Venezuela Strike Fallout, Birthright Citizenship Challenge, & a Major Vaccine Rollback

1. Venezuela: This week, we learned new details about the U.S. strike on a small Venezuelan boat that killed 11 people on September 2. Lawmakers who viewed the unedited footage of the attack say two survivors were clearly incapacitated when a second missile hit, killing them both — which would violate the rules of armed conflict. The Pentagon continues to insist the boat posed an “imminent threat,” but reporting and video evidence seriously undermine those claims. More in Top Story.
2. Birthright Debate: The Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case questioning the constitutionality of President Trump’s move to end birthright citizenship, currently protected by the 14th Amendment which says children born on American soil — regardless of the parents’ status — are U.S. citizens. The Court will hear oral arguments in the spring and is expected to issue a decision in early summer. "The amendment was intended to overrule one of the Supreme Court’s most notorious decisions, its 1857 ruling in Dred Scott v. Sandford, holding that a Black person whose ancestors were brought to the United States and enslaved was not entitled to any protection from the federal courts because he was not a U.S. citizen.” Trump — who issued an executive order to end the practice — was challenged in lower courts and has been put on hold. He has called birthright citizenship “ridiculous.”
3. Vaccine Changes: The CDC just made a major change to childhood vaccination: it ending the universal recommendation that every newborn receive the hepatitis B shot at birth. Only babies whose mothers test positive — or whose status is unknown — will now get the vaccine in the delivery room. Everyone else is told to wait at least two months. Doctors and public-health experts are furious. For decades, that birth dose has protected kids and nearly wiped out hepatitis B in the U.S. They warn the rollback will confuse parents and clinicians, inject a “false sense of scientific uncertainty,” and open the door to new infections. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a longtime vaccine skeptic, replaced the CDC advisory panel with allies before the vote. And right after it passed, President Trump ordered Kennedy to launch a sweeping review of the entire childhood vaccine schedule — aiming to align U.S. recommendations with “peer developed countries.”

On his first day in office, President Trump issued an order redefining certain drug cartels as terrorist organizations — a sharp break from long-standing U.S. practice, which has always treated drug traffickers as criminals motivated by profit, not ideology.

By labeling them as terrorists, the administration unlocked counterterrorism authorities that allow lethal force abroad with far less oversight than traditional criminal or military operations. That single move laid the legal groundwork for nearly two dozen deadly strikes that have killed more than 80 people since September — all carried out without warning or due process.

This week, one particular strike is forcing many to consider whether the U.S. military killed two shipwrecked survivors who posed no threat and built a legal structure in advance to justify doing so without oversight.

The Strike

On September 2nd, the U.S. military fired on a small boat in the Caribbean, claiming the people on board were drug smugglers tied to violent cartels and posed an “imminent threat” to the United States — even though they were nearly 2,000 miles from U.S. shores. Soon after, Trump posted an edited clip of the strike on social media.

About a week later, The Intercept reported that the boat had been surveilled for hours and was struck more than once to kill everyone. Even more damning to the government's claims, according to sources, the people on board realized they were being followed and turned away from U.S. territory, heading toward Trinidad and Tobago. The U.S. struck the boat anyway — killing all 11 people destroying any justification of “imminent threat."

On Black Friday, The Washington Post revealed that the U.S. had launched not one strike, but two intended to kill everyone on the boat:

• First strike: A missile killed nine people.
• Afterward: Surveillance footage showed two survivors in the water.
• Second strike: Commander Mitch Bradley ordered another missile to kill the remaining survivors.

Sources said Bradley believed he was acting on Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s pre-mission guidance to “kill everybody.” Hegseth denies saying this but insists Bradley “made the right choice.”

Bradley later argued the survivors were “legitimate targets” because they could theoretically call for help, swim back to the inoperable boat, and resume their alleged mission to infest the US with more lethal drugs. The Pentagon told Congress the boat posed a “navigation hazard.”

Lawmakers Finally See the Full Footage

This week, after The Washington Post report, lawmakers summoned Bradley for a closed-door briefing and viewed the unedited footage – showing both strikes.

Rep. Jim Himes (D-CT) called it “deeply disturbing,” saying it showed two men who were clearly incapacitated, in need of help, and no longer a threat. Under international law, any second strike would be illegal.

Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) said he didn’t see anything concerning. On CNN, he suggested one man removed his shirt to “sunbathe” and said the pair looked like they were trying to “flip a boat loaded with drugs.”

Bradley told lawmakers that Hegseth never said to "kill everybody."

Why the Government’s Defense Falls Apart

Cotton and Bradley’s claims collapse under the most basic scrutiny:

• A missile-struck vessel is inoperable; flipping wreckage is likely survival, not evidence of criminal intent.
• The cocaine reportedly aboard would have been incinerated or dissolved on impact.
• A removed shirt could be a signal of surrender and certainly no sane person would be sunbathing after surviving a missile attack.
• Calling for help — even if it happened, and Cotton says it did not appear in the footage — does not justify killing incapacitated people.

Americans do not need expertise in international humanitarian law to understand that killing two stranded, injured men treading water is wrong. The Pentagon’s own Law of War Manual explicitly calls attacking people incapacitated “dishonorable and inhumane.”

The Legal Architecture Behind the Strike

None of this appears improvisational. The administration’s early policy decisions created a durable foundation for lethal force without congressional oversight.

A secret Pentagon directive labeled traffickers — now considered members of designated terrorist organizations — as “enemy combatants,” making them targetable with lethal force. This directive:

• allowed the military to bypass the normal law-enforcement process used for drug interdiction
• shielded personnel from prosecution if they followed orders “consistent with the laws of war”
• enabled the administration to operate under a post-9/11 counterterrorism model: military force anywhere, anytime, without congressional authorization

This replaced the traditional Coast Guard interdiction model, where suspects are detained and given due process--not killed. As Secretary of State Marco Rubio put it this week: instead of interdicting a suspect vessel, “we blew it up.”

After the Briefing

Himes reiterated that the footage was among the worst things he has seen in public office. Cotton said Bradley told lawmakers Hegseth did not order him to kill everyone.

But at this stage, the who-said-what does not matter.

If the video shows two incapacitated, stranded people who no longer posed an imminent threat, then killing them was illegal — even if they had been enemy combatants, even in wartime, even if Hegseth never uttered the phrase “kill everybody.”

WHAT THE FACTS SHOW

1. Imminent Threat / Self-Defense: Self-defense requires an imminent threat. According to sources,

• the boat was surveilled for hours
• it turned away from U.S. territory
• it was heading toward Trinidad, not the United States

2. Enemy Combatant Designation: Even if these men were combatants, Pentagon rules are explicit: incapacitated individuals cannot be lawfully targeted.

3. “Protecting Americans”: The Pentagon informed lawmakers the shipment was cocaine, not fentanyl. Cocaine from this region typically moves to Europe and West Africa, not the United States. The administration has acknowledged this.

Why Not Declare War?

Under the War Powers Act, the president cannot carry out sustained military operations for more than 60 days without congressional approval — a safeguard meant to prevent exactly this kind of unilateral warfare. But by classifying these killings as “counterterrorism actions” instead of hostilities, the administration skirts that limit entirely. It’s a loophole large enough to run an undeclared war through.

“Our current operations in the Caribbean are lawful under both U.S. and international law, with all actions in compliance with the law of armed conflict—and approved by the best military and civilian lawyers, up and down the chain of command." - Pete Hegseth

The Bigger Picture

Increasingly, this “fight on drugs” resembles a premeditated effort to kill people the U.S. does not want to deal with — swiftly, quietly, and without accountability. As many suspect, it also conveniently provides leverage to destabilize or unseat foreign leaders --like Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro – when it suits U.S. political or economic interests.

Whether these men were drug couriers, “enemy combatants,” or something else entirely, killing shipwrecked survivors who posed no imminent threat is a crime — under international law, under the Pentagon’s own rules, and by any basic measure of humanity.

The question now is whether Congress, the courts, or the public will demand accountability — or whether this new model of unchecked executive violence becomes the norm.

RELATED:

📁 Are Hegseth's days numbered? A Pentagon watchdog says Hegseth violated protocols by discussing sensitive information about a pending attack on Houthi rebels in April via his personal cellphone on Signal — to which someone inadvertently invited a journalist to. The report also states that Hegseth does have the authority to declassify information, meaning he didn’t violate any laws. Hegseth claims the report exonerates him of any wrongdoing — which might be technically true but certainly doesn’t restore confidence in his ability to do his job.

