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GOP fractures over Hegseth’s ‘double-tap’ Caribbean strike as Congress probes legality
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Senate Republicans are divided on their view of the deadly Sept. 2 strikes in the Caribbean as congressional inquiries into the matter mount, with some arguing that subduing suspected drug boats is the right move while others question the legality of the so-called double-tap attacks.
The Senate and House Armed Services committees are gearing up for hearings into the strikes after reports that Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, later confirmed by the White House, authorized a second strike to eliminate survivors on a suspected drug boat in the Caribbean.
But there is a growing tension among Republicans over what to do. Some support the desire of Senate Armed Services Committee Chair Roger Wicker, R-Miss., for stringent oversight of the incident, while others see the strikes as part of the Trump administration’s crackdown on drugs flowing into the country.
JOHNSON POINTS TO OBAMA-ERA DRONE PRECEDENT AS CONGRESS PROBES DEADLY CARIBBEAN STRIKE
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth defended the Trump administration’s strikes on alleged drug vessels in the Caribbean Sea on Friday. (Omar Havana/Getty Images)
Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, told Fox News Digital he was «very, very, very supportive of killing drug dealers. I think the more narco-terrorists that we kill, that we save American lives.»
«I’m not concerned about killing people whose intent was to kill Americans at all,» Moreno said.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed that Hegseth gave the green light for the second strike, but noted that it was Adm. Frank Bradley, the head of U.S. Special Operations Command, who ordered and directed it.
That confirmation came after a report from The Washington Post claimed Hegseth had ordered to «kill them all,» which some on the Hill have disputed.
HEGSETH BACKS SPECIAL OPS CHIEF’S ‘COMBAT DECISIONS’ IN DEADLY CARIBBEAN STRIKE AHEAD OF CLASSIFIED BRIEFING
Sen. John Kennedy pauses while speaking to members of the media at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, May 21, 2019. (Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., said he read the article and charged that there «wasn’t an exact quote from Secretary Hegseth. There was an anonymous source paraphrased what the secretary allegedly said.»
«So, here we’ve got a story in The Washington Post, which is known to hate Trump and Republicans, by a reporter who is citing an anonymous source that supposedly is saying that Hegseth said it before the strike even happened, but they don’t know exactly what he said,» Kennedy said. «That is a waste of your time and mine.»
When pressed about Leavitt’s confirmation of the authorization, Kennedy said, «I don’t care what the White House press secretary said.»
Still, some Republicans want answers to what exactly happened.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., reiterated that he believed that the Senate and House Armed Services committees’ impending probes into the matter was a «natural place» to look at what happened with the strikes, but he stopped short of weighing in on whether a second strike was right or wrong.
«Well, I don’t know the particulars yet, and that’s why we’re gonna have the — we’ll look,» Thune said.
BIPARTISAN SENATORS CALL ON HEGSETH TO RELEASE STRIKE ORDERS ON ALLEGED DRUG BOATS IN CARIBBEAN
Sen. Jack Reed listens during a Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, March 3, 2022. (Tom Williams-Pool/Getty Images)
Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., said that since the report came out, «We want to get to the facts.»
«Obviously, if there was a direction to take a second shot and kill people, that’s a violation of an ethical, moral or legal code,» Tillis said. «We need to get to the bottom of it. But right now, it could be, I think, was it Oxford that the word of the year is ‘rage bait’? Could be rage bait too. So we want to get to the facts.»
Senate Democrats are demanding a fulsome dive into the incident, and toeing the line of whether what transpired was a war crime.
Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., the top-ranking Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, said he expected to have a briefing with Bradley this week.
When asked what questions he wanted to be answered, Reed said the top priority was to find out whether the strikes comported with «the law of war and [Uniform Code of Military Justice] and international law.»
«I think one of the easiest ways to begin to dispel the question is to make public the video of the strikes,» Reed said.
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Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., has, time and again this Congress, remained a staunch critic of action taken in Iran and in the Caribbean and moved to curtail the administration’s actions through resolutions that would stymie President Donald Trump’s war powers.
He said lawmakers needed to get to the bottom of «whether a war crime has been committed.»
Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., was cautious not to fully paint the incident as a war crime before getting more facts, adding that he hoped the reports of the strikes were «not accurate.»
«I will say, though you know as somebody who has sunk two ships myself, that folks in the military need to understand, you know, the law of the sea, the Geneva Conventions, what the law says,» Kelly said. «And I’m concerned that if there were, in fact, as reported, you know, survivors clinging to a damaged vessel, that could be, you know, over a line. I hope it’s not the case.»
senate,pete hegseth,white house,defense,politics
INTERNACIONAL
Trump anunció la firma de un acuerdo internacional sobre semiconductores con Japón, Australia, Corea del Sur y Singapur
El presidente de Estados Unidos, Donald Trump, anunció este jueves la inminente firma de un acuerdo internacional sobre semiconductores con Japón, Australia, Corea del Sur y Singapur, denominado Iniciativa Pax Silica, con el objetivo de impulsar una política económica robusta centrada en el desarrollo de inteligencia artificial.
