Is the reward Trump offered for Maduro's arrest still in effect? Because this does seem more like a threat for regime change...
I did 10 years in the USCG including drug interdiction. I would push back a bit that this type of boat isn't used for drugs - they are in my experience - so that is the weakest critique. However, you can't tell from the boat if it has drugs which is WHY we detain so we can PROVE the illegal actions.
I've seen more people pointing to the number of people on the boat rather than the type of boat. In your experience, would 11 people be a typical crew size for one of these boats if they were smuggling drugs?
Depends on the boat type and where it's located, but yes. Sometimes they use these types of boats to move between different "mother ships" or to take people out to other vessels transporting more goods.
That's why the USCG focuses on arresting. Unless you have intel otherwise, such as from an undercover agent, you have no way of knowing who is on board.
Great interview revealing different aspects of UCMJ and the Constitution that would never have occurred to me. It does seem like it's a test case by the administration to push the limits of what constitutes legal military orders and who remains accountable. In that way, it's not unlike the deployment of the National Guard(s) to cities (with the notable exception that people were actually killed).
Thank you, Bill Kristen, for covering this with Ryan Goodman. The dispassionate analysis thorough and terrifying. Many of us non-military and non-lawyer citizens knew this was wrong on its face when the news came out. Now we have a deeper understanding of why in so many ways this is foreboding for our future.
Trump has said many times he wanted to be like Duterte and kill drug dealers even in the United States. So Trump thinks he can murder at will. There is no legal justification. Additionally, this Administration has been proven wrong in saying individuals are Venezuelan gang members. So if they are wrong when individuals are apprehended face to face, how likely do they know who these 11 people are. Dictators don’t care about laws or limits.
This action was founded on the rickety-base of some war with Venezuela, a complete fantasy--until maybe now, At least with the war against terror there was held to be some connection to the 9/11 war powers authorization by the Congress.
This was clearly an illegal order and murder on the high seas that everyone in the chain of command should have refused to execute. Once we have replaced this lawless Trump regime and returned to the rule of law, everyone involved must be prosecuted for murder. After all, there is no statute of limitations for murder.
Sadly, had any military member refused to carry out the illegal order, they would have been immediately removed and replaced by another who would, so the end result would have been the same. The boat's occupants would have still been murdered. Anyone refusing the order would surely be court martialed, tried by a kangaroo court heavily influenced by Trump and Hegseth and convicted to severe punishment, a terrible personal price.
A final observation. Every day we condemn Putin for the ruthless killing of Ukrainian civilians. How is this any different? Sure, the government tells us the victims on the boat were "narco-terrorists," but they may just as well been passport bearing people legally traveling to Trinidad.
Regarding the administration's statement that they'll do more of this, it seems like a pattern: They do something new that's egregious, then immediately say it's a policy that will continue. Almost as if to gaslight everyone: "this is totally ok, we're certain of it, and any challenge will fail, so don't bother". They spoke similarly after the El Salvador flights and the recent Hyundai raid.
Last week, Donald Trump ordered the murder of 11 Venezuelan civilians under the guise that they were drug-trafficking gang members. Experts say it would be highly unlikely that there would be 11 people on board a drug smuggling boat and Trump has offered absolutely no evidence to prove the allegations. We have a Coast Guard that can stop, search, and arrest people if they are doing something illegal. You can't just go around killing people you suspect of being "bad." What the hell is happening here?
Why is Trump being allowed to make these illegal decisions to end the lives of 11 people without trial, evidence, or jurisprudence? If Republicans in Congress cannot see that it is way past time to impeach and convict this insane person who sits in the oval office making life and death decisions like some maniacal monarch, then maybe they are as crazy as Trump. If they don't act, then it is time for The Hague to take action against Trump for crimes against humanity.
Thanks to the recent Supreme Court decision, President Trump presumably has immunity for whatever his role was in this mass murder. Those following his orders don't have such immunity. Who should be held responsible and prosecuted?
As has been said many times, the Supreme Court does not have an enforcement mechanism. It is only by acceptance of the people. We the people should reject Roberts unlawful decision. There is no “Presidential Immunity.” It’s anti-Constitutional and immoral. And once Dems regain power we will act accordingly.
Excellent discussion stepping through the legal issues -THANK-YOU.
It made me think of a very recent discussion on The Rest is Politics which revealed that major business players in Asia now see the US in decline and a greater danger to international stability than China. That got me wondering what might be going on very quietly behind the scenes with the US's Asia Pacific allies, especially with AUKUS and the Quad.
The whole idea of multi-polarity starts to look different with the relationship between China and India looking more important than the relationship between India and the US, and Putin's hold over Trump increasingly apparent. Add US warmongering to that ...
Today, for the first time in my life, I browsed the US news before the Australian news - this time last year, I didn't even read the US news!
Who's the terrorist cult now?
Is the reward Trump offered for Maduro's arrest still in effect? Because this does seem more like a threat for regime change...
I did 10 years in the USCG including drug interdiction. I would push back a bit that this type of boat isn't used for drugs - they are in my experience - so that is the weakest critique. However, you can't tell from the boat if it has drugs which is WHY we detain so we can PROVE the illegal actions.
