War Secretary Pete Hegseth must submit the unedited footage of all boat strikes conducted against suspected drug vessels in the Caribbean Sea or else face travel budget cuts.
The National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal 2026 added several provisions that require Hegseth’s action to authorize three-quarters of his designated travel budget, including a report on the lessons learned by the military from the war in Ukraine.
The most notable stipulation, however, is one that requires Hegseth to provide “to the Committees on Armed Services of the House of Representatives and the Senate unedited video of strikes conducted against designated terrorist organizations in the area of responsibility of the United States Southern Command.”
The stipulation is an obvious reference to President Donald Trump’s controversial strikes against suspected drug boats in the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean, strikes that have killed dozens over the past few months.
The strikes became the center of national attention last month after a report revealed that the military conducted a follow-up strike on a vessel after two survivors were spotted in the water, killing them. The military showed unedited footage of the strike to the committees last week, drawing further outrage.
The ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, Rep. Jim Himes (D-MA), described an unedited video of the strike as deeply disturbing.
“What I saw in that room is one of the most troubling scenes I’ve seen in my time in public service,” he said after emerging from a classified briefing with Adm. Mitch Bradley.
However, he also said the classified briefing showed there was never a “kill-them-all” order given as earlier reported and that those giving the orders “did the right thing.”
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“Let me just say this: Adm. Bradley and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff did the right thing,” Himes said. “And Adm. Bradley defended the decisions taken, and Adm. Bradley has a storied career, and he has my respect, and he should have the respect of all of us.”
Congress has complained of a lack of cooperation and information coming from the Trump administration since the strikes began in September.
