By now most of us know about that second strike on those people in the water….and now we heard from the “Horse’s’ (Ass) mouth….

The military commander responsible for ordering a missile strike on survivors of an earlier drug boat strike was defending his decision-making Thursday to lawmakers in a closed session on Thursday, and a few early developments have surfaced:

No ‘kill’ order: Admiral Frank “Mitch” Bradley told lawmakers that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth did not issue a “kill them all” order before the mission began, reports the AP. Bradley “was very clear that he was given no such order, to give no quarter or to kill them all,” said Sen. Tom Cotton, chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, as he exited a classified briefing. The first report about the controversy suggested otherwise, saying Hegseth gave a verbal order to that effect

That was contrary to all reports about the strike and the order….who is he covering for?

I find the strike on people in the water after an attack troubling….and apparently I am not alone….

Lawmakers on Capitol Hill are demanding answers after viewing video footage of the controversial Sept. 2 US military strike in the Caribbean Sea. The footage, shown during a day of congressional meetings attended by Navy Adm. Frank M. Bradley, revealed that two alleged drug smugglers were attempting to flip their capsized boat before they were killed in a second strike by the US, lawmakers who viewed it told the Washington Post. The attack, the first in a series of US strikes on alleged “drug boats,” resulted in the deaths of 11 people and has raised serious questions about the legality and ethics of the operation. (The 22nd such strike took place Thursday after a nearly three-week pause, the AP reports. Four people were killed, bringing the total death toll to at least 87.)

Democrats, who emerged from the meetings alarmed, have called the incident “highly questionable” and vowed to continue investigations. Rep. Jim Himes of Connecticut described the footage as “one of the most troubling things I’ve seen in my time in public service,” noting that the survivors of the first strike were clearly in distress and posed no immediate threat when they were killed in the second strike, which was ordered by Bradley (reportedly after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said to “kill them all,” though Bradley denied that during the meetings). Lawmakers say Bradley told them the two survivors did not appear to have any communications devices that would have allowed them to call for backup, CNN reports.

Republicans, on the other hand, have largely defended the operation. Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas argued that the strikes were “entirely lawful and needful,” and said he would have made the same decision. Legal experts and some military personnel have questioned whether the survivors, left clinging to the wreckage, could be considered legitimate targets under US and international law, which requires protection for incapacitated individuals. The Pentagon has so far declined to release the video publicly, but pressure is mounting for greater transparency and accountability.

I would expect a douche bag like Cotton to defend such action…..

Lawmakers who saw a video of a U.S. attack on wounded and helpless people clinging to the wreckage of a supposed drug boat on September 2 described the footage as deeply disturbing.

A small number of members of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and the Senate and House Armed Services committees, as well as some staff directors, saw the recording during closed-door briefings Thursday with Adm. Frank M. Bradley, the head of Special Operations Command, and Gen. Dan Caine, the chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

“What I saw in that room is one of the most troubling scenes I’ve ever seen in my time in public service,” said Rep. Jim Himes of Connecticut, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee. “You have two individuals in clear distress without any means of locomotion with a destroyed vessel who were killed by the United States.

Until Thursday, the only video of the attack that had been seen by lawmakers was an edited clip posted to the Truth Social account of President Donald Trump on September 2 announcing the strike. The edited clip captures the initial strike, showing a four-engine speedboat erupt in an explosion. It does not show the second strike on the wreckage of the vessel and the survivors — which was first reported by The Intercept.

Himes said the unedited video clearly shows the U.S. striking helpless people.

Video of U.S. Military Killing Boat Strike Survivors Is Horrifying, Lawmakers Reveal

This is very troubling.

Any thoughts?

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