I'll go hug my DD-214....
I've seen more people pointing to the number of people on the boat rather than the type of boat. In your experience, would 11 people be a typical crew size for one of these boats if they were smuggling drugs?
Depends on the boat type and where it's located, but yes. Sometimes they use these types of boats to move between different "mother ships" or to take people out to other vessels transporting more goods.
That's why the USCG focuses on arresting. Unless you have intel otherwise, such as from an undercover agent, you have no way of knowing who is on board.
Great interview revealing different aspects of UCMJ and the Constitution that would never have occurred to me. It does seem like it's a test case by the administration to push the limits of what constitutes legal military orders and who remains accountable. In that way, it's not unlike the deployment of the National Guard(s) to cities (with the notable exception that people were actually killed).
Thank you, Bill Kristen, for covering this with Ryan Goodman. The dispassionate analysis thorough and terrifying. Many of us non-military and non-lawyer citizens knew this was wrong on its face when the news came out. Now we have a deeper understanding of why in so many ways this is foreboding for our future.
I appreciate the in-depth discussion and explanations. I had to go look up and read up on the War Powers Act and its history.
Trump has said many times he wanted to be like Duterte and kill drug dealers even in the United States. So Trump thinks he can murder at will. There is no legal justification. Additionally, this Administration has been proven wrong in saying individuals are Venezuelan gang members. So if they are wrong when individuals are apprehended face to face, how likely do they know who these 11 people are. Dictators don’t care about laws or limits.
This action was founded on the rickety-base of some war with Venezuela, a complete fantasy--until maybe now, At least with the war against terror there was held to be some connection to the 9/11 war powers authorization by the Congress.
If they excluded the career lawyers, isn't that consciousness of guilt?
This was clearly an illegal order and murder on the high seas that everyone in the chain of command should have refused to execute. Once we have replaced this lawless Trump regime and returned to the rule of law, everyone involved must be prosecuted for murder. After all, there is no statute of limitations for murder.
Sadly, had any military member refused to carry out the illegal order, they would have been immediately removed and replaced by another who would, so the end result would have been the same. The boat's occupants would have still been murdered. Anyone refusing the order would surely be court martialed, tried by a kangaroo court heavily influenced by Trump and Hegseth and convicted to severe punishment, a terrible personal price.
A final observation. Every day we condemn Putin for the ruthless killing of Ukrainian civilians. How is this any different? Sure, the government tells us the victims on the boat were "narco-terrorists," but they may just as well been passport bearing people legally traveling to Trinidad.
Dear Bill, I like what you have to say but don’t smile while you’re talking about this terrorist activity on the part of our president
Regarding the administration's statement that they'll do more of this, it seems like a pattern: They do something new that's egregious, then immediately say it's a policy that will continue. Almost as if to gaslight everyone: "this is totally ok, we're certain of it, and any challenge will fail, so don't bother". They spoke similarly after the El Salvador flights and the recent Hyundai raid.
Last week, Donald Trump ordered the murder of 11 Venezuelan civilians under the guise that they were drug-trafficking gang members. Experts say it would be highly unlikely that there would be 11 people on board a drug smuggling boat and Trump has offered absolutely no evidence to prove the allegations. We have a Coast Guard that can stop, search, and arrest people if they are doing something illegal. You can't just go around killing people you suspect of being "bad." What the hell is happening here?
Why is Trump being allowed to make these illegal decisions to end the lives of 11 people without trial, evidence, or jurisprudence? If Republicans in Congress cannot see that it is way past time to impeach and convict this insane person who sits in the oval office making life and death decisions like some maniacal monarch, then maybe they are as crazy as Trump. If they don't act, then it is time for The Hague to take action against Trump for crimes against humanity.
Thanks for raising Duterte and Trump's admiration for him.
Thanks to the recent Supreme Court decision, President Trump presumably has immunity for whatever his role was in this mass murder. Those following his orders don't have such immunity. Who should be held responsible and prosecuted?
As has been said many times, the Supreme Court does not have an enforcement mechanism. It is only by acceptance of the people. We the people should reject Roberts unlawful decision. There is no “Presidential Immunity.” It’s anti-Constitutional and immoral. And once Dems regain power we will act accordingly.
Start with Hegseth - if he was even in the loop - and work our way down. Plus Rubio and company if he signed off on it.
The USA is now a criminal, predatory, autocratic state. No demands for answers from any corner of governence. There are no more words.
Excellent discussion stepping through the legal issues -THANK-YOU.
It made me think of a very recent discussion on The Rest is Politics which revealed that major business players in Asia now see the US in decline and a greater danger to international stability than China. That got me wondering what might be going on very quietly behind the scenes with the US's Asia Pacific allies, especially with AUKUS and the Quad.
The whole idea of multi-polarity starts to look different with the relationship between China and India looking more important than the relationship between India and the US, and Putin's hold over Trump increasingly apparent. Add US warmongering to that ...
Today, for the first time in my life, I browsed the US news before the Australian news - this time last year, I didn't even read the US news!
https://youtu.be/eLEu37QvZgQ?feature=shared