President Donald Trump will continue military action aimed at stopping suspected drug trafficking by sea, as the matter poses a deadly threat to the United States, White House deputy press secretary Anna Kelly told Newsmax on Thursday.
She added, in comments to Newsmax's "Wake Up America," that Trump does not consider Venezuela President Nicolás Maduro to be a legitimate ruler.
"The president's been extremely clear with his position, which is Maduro is, number one, not the legitimate ruler of Venezuela. He is the leader of a narco-terrorist cartel," Kelly said.
Trump also has said that Maduro "must stop sending drugs and criminals into our country," Kelly pointed out.
"These drug boats, as he says, often, are killing 25,000 Americans with these illicit narcotics," said Kelly.
Her remarks came as lawmakers on Capitol Hill prepared to hear testimony Thursday from U.S. Navy Adm. Frank "Mitch" Bradley, the commander who reportedly ordered a second strike after survivors were seen clinging to the wreckage of a boat in the Caribbean hit in a military strike for allegedly ferrying drugs.
The issue before Congress is how Secretary of War Pete Hegseth handled the operation and whether it violated the law.
Kelly said the administration's focus is interdiction, not an expanded military mission or an effort to force Maduro out.
"The push is to stop the influx of illicit narcotics that are coming into our country," she said, pointing to Trump's campaign promises on border security and drug enforcement.
"The president, of course, as you all know, promised to secure the southern border that has effectively stopped the flow of drugs across that southern border, but now we need to continue to take action because, as the president has noted, these drugs are continuing to come by sea," she added.
Kelly said Trump intends to keep escalating pressure on drug routes, particularly maritime pathways, that the White House says remain active even as land crossings have fallen.
"He is striking these narcotics that are killing upwards of 25,000 Americans to ensure that this poison can't reach our shores," she said.
"There is no president who has taken more decisive action to address this scourge of narco-terrorism than this president," Kelly contended. "And he's going to continue to take firm action to stop these drug deaths that are plaguing so many Americans across the country."
She also argued the administration sees its actions against trafficking as consistent with broader public safety priorities, contrasting Trump's approach with that of former President Joe Biden's administration.
"This president is taking on the threat of cartels, just as he promised to do, ensuring that they can't reach our shores by land or by sea," she said. "He's going to continue to do it. It's exactly what he was elected to do."
Asked separately about the economy, Kelly said the president is trying to reduce costs through energy policies and deregulation and maintained there are positive indicators even as families still feel pressured by prices.
"He has taken bold action to lower costs," she said, adding, "Inflation is cooling, real wages are rising."
Kelly also addressed immigration enforcement operations, including in New Orleans, criticizing sanctuary city policies and citing what she said were high deportation totals.
"This president is taking action to deport illegal aliens like no one has ever seen before," Kelly said.
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