National SecurityForeign PolicyGovernment
August 8, 2025Trump orders Pentagon to target Mexican drug cartels with US forces, violating sovereignty
Military replaces diplomacy in Latin American drug war
Trump signed secret directive on August 8, 2025, authorizing Pentagon to prepare military options against drug cartels
State Department designated eight cartels as Foreign Terrorist Organizations on February 20, 2025, not Pentagon
Executive Order 14157 signed January 20, 2025, created FTO designation process for cartels
First military strike occurred September 2, 2025, killing 11 people on alleged drug boat
As of December 31, 2025, at least 115 people killed in 35 strikes on 36 vessels
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum rejected U.S. military operations on Mexican soil
Justice Department claimed November 2025 that boat strikes don't trigger War Powers Resolution requirements
Senate Republicans voted 48-51 in October 2025 to reject legislation limiting Trump's cartel strike authority
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Defense Secretary Hegseth announces "Operation Southern Spear" targeting "narco-terrorists" across hemisphere
20 boat strikes killed 80 people with no war vote in Congress
US kills 133 in 39 boat strikes since September with no evidence released
SOUTHCOM strikes three more boats on Feb. 16, calling victims "narco-terrorists" without documentation
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