A LICENSE TO KILL: Brushing aside concerns of experts in the law of war, President Donald Trump has declared the United States in a state of “non-international armed conflict” with Venezuelan drug cartels operating in the Caribbean, according to a confidential memo to Congress first obtained by the New York Times, and subsequently from numerous media outlets.
The memo provides the justification for treating suspected drug smugglers spotted on the high seas as “unlawful enemy combatants,” who can be killed on sight, instead of criminals subject to arrest and prosecution.
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“Based upon the cumulative effects of these hostile acts against the citizens and interests of the United States and friendly foreign nations, the president determined that the United States is in a noninternational armed conflict with these designated terrorist organizations,” the memo reportedly said.
“[The] president acted in line with the law of armed conflict to protect our country from those trying to bring deadly poison to our shores, and he is delivering on his promise to take on the cartels and eliminate these national security threats from murdering more Americans,” Anna Kelly, a White House spokeswoman, said in an email to the Times.
TRUMP: ‘WE HAVEN’T EVEN STARTED YET’: President Trump has accused the Venezuela-based Tren de Aragua drug cartel — designated a Foreign Terrorist Organization by the State Department in February — of being responsible for hundreds of thousands of American deaths, and has authorized the use of lethal force on boats suspected of carrying fentanyl and other deadly drugs bound for the U.S.
“You know, you see these boats, they’re stacked up with bags of white powder. That’s mostly fentanyl, and other drugs too,” Trump said in his speech to senior military officers at Quantico on Tuesday. “We take them out, and we’ve taken out four,” he said. “Not that we like to do that. But every boat kills 25,000 [people] on average.”
“We lost 300,000 people last year. Everybody knows friends, many friends probably, you lost a child, or adults too, but you lost a son or daughter because of what’s coming into our border,” Trump said. “And we’re making it very hard. Oh, and we haven’t even started yet.”
Trump expressed frustration that “We can’t find any more boats,” noting that even fishing boats are afraid to ply their trade, in waters the U.S. military has turned into a free-fire kill zone. “They don’t want to go fishing, I don’t blame them,” Trump said. “It’s amazing what strength will do, because all we want to do is stop drugs from flowing into our country.”
Trump cited four attacks, but only three so far have been publicly acknowledged, beginning with a Sept. 3 drone strike that killed 11 people, and a Sept. 15 attack that killed three suspected drug traffickers.
REED: TRUMP WAGING ‘SECRET WARS AGAINST ANYONE HE CALLS AN ENEMY’: While Republican leaders of the House and Senate Armed Services Committee have had little to say about the declaration of war, which under the Constitution is under the Article I powers of Congress, Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI), the top Democrat on the Armed Services Committee, has been a vocal critic of the Trump’s war on the cartels.
The president “offered no credible legal justification, evidence, or intelligence” for the strikes, Reed said in a statement, in which he accused Trump of deciding that he could wage “secret wars against anyone he calls an enemy.”
“Drug cartels are despicable and must be dealt with by law enforcement,” Reed said. “But now, by the president’s own words, the U.S. military is engaged in armed conflict with undefined enemies he has unilaterally labeled ‘unlawful combatants,’ and he has deployed thousands of troops, ships, and aircraft against them. Yet he has refused to inform Congress or the public.”
“The ‘peace president’ unilaterally declares an ‘armed conflict’ and sidesteps Congress to engage in acts of war. This is what a rogue president looks like,” former Rep. Justin Amash (R-MI) posted on X. “Trump makes the neocons look like amateurs when it comes to unauthorized, unconstitutional, unlawful military actions.”
TRUMP SAYS US IN ‘ARMED CONFLICT’ WITH DRUG CARTELS IN MEMO TO CONGRESS
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HAPPENING TODAY: LET THE FIRINGS BEGIN: President Trump is making no secret of the fact that he is blaming Democrats for closing down the government and is singling out programs and people they hold dear for retribution.
“I have a meeting today with Russ Vought, he of PROJECT 2025 Fame, to determine which of the many Democrat Agencies, most of which are a political SCAM, he recommends to be cut, and whether or not those cuts will be temporary or permanent,” Trump posted on Truth Social. “I can’t believe the Radical Left Democrats gave me this unprecedented opportunity. They are not stupid people, so maybe this is their way of wanting to, quietly and quickly, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”
Vought, head of the Office of Management and Budget, already announced he was halting roughly $18 billion of infrastructure funds for New York’s Hudson Tunnel Project and the Second Ave Subway “to ensure funding is not flowing based on unconstitutional DEI principles.”
The projects are in the hometowns of the Democratic leaders of the U.S. House and Senate.
Vought also promised, “More info to come soon.”
VOUGHT HAS DREAMED OF SHUTDOWN ‘SINCE PUBERTY,’ MIKE LEE SAYS
AF GENERAL RESIGNS ON DAY ON HEGSETH/TRUMP SPEECHES: Gen. Thomas Bussiere, commander of Air Force Global Strike Command, who had been President Trump’s pick to be the vice chief of staff of the Air Force, announced his retirement the same day War Secretary Pete Hegseth invited any officers not on board with his reforms to “do the honorable thing and resign.”
But in his post on Facebook, Bussiere said he was stepping down due to “personal and family reasons.”
“After much reflection and with a full heart, Barb and I have made a difficult decision to request retirement from the United States Air Force for personal and family reasons,” Bussiere wrote in the post. “While I’m stepping away from active duty, my commitment to service remains. I look forward to finding new ways to support our Air Force, our national defense, and the incredible people who make it all possible.”