Trump, en declaraciones desde el Despacho Oval, subrayó la importancia de la medida: “No hacer esto hubiera sido un gran regalo para muchos países, pero para China en particular”.
Según el Departamento de Estado, la iniciativa busca reunir a los países sede de las empresas tecnológicas más avanzadas para liberar el potencial económico de la IA, aprovechando activos estratégicos comunes como la computación, el silicio, minerales y energía.
La cumbre Pax Silica tendrá lugar este viernes en Washington, con la participación adicional de Países Bajos, Emiratos Árabes Unidos, Canadá y representantes de la Unión Europea.
La cartera, liderada por el secretario de Estado Marco Rubio, explicó que los países “explorarán alianzas multidimensionales para reforzar la seguridad de la cadena de suministro, reducir dependencias coercitivas, proteger puntos críticos y fomentar ecosistemas tecnológicos confiables en áreas como semiconductores, conectividad, fabricación avanzada y energía”.
El pasado lunes, Trump anunció que su administración permitirá a la empresa tecnológica Nvidia exportar sus chips de inteligencia artificial H200 a determinados clientes en China y otros países, bajo condiciones diseñadas para salvaguardar los intereses de seguridad nacional.
Este anuncio, emitido a través de Truth Social, representa un giro respecto a las restricciones que Washington impuso en los últimos años para limitar el acceso de Beijing a semiconductores avanzados esenciales para el desarrollo de sistemas de IA. Trump reveló que el líder chino, Xi Jinping, “respondió positivamente” al ser informado sobre la decisión.
En la misma publicación, el mandatario republicano precisó que “el 25% será pagado a los Estados Unidos de América”, aunque no aclaró si se trata de un impuesto, tarifa u otro mecanismo financiero. Funcionarios estadounidenses consultados por medios locales no respondieron sobre los detalles de esta disposición.
Según Trump, el Departamento de Comercio de Estados Unidos está ultimando los lineamientos que regirán las exportaciones de chips de inteligencia artificial, como parte del proceso para autorizar ventas controladas a clientes en China y otros países y aclaró que este enfoque regulatorio también se aplicará a otras empresas estadounidenses del sector tecnológico, incluyendo AMD e Intel, ambas fabricantes de procesadores clave para sistemas de computación avanzada.
Según un informe publicado el domingo 7 de diciembre por el Institute for Progress, el chip H200 de Nvidia ofrece un desempeño casi seis veces superior al H20, el semiconductor más avanzado que actualmente puede exportarse legalmente a China luego de la reversión de una prohibición previa.
El estudio señala que el acceso al H200 permitiría a laboratorios chinos desarrollar supercomputadoras de inteligencia artificial con capacidades cercanas a las de los centros de referencia en Estados Unidos, aunque con un mayor costo operativo.
A pesar de la flexibilización anunciada respecto al H200, el presidente Donald Trump aclaró que los chips más recientes de Nvidia —la generación Blackwell— continuarán bajo un régimen de bloqueo y no podrán ser exportados a China.
(Con información de EFE)
Business,Domestic Politics,Top Picture,Corporate Events,North America,Government / Politics
INTERNACIONAL
Trump administration offers $5M reward for capture of fugitive Los Choneros gang leader
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The Trump administration is offering a $5 million reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the leader of Los Choneros, a gang the State Department designated a foreign terrorist organization (FTO) in September.
The State Department’s Narcotics Reward Program announced the reward Thursday for Ecuadorian fugitive Francisco Manuel Bermúdez Cagua, also known as «Churron,» because the gang he belongs to is allegedly responsible for trafficking drugs and guns into the U.S. and carrying out extreme acts of violence.
The 29-year-old was charged with international cocaine distribution conspiracy, international cocaine distribution and using firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking, according to a superseding indictment filed in the Eastern District of New York.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York brought the charges, and the superseding indictment was unsealed in June.
TRUMP WARNS US MAY LAUNCH LAND OPERATIONS INSIDE VENEZUELA ‘VERY SOON,’ SAYS REGIME SENT ‘KILLERS’ TO AMERICA
The U.S. is offering a $5 million reward for alleged Los Choneros Lt. Francisco Bermúdez Cagua, who is accused of cocaine trafficking and violent acts. (Department of Justice)
«As alleged, Bermúdez Cagua is a top lieutenant within the leadership of Los Choneros, an extremely violent foreign terrorist organization responsible for pumping drugs into the United States, causing harm to our communities and wreaking havoc in his homeland of Ecuador,» U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. of the Eastern District of New York said.
«The significant reward being offered by the State Department underscores our resolve to bring Los Choneros’ leadership to justice in a U.S. courthouse and eradicate such organizations.»
Alleged co-conspirator José Adolfo Macías Villamar, also known as «Fito,» 46, was extradited to New York in July 2025. The Department of Justice said he is an Ecuadorian citizen who also faces international drug trafficking and firearms charges.
Darío Javier Peñafiel Nieto, also known as «Topo,» 35, is an alleged co-conspirator in the superseding indictment and is in custody in Ecuador.