👀 Rep. Shri Thanedar (D-MI) says he has filed articles of impeachment against Hegseth for being incompetent.

📰 Conveniently, the Pentagon continues to block outlets such as AP, CNN, The Washington Post, Newsmax, and Reuters from briefings, granting access instead to a newly credentialed conservative-leaning press corps who aren't asking any hard questions.

EXECUTIVE

• This week, Trump issued some questionable pardons and commutations:
  • Juan Orlando Hernández (Honduras) — Pardoned: The former president was serving 45 years for helping traffickers move 400 tons of cocaine into the U.S. Trump says he was “set up” by the Biden administration. Honduras’ AG says Hernández could still face charges if he returns home.
  • David Gentile — Clemency: Convicted of wire and securities fraud and sentenced to seven years — released after serving just 12 days. The Biden DOJ said Gentile and his partner defrauded more than 10,000 investors in a Ponzi scheme. With clemency, he avoids millions in restitution. A civil case is still pending in New York.
  • Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-TX) — Pardoned: Cuellar and his wife were indicted for accepting hundreds of thousands in bribes from foreign interests. Trump praised Cuellar for having “bravely spoke out” against Democrats on immigration.
• Trump says he will void all orders — including pardons and commutations — that Biden signed using an autopen. Trump alleges, without evidence, that Biden was “out of it” and staff signed documents without his knowledge. Legal experts expect this to fail in court.
• One day before Thanksgiving, a Georgia prosecutor dropped the state case against Trump and his allies over the 2020 election interference plot — including Trump’s call demanding Brad Raffensperger “find” enough votes. Prosecutor Pete Skandalakis cited the long timeline: “Bringing this case before a jury in 2029, 2030 or even 2031 would be nothing short of a remarkable feat.” If convicted, Trump and his allies would not have qualified for state-level pardons.
• On Tuesday, Trump said he doesn’t want Somali immigrants in the U.S., claiming they “contribute nothing” and rely heavily on welfare. He also announced a targeted immigration sweep in Minnesota, though advocates say 95% of Somalis there are U.S. citizens. Trump has previously accused Somalis of eating cats and dogs.
• Under CBP chief Gregory Bovino, raids began this week in New Orleans. Local lawyers and activists say multiple U.S. citizens and lawful residents have already been arrested. In Chicago, body camera footage previously revealed Bovino misled a court to justify aggressive tactics.
• Trump advisors — including son-in-law Jared Kushner and envoy Steve Witkoff — met with Putin in Moscow to discuss a draft peace plan. Putin accused Europe of sabotaging the talks. Later in the week, Kushner and Witkoff met with Ukrainian officials and described those conversations as “positive.” Putin told reporters there are parts of the proposed deal he finds unacceptable. The State Department said: “Both parties agreed that real progress toward any agreement depends on Russia’s readiness to show serious commitment to long-term peace, including steps toward de-escalation and cessation of killings. Meanwhile, Russia was launching major strikes against Ukrainian infrastructure.
• An American teenager imprisoned in Israel for nine months for allegedly throwing rocks at settlers — Mohammed Ibrahim of Florida — has been released. He had been denied access to family visits and adequate medical care.
• The White House launched a “media shit list” featuring a weekly “media offender,” a Hall of Shame, and direct targeting of individual reporters for stories the administration dislikes.
• Ken Dilanian of MS Now reports that FBI Director Kash Patel ordered agents to drive home his girlfriend’s drunk friend after a party. Dilanian is — unsurprisingly — on the White House shit list.
• The Department of Agriculture said it will stop sending administrative funds for SNAP to states that refuse to provide detailed recipient data, including immigration status. Twenty-two states have sued. These funds do not pay for benefits; they cover program operations.
• The White House says Trump underwent “advanced imaging” of his heart and abdomen as routine preventative screening for “men in his age group.” Several experts say such screening is not routine. MedPage Today’s Jeremy Faust argues it’s probably not serious — for now.
• This CNN headline captured the week: During his latest Cabinet meeting, “Trump said he was ‘sharper than I was 25 years ago.’ Then he spent an hour appearing to doze off – again.”
• For the first time in 37 years, the U.S. did not commemorate World AIDS Day. The State Department reportedly cut funding and instructed employees not to acknowledge the day. A spokesperson said: “An awareness day is not a strategy.”
• FIFA invented a new award — the FIFA Peace Prize — and presented it to Trump in an extremely awkward ceremony.
• Rahmanullah Lakanwal, an Afghan national who served in a CIA-backed unit and is accused of killing one National Guard member and wounding another near the White House, pleaded not guilty from his hospital bed. His family says he fled Taliban retaliation after aiding U.S. forces, but struggled with mental health, unemployment, and supporting his wife and five children. Trump has vowed to block Afghan applicants seeking entry to the U.S.

