Updated on: December 8, 2025 / 10:11 PM EST / CBS News
Washington — President Trump on Monday reversed his earlier on-camera comment that suggested he supported releasing any video of a second strike on an alleged Venezuelan drug boat in early September, saying he never expressed that view and that the decision is up to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
Last week the president told reporters he did not know what video existed of the subsequent strike, “but whatever they have, we’d certainly release, no problem.” On Saturday, Hegseth declined to commit to making the Pentagon’s footage public, saying officials “have to be very responsible about reviewing” any material they might release. The Sept. 2 operation allegedly included a follow-up strike that killed two people who survived an initial attack on an alleged drug-smuggling vessel in the Caribbean.
At a Cabinet Room event Monday, when a reporter referenced his earlier remark about having “no problem” releasing the full video of the Sept. 2 strike, Mr. Trump interrupted, saying, “I didn’t say that,” and added, “Whatever Pete Hegseth wants to do is OK with me.”
The strikes on alleged drug-carrying boats have prompted growing concern on Capitol Hill. Hegseth, Joint Chiefs Chair Gen. Dan Caine and Secretary of State Marco Rubio are scheduled to brief congressional leaders and top intelligence committee members in both chambers, according to two people familiar with the planning.
Questions about whether survivors were targeted in the Sept. 2 attack have intensified lawmakers’ worries. The White House confirmed last week that the military conducted a second strike but maintained the action was legal. Mr. Trump posted a 29-second clip of the initial strike on Truth Social on Sept. 2, but the administration has not released a full video showing the follow-up attack.
Several members of Congress were shown full footage in a closed-door briefing last week and reacted differently: Democrats called the strike on survivors unjustified, while Republicans defended the action.
Since Sept. 2, the U.S. has carried out more than 20 additional strikes tied to the administration’s campaign against drug trafficking in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific, actions that officials say have killed more than 80 people.
Congress is attempting to compel the Pentagon to provide unedited footage by seeking to withhold part of Hegseth’s travel budget in a compromise version of the National Defense Authorization Act until lawmakers receive the unedited video of the strikes.
