The Situation
On September 2, 2025, at President Trump’s order (Trump, 2025), The United States of America bombed a small boat in the Caribbean sea, killing 11 people (Britzky, 2025).
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| Trump, 2025 |
President Trump indicated that the Sept. 2 boat was “transporting illegal narcotics and heading to the United States” as justification for the killing of the boaters (Trump, 2025). On this and similar justification, dozens of these strikes have been carried out by the United States against boaters around South America in the Caribbean and Pacific, killing more than a hundred people as of this writing (Corbett, 2025).
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| CBS, 2025 |
On Oct. 15th, 2025, President Trump offered further insight into his justification for the killings: “Every boat that we knock out we save 25,000 American lives so every time you see a boat and you feel badly you say, ‘Wow, that’s rough;’ It is rough, but if you lose three people (you) save 25,000 people” (Uribe, 2025). So the President’s justification is that the boats are carrying drugs and heading to the United States, and further, that killing the crew of a single boat will save tens of thousands of American lives.
The justification sounds at first like there’s a state of war between the US and the boaters, but President Trump later, on Oct 23, 2025, clarified that there’s no state of war, and, to his thinking, no need for one: “I think we’re just going to kill people that are bringing drugs into our country. OK? We’re going to kill them” (Reuters, 2025).
The Disagreements
Justified: President Trump has indicated that the killings are justified. I disagree with President Trump, and I am sorry it has taken me so long to say so. The killings are not justified. Each of the boaters who have fallen victim to the attacks should still be alive.
A Life for a Life: President Trump has said that it’s better to kill a small number of boaters than to allow them to complete their mission which would kill tens of thousands of Americans. I disagree with President Trump. The idea that some human lives have more value than others is wrong. The very real boaters definitely should not be killed in exchange for (quite dubious) theoretical life savings later.
Due Process: President Trump has argued that merely on suspicion, which in his thinking rises to the level of certainty, the boaters in question should be killed – “We’re just going to kill people.” But I disagree with President Trump. The suspicion that the boats are carrying drugs is just that, a suspicion, not proven, much less before a judge and jury. Before carrying out punishment, the accused should have the opportunities afforded by due process. A person—and certainly a free nation—can’t go around killing people indiscriminately.
Severity of Punishment: President Trump’s position is that the boaters, which he has referred to as narco-terrorists, should be killed outright. I disagree with President Trump. There is no crime of which the boaters in question have been suspected that carries the death penalty. At worst, smuggling drugs carries a prison sentence. But these boaters, without trial, without the opportunity to present a defense, are being killed outright on the word of President Trump—a fate far worse than prison, being visited on people who may or may not be, at worst, low-level criminals.
Desired Resolution
I call on President Trump to use his position and authority to direct the armed forces to cease killing boaters suspected of drug smuggling, and to cooperate with domestic and international efforts to investigate any criminal aspects of the killings that have already taken place, releasing any videos and records in connection with the attacks for maximum transparency. Consideration should be made for the families and loved ones of the victims. I encourage President Trump to work to make the United States of America a beacon of freedom for the world, to teach the nations through strong, compassionate leadership how freedom should look.
May God bless President Trump and the United States of America.
References
Britzky, Haley. “Here’s what the Trump administration has said about the ‘double-tap’ strike on an alleged drug boat.” 12/3/2025. https://www.cnn.com/2025/12/03/politics/timeline-double-tap-strikes-shifting-explanation – Accessed 12/26/2025.
Trump, Donald J. 9/2/2025. https://trumpstruth.org/search?query=earlier+this+morning+on+my+orders – Accessed 12/26/2025.
CBS News. “Sept. 2 boat strike footage shows survivors waving before 2nd attack, sources say.” 12/5/2025. https://www.cbsnews.com/video/sept-2-boat-strike-footage-survivors-waving-before-2nd-attack-sources/ – Accessed 12/26/2025.
Corbett, Jessica. “Admiral Who Ordered Bombing of Boat Strike Survivors Asked Military Lawyer First.” 12/25/2025. https://truthout.org/articles/admiral-who-ordered-bombing-of-boat-strike-survivors-asked-military-lawyer-first/ – Accessed 12/26/2025.
Uribe, Maria Ramirez. “Fact-checking Trump’s claim that each boat strike off Venezuela’s coast saves 25,000 lives.” 10/19/2025. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/fact-checking-trumps-claim-that-each-boat-strike-off-venezuelas-coast-saves-25000-lives – Accessed 12/26/2025.
Reuters. “Trump says declaration of war not needed on drug cartels.” 10/24/2025. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-says-declaration-war-not-needed-drug-cartels-2025-10-23/ – Accessed 12/26/2025.