Rand Paul Condemns Venezuela Strikes as Illegal and Dangerous

Senator Rand Paul is raising sharp concerns about the administration’s escalating actions against Venezuela, warning that recent strikes on suspected smuggling boats cross legal and moral lines. Paul says Republicans, including Senator Lindsey Graham and The Wall Street Journal editorial board, agree that a second strike on individuals clinging to wreckage would be illegal, even for those who support the president’s broader approach.

He argues there is consensus that killing people who are shipwrecked violates international law and insists there are still questions about whether the initial bombing was legal. Paul criticizes the administration for acting as though the United States is at war without a declaration from Congress, allowing the government to label individuals as combatants and justify lethal force without oversight.

He points to Coast Guard records showing that a significant number of intercepted boats do not contain drugs, historically around 21 percent off the coast of Venezuela. Paul says this underscores the danger of attacking vessels without evidence and warns that the United States is entering “uncharted territory” with potentially unlawful killings.

He hopes the American public will unite against what he calls reckless and unjustified force.