Retired CIA intelligence service officer and MSNBC security and intel analysis Marc Polymeropoulos slammed President Donald Trump's latest use of the military in its alleged war on drugs.
Speaking with Ali Vitale on "Way Too Early," the career CIA officer criticized Trump's announcement that the U.S. military has carried out another strike on an alleged Venezelan drug boat.
Trump announced Monday that, while no U.S. personnel were harmed, three people were killed in that operation, posting a video on Truth Social warning, "if you're transporting drugs that can kill Americans, we're hunting you."
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This attack, which comes two weeks after the U.S. struck a different Venezuelan boat in the Caribbean sea under the dubious guise it was carrying drugs and gang members, an allegation Venezuela vehemently denied, is dangerous and reckless, Polymeropoulos said.
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"So, Secretary of . . Defense . . Of War, however you want to call it, Hegseth has talked about the need to have lethality over legality, but I think he has it wrong," he said. "Because when the United States decides to take lives, to kill people, kinetic action, you know, we have authorities that govern this, whether it's in the Department of Defense or the intelligence community. In essence, Americans have to be at risk . . .So, where are the authorities?"
The 26-year career CIA officer added that "we have to be really careful going down this line," comparing what's going on to the 2015 movie "Sicario," starring Emily Blunt, in which she plays an FBI agent who joins a task force combatting the war on drugs.
"All of this looks like a "Sicario" movie," he said, "And so we can kind of beat our chest saying we're doing something in the war on drugs, but what happens when there are civilian casualties?"
Polymeropoulos pointed to an attack in 2001 in which, "the U.S. did end up in the war on drugs, killing an innocent family," he explained. "I think Congress has totally failed in its duty to hold the [Trump] administration accountable. We need authorities on this. Where are they? Nobody seems to know."
The deaths of three individuals in the latest attack is especially concerning, he says.
"We're not being weak on national security. What we're asking [is], 'do we have the authority to take a life?' That's a really big deal."
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