Washington, DC -- Representative Gregory W. Meeks, Ranking Member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, today delivered the following remarks on the floor during debate on House Concurrent Resolution 61, a War Powers Resolution he introduced that would end the Trump administration's extrajudicial military strikes in the Western Hemisphere.
Full remarks as prepared:
"Since September 2, the administration has carried out 23 known strikes killing 95 people.
"Among these was a so-called 'double-tap' strike, where U.S. forces killed two survivors clinging to the wreckage of a destroyed vessel in the open sea. The administration now refuses to release the video of this strike denying the American people the ability to see for themselves what is being done in their names. Many believe this strike may constitute a war crime.
"Following another strike, on October 16, the Department of Defense repatriated two survivors to their home countries rather than prosecuting them in U.S. courts, as we would expect if these individuals were, in fact, dangerous drug traffickers bound for the United States. No arrests. No interrogation. No intelligence collection. That decision raises serious questions about the administration’s own assessment of threat, necessity, and purpose.
"These strikes have not been authorized by Congress, and the administration has not sought Congressional authorization to use lethal military force to address alleged criminal activity that, under U.S. law, does not carry the death penalty. That is a profound escalation, and one Congress has neither debated nor approved.
"If this is truly about addressing drugs, the administration’s actions tell a very different story. Why did the president pardon Ross Ulbricht, who ran one of the largest online drug marketplaces in history, and was serving a double life sentence?
"Why did the president pardon the former President of Honduras, whom a U.S. court convicted and sentenced for flooding the U.S. with 400 tons of cocaine and bragged he would, quote, 'shove the drugs right up the noses of the gringos.'
"I’m a former special narcotics prosecutor and I know this: you don’t run a serious counternarcotics strategy by carrying out the death penalty for those on the bottom of the drug trade while freeing those at the very top.
"At the same time, the administration asks us to believe that deploying fighter jets, an aircraft carrier, and more than 15,000 troops to the Caribbean is merely a counter-drug mission. This is the largest U.S. military buildup in the region since the Cuban Missile Crisis.
"If this was really about drugs, why are U.S. forces seizing oil tankers? The stated mission, the scale of the buildup, and the actions taken simply do not align.
"The administration can’t keep its story straight and it is no longer trying to hide its real motivations. Senior officials, including President Trump himself, have made clear that the real objective is provoking a conflict with Venezuela to oust Maduro. As Trump’s Chief of Staff said to Vanity Fair, quote, 'he wants to keep on blowing boats up until Maduro cries uncle.'
"They’ve openly coveted Venezuela’s oil. And despite promising to end wars, this president is threatening military invasions not just in Venezuela, but across the Western Hemisphere.
"Just last night Trump declared, quote, 'Venezuela is completely surrounded by the largest Armada ever assembled in the History of South America,' and that the 'shock' will be like nothing they have ever seen.
"This is not strategy. This is a game. And the president is playing it with the lives of American service members, threatening a regime change war with no plan for what comes next.
"This president wants to be judge, jury, and executioner. But Congress is a co-equal branch, and the Constitution vests this body with authority over matters of war and peace. That power has too often been ceded. But earlier this month, on a bipartisan and bicameral basis, we repealed outdated Authorizations for Use of Military Force to prevent presidents of either party from abusing it. We cannot now abandon our constitutional duty over these strikes in the Western Hemisphere.
"Even if you disagree with me when I say these strikes are not about making Americans safer... That they’re about oil... That they’re about another reckless foreign war... Or stretching presidential power toward that of a king.
"This vote is ultimately not about whether you agree with the administration’s policy. It is about whether any president can take these actions without congressional approval. Congress must make clear that no president can unilaterally draw the U.S. into a conflict the American people do not want.
"I urge my colleagues to reject the administration’s shifting legal rationales and vote yes on this War Powers Resolution. With that, I reserve the balance of my time."
Full remarks as prepared:
"Since September 2, the administration has carried out 23 known strikes killing 95 people.
"Among these was a so-called 'double-tap' strike, where U.S. forces killed two survivors clinging to the wreckage of a destroyed vessel in the open sea. The administration now refuses to release the video of this strike denying the American people the ability to see for themselves what is being done in their names. Many believe this strike may constitute a war crime.
"Following another strike, on October 16, the Department of Defense repatriated two survivors to their home countries rather than prosecuting them in U.S. courts, as we would expect if these individuals were, in fact, dangerous drug traffickers bound for the United States. No arrests. No interrogation. No intelligence collection. That decision raises serious questions about the administration’s own assessment of threat, necessity, and purpose.
"These strikes have not been authorized by Congress, and the administration has not sought Congressional authorization to use lethal military force to address alleged criminal activity that, under U.S. law, does not carry the death penalty. That is a profound escalation, and one Congress has neither debated nor approved.
"If this is truly about addressing drugs, the administration’s actions tell a very different story. Why did the president pardon Ross Ulbricht, who ran one of the largest online drug marketplaces in history, and was serving a double life sentence?
"Why did the president pardon the former President of Honduras, whom a U.S. court convicted and sentenced for flooding the U.S. with 400 tons of cocaine and bragged he would, quote, 'shove the drugs right up the noses of the gringos.'
"I’m a former special narcotics prosecutor and I know this: you don’t run a serious counternarcotics strategy by carrying out the death penalty for those on the bottom of the drug trade while freeing those at the very top.
"At the same time, the administration asks us to believe that deploying fighter jets, an aircraft carrier, and more than 15,000 troops to the Caribbean is merely a counter-drug mission. This is the largest U.S. military buildup in the region since the Cuban Missile Crisis.
"If this was really about drugs, why are U.S. forces seizing oil tankers? The stated mission, the scale of the buildup, and the actions taken simply do not align.
"The administration can’t keep its story straight and it is no longer trying to hide its real motivations. Senior officials, including President Trump himself, have made clear that the real objective is provoking a conflict with Venezuela to oust Maduro. As Trump’s Chief of Staff said to Vanity Fair, quote, 'he wants to keep on blowing boats up until Maduro cries uncle.'
"They’ve openly coveted Venezuela’s oil. And despite promising to end wars, this president is threatening military invasions not just in Venezuela, but across the Western Hemisphere.
"Just last night Trump declared, quote, 'Venezuela is completely surrounded by the largest Armada ever assembled in the History of South America,' and that the 'shock' will be like nothing they have ever seen.
"This is not strategy. This is a game. And the president is playing it with the lives of American service members, threatening a regime change war with no plan for what comes next.
"This president wants to be judge, jury, and executioner. But Congress is a co-equal branch, and the Constitution vests this body with authority over matters of war and peace. That power has too often been ceded. But earlier this month, on a bipartisan and bicameral basis, we repealed outdated Authorizations for Use of Military Force to prevent presidents of either party from abusing it. We cannot now abandon our constitutional duty over these strikes in the Western Hemisphere.
"Even if you disagree with me when I say these strikes are not about making Americans safer... That they’re about oil... That they’re about another reckless foreign war... Or stretching presidential power toward that of a king.
"This vote is ultimately not about whether you agree with the administration’s policy. It is about whether any president can take these actions without congressional approval. Congress must make clear that no president can unilaterally draw the U.S. into a conflict the American people do not want.
"I urge my colleagues to reject the administration’s shifting legal rationales and vote yes on this War Powers Resolution. With that, I reserve the balance of my time."