COURTS

• A federal appeals court ruled former Trump attorney Alina Habba was improperly appointed as a federal prosecutor and must be removed. The court said DOJ bypassed the Senate confirmation process.
• Another appeals court upheld a lower court finding that Trump and Habba filed frivolous lawsuits against Hillary Clinton and others in 2016 — and must reimburse nearly $1 million in legal fees.
• Cases against former FBI Director James Comey (for obstruction) and New York Attorney General Letitia James (for mortgage fraud) were dropped after another court ruled prosecutor Lindsey Halligan was also unlawfully appointed. Judges are frustrated the DOJ is still listing her name on filings. Reuters reports DOJ may refile charges against Comey, though the obstruction statute of limitations has expired. DOJ re-charged James, but a grand jury refused to indict her a second time.
• A federal judge approved the release of grand jury transcripts in the Florida case against Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. Judge Rodney Smith — a Trump appointee — said the records can be unsealed despite prior denials because Congress passed the Epstein Transparency Act, requiring DOJ to release all documents by December 19.
• Costco is suing the Trump administration, arguing Trump overstepped emergency powers in imposing tariffs and wants reimbursement.

CONGRESS

• Republicans still have no health care plan three weeks before ACA subsidies expire. Senate Democrats released a bill to extend subsidies for three years, but without GOP support it will fail.GOP Rep. Mike Lawler: “There is a deadline. So people need to get their head out of their ass and get to work.” Lawler and about 30 centrists offered their own proposal, with significant program changes.Speaker Mike Johnson says he’ll present a plan this week, but no one knows what it is.

• The IDF bulldozed the bodies of Palestinians killed while trying to collect humanitarian aid near the Zekim crossing and buried them in unmarked graves, CNN reports. Witnesses and geolocated footage confirmed the IDF shot at civilians seeking aid. Two IDF whistleblowers also told CNN that Palestinians were buried across Gaza without identification or notifying families.
• Israel has violated the “ceasefire” with Hamas around 600 times since October, according to Al Jazeera.Under the agreement, Israel was required to open the Rafah crossing to humanitarian aid. Instead, the government says it will open the crossing only for Palestinians to leave — not return — and will not allow aid to enter.
• Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is asking President Isaac Herzog for a pardon on corruption charges, including accepting bribes and fraud.

• A Trump supporter who believed the 2020 election was stolen has been arrested for planting two pipe bombs outside the RNC and DNC headquarters on January 5 — the night before the Capitol insurrection. Brian Cole Jr. confessed after his arrest, MSNOW reports.
• Starting February 1, 2026, travelers without a REAL ID will be able to use a new TSA option called TSA Confirm.ID — a $45 identity verification good for a 10-day travel period, according to the TSA.
• A new study finds the shingles vaccine may reduce the risk of dementia — and slow progression for those already diagnosed. Dementia patients who received the vaccine showed a nearly 30% reduction in mortality over nine years. The shingles vaccine is 90% effective and is recommended for adults over 50 and people with certain risk factors.
• The FDA has approved the first eyeglass lenses designed to slow the progression of myopia in children ages 6–12.(My daughter uses the contact lens version — it works! Excited that there’s now an eyeglass option.)
• Michael and Susan Dell have donated more than $6 billion to fund Trump Accounts for children 10 and under who do not qualify for the program and live in ZIP codes with median incomes below $150,000.
• Netflix outbid Paramount and Comcast in an $82.7 billion takeover bid for Warner Brothers. Industry insiders worry a dominant streaming platform controlling a historic studio could further weaken the movie-theater ecosystem. The deal faces a lengthy 1–2 year regulatory review.
• The Oxford University Press has named “rage bait” its 2025 Word of the Year — defined as “online content deliberately designed to elicit anger or outrage by being frustrating, provocative, or offensive, typically posted in order to increase traffic or engagement.” Other finalists: “aura farming” and “biohack.”