Bussiere’s nomination to replace Air Force vice chief of staff Gen. James Slife, whom Hegseth fired in February, was quietly withdrawn last month. In his Tuesday speech, Hegseth said he may fire more generals and admirals if his gut tells him they are not fully vested in his agenda.
“My job has been to determine which leaders simply did what they must to answer the prerogatives of civilian leadership and which leaders are truly invested in the woke department and, therefore, incapable of embracing the War Department and executing new lawful orders,” Hegseth said. “My approach has been simple: When in doubt, assess the situation, follow your gut, and if it’s the best for the military, make a change.”
PETE HEGSETH’S COMMAND PERFORMANCE
THE RUNDOWN:
Washington Examiner: Trump says US in ‘armed conflict’ with drug cartels in memo to Congress
Washington Examiner: Russia warns of ‘appropriate response’ as Trump considers tomahawk missiles in Ukraine
Washington Examiner: Trump marvels at ‘unprecedented opportunity’ for federal layoffs on day two of shutdown
Washington Examiner: Trump administration changed out-of-office emails to slam Democrats, staffers claim
Washington Examiner: Trump to meet with Vought ‘of Project 2025 fame’ to determine which agencies to cut
Washington Examiner: Vought has dreamed of shutdown ‘since puberty,’ Mike Lee says
Washington Examiner: Senior House Democrat dares GOP to end shutdown by nuking Senate filibuster
Washington Examiner: House GOP presses Democrats over national security in shutdown fight
Washington Examiner: ICE and Border Patrol arrest 800 illegal immigrants during Chicago blitz
Washington Examiner: ICE empties Guantanamo Bay of immigrants after transferring last 18 detainees
Washington Examiner: ‘Emergency’ naked bike ride to protest Trump’s Portland troop deployment
Washington Examiner: Apple pulls ICE tracking app from store following DOJ request
Washington Examiner: Israel blames Starmer government for Manchester synagogue attack, ignoring ‘wave of antisemitism’
Washington Examiner: Tom Rogan Opinion: Manchester attack underlines Europe’s antisemitic terrorism challenge
Washington Examiner: World awaits Hamas response to peace ‘ultimatum’ as isolated terrorist group runs out of options
Washington Examiner: Syrian fragmentation fears abound as militia, religious minorities seek autonomy
Washington Examiner: Army selects Draganfly to supply FPV drones
Washington Examiner: Tom Rogan Opinion: US military deployments near Venezuela portend seizure operations
Washington Examiner: Tom Rogan Opinion: Trump’s ambitious Gaza peace plan is fraught with complexity
Washington Post: Hegseth escalates war on leakers with lie detector tests and nondisclosure agreements
Task & Purpose: New Hegseth Shaving Rules for Military Appear to Target Religious Exemptions
AP: Trump administration taps Army Reserve and National Guard for temporary immigration judges
Defense One: Inside the Emergency Effort to Create a European Drone Wall
AP: Trump signs an executive order vowing to defend Qatar in the wake of Israel’s strike
Wall Street Journal: U.S. to Provide Ukraine With Intelligence for Missile Strikes Deep Inside Russia
Wall Street Journal: Trump’s Drone Deal with Ukraine to Give US Access to Battlefield Tech
Bloomberg: Trump Team Eyes Wall Street Tool to Add Clout in Vital Minerals
Air & Space Forces Magazine: Industry Races to Develop Small Engines for Drones, CCAs
SpaceNews: The Spreadsheet Behind the Golden Dome Sticker Shock
Air & Space Forces Magazine: Space Force Considers Ranges in Texas, Virginia, and More for Future Launches
Bloomberg: Boeing Set for Contract to Replace “Midnight Hammer” Bunker Busters
Air & Space Forces Magazine: F-35 Engine Production Contract Slips to Spring 2026
Breaking Defense: Space Rapid Capabilities Office to Award Contracts to Put Radars on Sats to Warn of Space-Bound Threats
Breaking Defense: Sierra Nevada Reveals BRAWLR Air Defense System That’s Already Deployed—Somewhere
DefenseScoop: Pentagon CIO Greenlights 5 Large-Scale Spectrum Sharing Tech Demonstrations
Defense News: Opinion: Hybrid Air Denial: The New Gray Zone Battleground Raging Above Europe
THE CALENDAR:
FRIDAY | OCTOBER 4
9 a.m. 1957 E St. NW — Program on New Approaches to Research and Security in Eurasia Annual Policy Conference discussion: “Russia’s War in Ukraine” https://www.ponarseurasia.org/ponars-eurasia-annual-policy-conference
10 a.m. — National Institute for Deterrence Studies virtual seminar: “European Perspectives on China and its Nuclear Buildup,” with Max Hoell, postdoctoral research fellow at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory https://thinkdeterrence.com/events/european-perspectives-on-china
1 p.m. — Council on Foreign Relations virtual discussion: “The durability of the Islamic Republic regime and the role of the international community in shaping Iran’s future,” with Reza Pahlavi, the exiled crown prince of Iran https://www.cfr.org/event/conversation-reza-pahlavi
THURSDAY | OCTOBER 9
3:30 p.m. — Foundation for Defense of Democracies Center on Military and Political Power discussion: “Countering the Axis of Aggressors,” with retired Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, former national security adviser; and retired Gen. Laura Richardson, former U.S. southern commander https://www.fdd.org/events/2025/10/09/countering-the-axis-of-aggressors