COAST GUARD HELICOPTER SNIPER TAKES OUT NARCO-BOAT ENGINES IN STUNNING EXCLUSIVE VIDEO
Ecuadorian police forces carry out a security operation as part of the fight against extortion gangs in a shantytown in the northeast of Guayaquil, Ecuador, April 4, 2024. (Gerardo Menoscal/AFP via Getty Images)
«We will use every tool in our arsenal to stop the brutal criminals who are trafficking deadly drugs into our country,» Chris Landberg of the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs said.
«We are offering a reward of up to $5 million under the Narcotics Rewards Program for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of Bermúdez Cagua.»
The indictment alleges that Los Choneros was one of the most violent transnational criminal organizations operating out of Ecuador.
The group’s network moved multi-ton quantities of cocaine from South America, funneling shipments through Central America, Mexico and the U.S., among other locations, the indictment alleges.
MODEL, DJ LINKED TO VIOLENT TREN DE ARAGUA GANG LEADER SANCTIONED BY TRUMP ADMINISTRATION
Soldiers keep watch outside the Zonal 8 prison in Guayaquil, Ecuador, Jan. 11, 2024. (Henry Romero/Reuters)
The alleged co-conspirators are accused of directing and ordering acts of violence to advance the organization’s goals.
The State Department designated Los Choneros as an FTO in September 2025.
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«Bermúdez Cagua is a high-ranking narco-terrorist whose actions have fueled the flow of cocaine into the United States and sown chaos in Ecuador,» U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration Administrator Terrance Cole said. «The DEA is resolute in its mission to turn up the pressure and bring this dangerous individual to justice.»
The DEA encourages anyone with information about Bermúdez Cagua’s whereabouts to contact the agency at Ecuadortips@dea.gov or +593-988-292-235. All information will be kept confidential.
state department,new york,south america,organized crime,narco terror,justice department,politics
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Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke by phone with Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro on Thursday and reassured him of Moscow’s support as the Venezuelan leader faces escalating external pressure, according to a statement from the Kremlin.
In the call, reported by Reuters, Putin expressed support for Maduro’s government «in the face of growing external pressure,» as the United States under President Donald Trump continues to push for Maduro’s removal from office. Washington has increased military activity in the Caribbean as part of its pressure campaign.
The Kremlin said the two leaders discussed their shared interest in advancing a strategic partnership agreement and moving forward on joint projects in the economic and energy sectors. Moscow has long viewed Venezuela as a key partner in Latin America, particularly as both governments face isolation and international sanctions.
RETIRED GENERAL HAILS TRUMP’S ‘HOLISTIC’ CRACKDOWN ON VENEZUELAN DRUG TRAFFICKING AS SHOWDOWN ESCALATES
Russian President Vladimir Putin shakes hands with his Venezuelan counterpart Nicolas Maduro. (Maxim Shemetov/AFP/Getty Images))
The call came one day after the United States seized a massive, U.S.-sanctioned Venezuelan oil tanker off the country’s coast, escalating already tense relations between Caracas and Washington.
According to Fox News Digital’s report, the Venezuelan government condemned the seizure as a violation of its sovereignty and accused Washington of hostile action against its economic interests. The Trump administration has intensified enforcement targeting Venezuela’s oil sector, which remains the backbone of Maduro’s government despite years of decline.
TRUMP WARNS US MAY LAUNCH LAND OPERATIONS INSIDE VENEZUELA ‘VERY SOON,’ SAYS REGIME SENT ‘KILLERS’ TO AMERICA
Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro brandishes a sword during an event at the military academy in Caracas, Venezuela, Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2025. (Ariana Cubillos/AP Photo)
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi confirmed that federal agencies, including the FBI, Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Coast Guard, carried out the tanker operation and released unclassified video footage of the seizure. The move followed a federal warrant tied to sanctions violations.
President Trump publicly acknowledged the operation, describing the vessel as the largest tanker ever seized by the United States. Reuters reported that the action caused oil prices to rise and added new strain to U.S.–Venezuela relations.
Russia–Venezuela ties
Russia and Venezuela have maintained a close relationship for more than two decades, a partnership that deepened during the presidency of Hugo Chávez and continued under Nicolás Maduro. According to Reuters, cooperation between the two countries has focused on defense, energy production and financial assistance.
Over the past several years, Moscow has supplied military equipment to Caracas, supported Venezuela’s state oil company through joint ventures, and extended loans and credit lines that have helped keep parts of the country’s oil sector functioning. Venezuela has taken billions of dollars in Russian loans and financing arrangements tied to Venezuela’s crude exports.
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Soldiers with their faces painted march during a military parade to celebrate the 205th anniversary of Venezuela’s independence in Caracas, Venezuela July 5, 2016. (Carlos Jasso/Reuters)
Despite international sanctions targeting both governments, Russia has consistently treated Venezuela as a strategic partner. The U.S. Congressional Research Service reports describe the relationship as durable and largely unaffected by short-term political shifts or external pressure. Moscow has continued to offer diplomatic backing and economic cooperation even as Venezuela’s domestic crisis worsened and U.S. pressure campaigns intensified.
Fox News Digital’s Ashley Carnahan, the Associated Press and Reuters contributed to the story.
russia,vladimir putin,venezuelan political crisis,donald trump
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