Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) on Sunday accused War Secretary Pete Hegseth of “murder” in striking Venezuelan drug boats, but she then got caught in a major lie after claiming she had seen the “deeply disturbing” classified video of the strikes that killed eleven narcoterrorists on September 2.
Duckworth joined CNN’s State of the Union to discuss US strikes on the drug boats, which have come under legal scrutiny by the Democrats.
A November 29 report from the Washington Post claimed that Hegseth ordered troops to “kill everybody” on board the boats and ordered a double strike to kill survivors clinging to the wreckage of a ship in the Caribbean Sea. Rep. Seth Moulton (D-MA) described the operations as “blatantly illegal,” adding, “Mark my words: It may take some time, but Americans will be prosecuted for this, either as a war crime or outright murder.”
“As two men clung to a stricken, burning ship targeted by SEAL Team 6, the Joint Special Operations commander followed the defense secretary’s order to leave no survivors,” the report claims. According to an anonymous source, Hegseth gave a verbal order “to kill everybody” in the September 2 strike against narcoterrorists trafficking narcotics into the United States, which killed 11 designated terrorists.
As The Gateway Pundit reported, President Trump posted footage from the strike on September 2, stating, “Please let this serve as notice to anybody even thinking about bringing drugs into the United States of America. BEWARE!”
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This also comes as Democratic lawmakers are demanding that US service members defy President Trump and Secretary Hegseth’s orders, which they claim are illegal. This has sparked outrage from many on both sides of the political spectrum, as well as veterans and experts on the topic.
Hegseth responded to the firestorm of “fabricated, inflammatory, and derogatory reporting” on Friday, maintaining that the actions are lawful and align with the stated intention of the strikes to be “lethal, kinetic strikes.”
“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,” Hegseth said.
The Gateway Pundit has discussed this topic with multiple veterans and lawmakers, who say that the actions by the Trump Administration were justified and that the Democratic lawmakers are committing sedition by encouraging troops to defy their commanders and the President of the United States.
On Sunday, Duckworth joined her ‘Seditious Six’ colleagues in claiming that “the whole operation is illegal,” accusing Hegseth of “murder” and stating that US forces should have “render[ed] aid” to the narcoterrorists who survived the initial strikes and were clinging to a smoldering boat in the middle of the ocean– as if the Venezuelan gangsters would do the same for US troops.
“It was essentially murder with that double-tap strike,” she said. “Everything that they did here was illegal.”
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Bash: Secretary Hegseth defended his actions again yesterday. He compared the operation in the Caribbean to the fight against terrorism in Iraq and Afghanistan… Like Secretary Hegseth, as I mentioned, you are an Iraq war veteran. What’s your reaction?
Duckworth: Well, there was actually a vote by Congress to put us at war in Iraq and Afghanistan. There was no such vote, there was no such debate here in this situation. So, the fact that we do have professionals, military men and women, they’re utmost professionals. The problem is they’ve not been authorized to be at war, and by the way, individuals in that boat were not even aimed at the United States. So, everything that they’ve done is been illegal. It’s illegal under international law. Is illegal under the Geneva Convention, and it certainly is even illegal under domestic law. It was essentially murder with that double-tap strike.
Bash: That’s a very strong statement, murder. Does that constitute a war crime? Is that what you’re saying?
Duckworth:It is a war crime. It’s illegal. How will you put it? It’s all illegal. Look, I’ve been I’ve been shot down behind enemy lines. Under the laws of war, if a pilot bails out, he gets shot down, he bails out, he’s in a rubber dinghy in the middle of the ocean, under all the international laws of warfare, you are supposed to help render aid to that individual. Even if they have a radio, and they’re calling for their side to come pick them up, you’re not allowed to go back in and kill them, even if you know that they’re going to conduct future operations against you. That’s the Geneva Convention. And so everything that they did here was illegal. In fact, the two survivors were clinging to half of a boat in the middle of the ocean and had no access to a radio, per the admiral, us briefing. And so yes all of the, you know, it’s been, the whole operation is illegal to begin with.
In another segment of the interview, Duckworth claimed that she had seen the video, “and it is deeply disturbing,” attacking Pete Hegseth for putting “American servicemen and women in jeopardy.” However, just seconds later, she admitted that she had never seen the classified video of the strike and that she is relying solely on news reports based on anonymous sources.
“I’ve just seen what’s been available in the media,” Duckworth said.
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Bash: Senator, have you seen the video?
Duckworth: I have seen the video, and it is deeply disturbing. I am mostly concerned with the fact that we are putting our American servicemen and women in jeopardy here. We’re putting them in jeopardy in case they ever get shot down. We’re putting them in legal Jeopardy. They could be brought up in international criminal courts. And so, what we’re doing here is taking those professionals, or utmost professionals, and putting them into harm’s way.
And that’s what bothers me the most about what Pete Hegseth is doing. He is the least qualified Secretary of Defense in our nation’s history, and he’s very cavalier about doing things. The fact of the matter is, only Congress can decide that we can go to war, and there was no such declaration made.
Bash: I just want to make sure that I get this accurate. You have seen the classified video of this particular strike, the first strike, and then the double tap, as it’s known?
Duckworth: No, I’ve just seen what’s been available in the media. I’ve read the full report, but I’ve not seen the actual video.
As The Gateway Pundit reported, despite these attacks, the US is continuing strikes on drug boats in the Caribbean, executing the 22nd strike on Tuesday and killing, in total, nearly 100 designated foreign terrorist narcotic traffickers.
MORE:
WATCH: US VAPORIZES 22nd Venezuelan Drug Boat Amid Democrat Claims of Unlawful Orders
The post WATCH: Senator Tammy Duckworth Caught in Huge Lie Attacking Pete Hegseth, Accuses Him of “MURDER” and “War Crimes” After Watching “Deeply Distrurbing” Boat Strike Video then ADMITS She HASN’T Seen the Video appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.