Trump’s False Claims, Venezuela Escalation, and the Disturbing Expansion of Executive Power

Hello everybody, David Schuster here.

Donald Trump is now openly spreading falsehoods in an attempt to justify escalating U.S. military action against Venezuela. Speaking from the Oval Office, Trump addressed the recent U.S. strikes on boats alleged to be carrying narcotics. When a reporter asked whether military officials should face consequences if survivors were killed while clinging to the wreckage, Trump immediately pivoted to a series of wildly inaccurate claims.

“This is war,” Trump insisted, before adding that drug traffickers were “killing our people by the millions.” He then claimed that the previous year alone brought “close to 300,000” drug-related deaths.

The actual number, according to the CDC, was 48,000—still a devastating figure, but one-sixteenth of Trump’s fabricated claim. And while Trump insisted “millions” have died in recent years, CDC data shows 800,000 drug-related deaths over the past decade, not millions.

Even more cynical? Trump invoked the suffering of families battling addiction—despite his own administration slashing funding for substance-abuse prevention and treatment.

Trump repeatedly described the situation as “war,” despite never seeking a congressional declaration of war, as required by the Constitution.

And then came the most alarming line of the day:

“Very soon we’re going to start doing it on land too. We know every route, every house, every place they manufacture this.”

Pressed again on whether killing shipwrecked survivors was acceptable, Trump doubled down, saying the pilots of the destroyed boats were guilty and that their deaths were justified.

Under Trump’s logic, the president acts as judge, jury, and executioner—an approach fundamentally incompatible with the U.S. Constitution and the rule of law. Even individuals suspected of crimes overseas are entitled to due process under both U.S. and international law.

Fox News Debate: Jessica Tarlov vs. the Conservative Narrative

While conservative networks rushed to defend the administration, one exchange on Fox News stood out. Liberal commentator Jessica Tarlov attempted to explain to Jesse Watters that international law and the Pentagon’s own manuals require rescuing shipwreck survivors—not executing them.

Tarlov noted that several Republicans, including Sen. Roger Wicker, Sen. Tom Tillis, and Rep. Mike Turner, also acknowledged the U.S. actions were likely unlawful.

Her conservative co-hosts tried to spin the killings as justified, but the legal reality is unmistakable:

If survivors posed no immediate threat, killing them violates U.S. military rules, international law, and the Constitution.

Shifting Explanations From the Trump Administration

The Trump administration has now offered multiple contradictory justifications for the second strike that killed the survivors:

They might call for help

The debris posed a navigation hazard

It was self-defense—despite the boat being 1,500 miles from U.S. shores

The survivors were attempting to complete their drug delivery

Even conservative commentators outside Fox News are openly mocking these explanations.

How, exactly, could the U.S. military determine the intentions of two injured men on a burning vessel? Especially when earlier statements from Trump allies described the scene as “fog of war,” with smoke obscuring visibility?

The narrative shifts by the day, each excuse more improbable than the last.

Hegseth Under Fire

Secretary Hegseth—already facing criticism for his management of the Pentagon—may not survive this political firestorm. Senators from both parties have expressed alarm over his handling of military rules, dismissal of career officers, and apparent disregard for constitutional limits.

Trump has always been quick to discard subordinates who attract more scandal than he’s willing to absorb. So while Hegseth may lose his job, many Republicans argue that his actions go beyond misconduct—they warrant criminal investigation.

A Constitutional Crisis in Slow Motion

The real danger here isn’t one cabinet secretary. It’s the normalization of a president who claims unchecked power to kill suspects without trial, expand military strikes without Congress, and distort public data to justify escalation.

Whether accountability ever arrives is unclear. But the stakes—international, constitutional, and moral—could not be higher.

Bonus: Trump’s Questionable “Preventative MRI”

As if the day weren’t strange enough, Trump’s spokesperson Caroline Leavitt recently claimed that Trump underwent a “preventative cardiac MRI”—a procedure medical experts say simply does not exist.

One physician noted that the official note from Trump’s doctor was vague, evasive, and completely out of sync with routine presidential medical schedules. Basic questions remain unanswered: Was it an MRI? A CT scan? Both? And why the secrecy?