White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt told reporters the admiral approved a second strike on the boat and was well within his legal right to do so.

The White House is defending a U.S. admiral's decision to launch strikes on an alleged Venezuelan drug-smuggling vessel in September, saying he had Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's authorization.

The White House has scrambled in recent days to respond to reporting that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered an elite military unit to kill everyone on board an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean in early September,

President Donald Trump said he believes Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who denied he ordered a second strike to kill survivors on a suspected drug boat.

Bipartisan scrutiny of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s reported order to “kill everybody” aboard an alleged drug smuggling boat in the Caribbean grew Monday as the Trump administration worked to contain the fallout.

The Washington Post reports Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth allegedly gave an order ahead of a Sept. 2 operation in the Caribbean Sea for the military to kill everyone aboard a suspected drug boat.