Retired Army Lt. Col. Tony Shaffer told Newsmax on Thursday that Democrats are siding with drug cartels by criticizing a recent Navy strike on drug boats in the Caribbean, saying their reaction shows misplaced priorities.
Shaffer, who leads Project Sentinel, joined "The Chris Salcedo Show" as lawmakers examined a disputed Navy operation near Venezuela. The incident involved an initial strike on an alleged drug boat followed by a second strike that killed two survivors.
Adm. Frank "Mitch" Bradley testified Thursday on Capitol Hill, saying that there was no directive to execute survivors, countering a narrative suggesting a sweeping lethal order from War Secretary Pete Hegseth.
Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., who heads the Senate Intelligence Committee, told reporters after the classified briefing that Bradley "was very clear that he was given no such order, to give no quarter or to kill them all. He was given an order that, of course, was written down in great detail."
Shaffer, drawing on his experience in military operations and counter-narcotics missions, said established procedures contradict the accusations circulating among critics.
"So there's a very refined process within lethal operations. You know, we've talked about it before," he said.
"And those of us who have been in the situation where we've had to plan and participate in lethal operations knew the left-wing narrative was false. It couldn't have happened that way.
"The admiral today confirmed that. He said there was no, quote unquote, 'kill shot' directed from Pete Hegseth. Pete's busy doing other things," Shaffer said.
He then turned to the political reaction surrounding the strike and the frustration voiced by some lawmakers.
Shaffer said the criticism reflects a deeper problem within the Democratic Party's approach to national security and border issues.
"With that said, they have now sided — think about this — they have sided with drug dealers who have been sending poison into the United States for the past 30 years," he said of Democrats.
"I worked this counter-drug mission. There are tons of this lethal poison coming in," Shaffer said.
"And somehow now, the drug dealers, the drug cartels, the narco-terrorists are now the constituents of the Democrat Party. Come on, there's something really wrong."
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Jim Thomas ✉
Jim Thomas is a writer based in Indiana. He holds a bachelor's degree in Political Science, a law degree from U.I.C. Law School, and has practiced law for more than 20 years.
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