near the U.S.-Mexico border that could run through next fall, according to a memo released this week and… Continue reading
Oct 30 WATCH: Warner criticizes Trump administration’s exclusion of Democrats from boat strikes briefing By Mary Clare Jalonick, Joey Cappelletti, Associated Press The Trump administration’s increasing efforts to exclude Democrats from national security briefings could endanger troops and keep important information from the public, the top Democrat on the Senate intelligence committee warned Thursday. Continue reading
Oct 28 U.S. launches strikes on 4 alleged drug-running boats in the eastern Pacific, killing 14 By Konstantin Toropin, Associated Press Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Tuesday that the U.S. military has carried out strikes in the eastern Pacific Ocean on four boats accused of carrying drugs, killing 14 people and leaving one survivor in the deadliest single day since the… Continue reading