Nearly half of Americans say they oppose the Trump administration’s military strikes on suspected drug boats in the Caribbean near Venezuela, according to new polling.
In a Reuters/Ipsos survey, released Wednesday, 48 percent say the U.S. should not be conducting the strikes without first getting court approval. Another 34 percent say the military should carry on with its operation, which has killed more than 80 people since the first strike on Sept. 2. About 18 percent say they don’t know or skipped the question.
There’s a clear partisan split in responses, but Democrats are more united in their opposition than Republicans in their support.
Among Democrats, 80 percent approve and 9 percent disapprove of the strikes; while 67 percent of Republicans support the operation without court approval and 19 percent do not, the poll found.
The survey was conducted early this month, days after The Washington Post published a bombshell report alleging Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth gave an order ahead of the first strike in September to kill all 11 people aboard a suspected drug boat. The Post reported that, to comply with Hegseth’s order, the commander in charge ordered a second strike to kill two survivors of the initial hit.
Fierce backlash ensued on Capitol Hill, where top lawmakers were briefed by the operation’s commander Navy Adm. Frank Bradley, who allegedly denied that Hegseth gave that direct order. But questions lingered about the so-called “double tap” strike, which some suggested could constitute war crimes by killing survivors who no longer posed a threat.
Those concerns added to the ongoing questions about the legality of the strikes in the first place. While the Trump administration maintains that the U.S. is at war with drug cartels and “narco-terrorists,” Congress has not voted to authorize a new war in the waters near Venezuela.
In general, though, Americans are more supportive of the Pentagon’s general efforts to stop the flow of illicit drugs near Venezuela.
Asked if the U.S. military should “use force near Venezuela to reduce illegal drug flow,” 45 percent say yes, 36 percent say no and 19 percent say they don’t know or skipped the question.
Roughly 80 percent of Republicans support the use of force for this purpose, while just 9 percent say they do not. Among Democrats, 66 percent oppose using force near Venezuela to stop drug trafficking, while 20 percent support doing so.
The survey was conducted on Dec. 3-8 and includes 4,434 adults. The margin of error is 2 percentage points.
