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The following article was originally published in Just Security by one of our veteran partners. Read the original here. Is it legal to use lethal force to target suspected drug trafficking boats on the high seas or kill those on board? No. The United States is not in an armed conflict with any cartel or criminal gang. That means the law of armed conflict (LOAC), also known as international humanitarian law (IHL), does not  apply to the military operations that began on Sept.

The following article was originally published in Just Security by one of our veteran partners. Read the original here. According to recent media reports , Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth verbally ordered special forces to “kill everybody” ahead of a Sept. 2 operation targeting alleged drug traffickers in international waters. That order allegedly resulted in a follow-on “double tap” strike that killed two survivors who were clinging to wreckage. I agree with Professor Jack Go

The following article was originally published in Just Security by one of our veteran partners. You can read the original here. The recent lethal boat strikes in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific have drawn intense scrutiny—not only for the operation itself, but for the opaque legal framework behind it. A key legal opinion by the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) allegedly authorizing the strikes remains classified, despite the fact that similar OLC analyses

After President Trump’s reelection, a retired Army general who had previously criticized the president grew concerned about how the incoming administration might retaliate if he chose to speak publicly again. He outlined three ways the government could target him: a civil lawsuit, an IRS audit, or even recall to active duty where he could face military justice action. He recently reflected on those fears after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced that the Pentagon would i

This article was originally published by one of our veteran partners. Read his original article here. The Trump Administration continues to confound the gods of legal reasoning with its inability to maintain a consistent — let alone plausible — legal argument in defense of its extraordinary assertions of executive power.  This time, their tenuous legal reasoning relates to the continued use of drones to eliminate illicit drug-carrying vessels and their crews on the high seas

A federal court has permanently blocked a key provision of a March 25 executive order that sought to add new hurdles for Americans voting from afar—including active-duty service members, their families, and other overseas citizens. In a case led by the Secure Families Initiative (SFI), which represents military families, the court ruled that the President cannot unilaterally direct changes to federal election procedures. Citing the U.S. Constitution, the court said authority

Some of America’s most decorated military veterans in Congress have expressed outrage after U.S. military veterans were arrested or injured during protests against former President Donald Trump’s deportation campaign and his deployment of National Guard units to American cities. “I went to war three times for this country to defend the right of Americans to say things I may not like,” said Representative Jason Crow , a Democrat from Colorado and former Army Ranger who earned

The Pentagon is undergoing a sharp and controversial shift in how it handles legal counsel—especially military Judge Advocates General (JAGs)—just as the Department of Defense moves forward with expanded deployments and operations. Recent actions by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth are raising serious alarm among military legal experts and veterans alike. What’s happening: JAGs squeezed out of the decision loop Top uniformed legal leaders removed or demoted.  Hegseth has pushed

Nearly 170 doctors, psychologists, and health professionals who have worked in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) are sounding the...

This article was originally posted on The Hill. Read the original here. President Trump has taken the counter-drug fight out of the realm of law enforcement and into the world of armed combat. In so doing, he may have fired the opening shot in an undeclared war on Venezuela. The administration argues that 100,000 American deaths per year from cocaine and fentanyl overdose constitutes an existential terrorist threat, and this makes a boat allegedly smuggling illicit drugs a le

The following was originally published in Just Security by one of our veteran partners. Read the original article here. The U.S. military...

This article was originally published in Just Security by one of our veteran partners. Read the original article here. On Sept. 2, the Trump administration announced a lethal strike against what it said was a drug smuggling vessel in the Caribbean, killing eleven people in what amounted to a summary execution of civilians. A second strike followed on Sept. 15, reportedly killing three people. The administration has said more such strikes will occur, marking what may be the s