White House Press Conference Spirals as Caroline Levit Confirms War Crimes and Contradicts Trump

Today, Caroline Levit, White House spokesperson, lost control of a press briefing in a way few could have predicted. The topic? Pete Hegsth’s alleged war crimes off the coast of Venezuela. What started as a routine Q&A quickly spiraled into a 15-minute struggle as Levit repeatedly fumbled answers, read pre-written statements, and contradicted the President himself.

The chaos began when a reporter asked whether the administration denies that a second strike occurred during the September 2nd operation. Levit confirmed the strike did happen, directly contradicting Trump’s claim on Air Force One the night before that “it didn’t happen” and Hegsth had no knowledge. Levit then attempted to minimize responsibility, pointing to Admiral Bradley as the official who ordered the strike, asserting he acted “well within his authority and the law.”

Here’s the kicker: the strike reportedly targeted survivors clinging to a ship. Under the law of armed conflict, this constitutes a war crime. Yet Levit repeatedly insisted the operation was “in accordance with the law of armed conflict,” while fumbling through pre-written statements designed to deflect blame.

When pressed about survivors, Levit essentially shrugged, offering no real answers. “Not to my knowledge,” she said, when asked if the administration changed its policy on handling survivors after the strike—despite reports that some survivors were later rescued and returned to Colombia and Ecuador.

The press then pivoted to Trump’s controversial pardons, including the former Honduran president, Juan Orlando Hernandez, a convicted drug trafficker linked to the Sinaloa cartel. Reporters asked how pardoning a man who helped smuggle 500 tons of cocaine into the U.S. aligns with the administration’s tough stance on Venezuela’s Maduro. Levit’s response? A convoluted defense that Hernandez was the victim of “Biden over-prosecution” and a corrupt trial—a narrative widely criticized as misleading and tone-deaf given the severity of Hernandez’s crimes.

Throughout the briefing, Levit repeatedly read from pre-written notes, defended legally dubious actions, and attacked reporters, claiming “you guys aren’t listening” while evading direct answers. By the end, the White House had admitted the second strike occurred, shrugged off potential war crimes, contradicted the President’s statements, and tried to justify pardons for convicted criminals—all in one chaotic session.

This press conference leaves more questions than answers: Who ultimately authorized the illegal strike? Why is the administration defending actions widely considered war crimes? And how can pardoning convicted drug traffickers coexist with claims of protecting U.S. national security?

One thing is clear: today’s briefing was a masterclass in chaos, deflection, and crisis management—or lack thereof.