Top officials from the Trump administration are scheduled to brief senators on Capitol Hill this Tuesday regarding the September strikes on Venezuelan drug vessels. Of particular interest is the controversial ‘double strike’ incident.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth will address the Senate following a push from Democratic Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. Schumer has criticized the strikes, labeling them as “the administration’s rogue and reckless actions in the Caribbean.”

“The American people deserve oversight. We intend to deliver it,” Schumer stated emphatically.

Last week, Rubio met with senior Senate leaders to discuss the strikes but did not provide video footage from the action on September 2. This footage allegedly includes a second strike that some analysts and lawmakers argue may have been unlawful.

Republican Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas, an ally of Trump and chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, commented that, after reviewing the strike footage, he supported the decision made by Pentagon leaders during the incident.

‘Any boat loaded with drugs that is crewed by associates and members of foreign terrorist organizations that are trying to kill American kids, I think, is a valid target,’ Cotton told NBC News earlier this month. ‘I’m not just comfortable with it, I want to continue it,’  Cotton added.

Meanwhile, War Powers resolutions have been introduced in both the House and Senate to prevent the Trump Administration from declaring war on Venezuela without congressional approval, and the House war powers resolution could be voted on Tuesday afternoon.

Top House Intelligence Committee Democrat Jim Himes of Connecticut noted that the double strike video ‘was profoundly shaking,’ given how it deliberately massacred survivors.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer speaks during a press conference at the US Capitol in Washington DC, USA, 11 December 2025

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, left, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth arrive for an event at the State Department, Monday, Dec. 8, 2025, in Washington

Democrat Representative Adam Smith of the House Armed Services Committee noted that the two survivors of the first strike were not ‘in any position to continue the fight,’ before they were hit by the second strike. 

In the Senate, a war powers resolution spurred by Arizona Democrat Ruben Gallego would set a 60-day deadline for Congress to formally approve the use of military forces after the administration notifies lawmakers of a conflict. 

The Trump administration issued that notification about Venezuela in early October, meaning the deadline has already expired. 

A House resolution that could be voted on as early as Tuesday is backed by a bipartisan group of lawmakers, including Democrats Jim McGovern and Joaquin Castro, as well as Republican Thomas Massie.

The trio notes that the Trump administration has neither sought authorization for the use of military force against Venezuela nor offered a credible justification for the unauthorized strikes it has conducted against vessels in the region. 

Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., speaks to reporters following a classified briefing for top congressional lawmakers overseeing national security as they investigate how Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth handled a military strike on a suspected drug smuggling boat and its crew in the Caribbean near Venezuela Sept. 2, at the Capitol in Washington

US Representative Thomas Massie, Republican of Kentucky, speaks to reporters at the US Capitol on Washington, DC on November 18, 2025

At least 95 people have been killed in 25 US strikes on 26 alleged drug boat vessels, though the US government has declined to present evidence of their targets purported activity.

The administration has also failed to explain why the boats could not have been stopped and investigated, or why those on board could not have been apprehended and prosecuted instead of being targeted and killed without due process.

Massie notably introduced a War Powers resolution against Trump after his strikes on Iranian nuclear sites in June, but later withdrew it after Speaker Mike Johnson described his measure as a moot point following a ceasefire in the region.