The Latest: Trump hosts Cabinet meeting amid scrutiny over boat strikes

President Donald Trump is hosting a Cabinet meeting, the day after the administration insists that a secondary strike on an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean Sea in a September U.S. military operation was lawful.

The White House said Monday that Navy Vice Adm. Frank “Mitch” Bradley ordered the second strike and was “within his authority and the law.” The military operation has come under bipartisan scrutiny from lawmakers after The Washington Post reported that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had issued a verbal order to “kill everybody” on the boat.

Legal experts say the U.S. military would have committed a crime if survivors were killed. Trump defended Hegseth on Sunday. “Pete said he did not order the death of those two men,” Trump said. “And I believe him.” Bradley is expected to provide a classified briefing Thursday to lawmakers overseeing the military.

The Latest:

Trump said at his Cabinet meeting that next year he’ll be “giving back refunds out of the tariffs because we’ve taken in literally trillions dollars.”

It’s not clear how that would work or if Trump could afford to do so without worsening the national debt, which he claims his tariffs will also cut.

The Bipartisan Policy Center estimates that so far this year the U.S. government has collected $258.1 billion in tariffs. This revenue from taxes on imports is meaningfully higher than $90 billion collected at this point last year. But it’s not trillions, and it’s not clear how Trump could refund the taxes he imposed unilaterally by declaring an economic emergency.

The annual budget shortfall for the last fiscal year was $1.8 trillion, significantly higher than Trump’s tariff revenues.

Still, Trump said he’s banking on tariffs supplanting income taxes, so much so that “at some point in the not too distant future, you won’t even have income tax to pay.”

Rep. Ted Lieu, vice chair of the House Democratic Caucus, said the Department of Justice must conduct an investigation into a second strike of a vessel accused of trafficking drugs off the coast of Venezuela.

Lieu, who served in the United States Air Force JAG corps, said killing shipwreck survivors is a war crime.

He said the DOJ’s investigation should also include a review of Hegseth’s actions as defense secretary.

“If the Trump administration does not hold the people accountable, I guarantee you a future administration will do so because there is no statute of limitations for war crimes,” Lieu said.

The president said Tuesday that members of his party are on the same page when it comes to negotiations over health care, as he repeated his frequent criticisms of the Affordable Care Act.

But that’s in contrast with Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson, who has declined to say whether he will allow a vote on a health care bill. A health care proposal recently circulated by the White House is running into the reality of Republican divisions on the issue.

The tentative proposal would extend expiring ACA subsidies for two years while adjusting eligibility requirements for recipients. The plan has so far been met with a stony silence on Capitol Hill as Republicans debate among themselves whether to overhaul the law, tweak it or simply let the subsidies expire.

It’s no secret that Trump is counting the days until Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s term expires in May.

“We’ll be announcing somebody, probably early next year, for the new chairman of the Fed,” Trump said at Tuesday’s cabinet meeting.

He’s in the process of vetting final candidates. Those likely include Kevin Hassett, director of the White House National Economic Council, and Kevin Warsh, a former Fed governor.

Trump continues to joke that he wants Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to lead the U.S. central bank, but he says Bessent has turned him down because he has “the greatest job.”

The Defense secretary is sitting in his usual seat, at Trump’s left. His presence in the Cabinet Room is attracting extra attention as the Pentagon faces bipartisan scrutiny for a second, follow-up strike on an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean Sea in a September.

The GOP leader said as far as he can tell it was Admiral Bradley’s decision to strike the boat a second time.

“He made that call,” Johnson said at his weekly press conference. “I don’t know what went into the Admiral’s decision,” he added, but he said, the incident is “something Congress will look at.”

Johnson demurred when asked if the video tape should be made available for review.

“I don’t know how much of that tape should be released, because I’m not sure how much is sensitive with regard to national security,” he said.

The president has opened what he says is the final meeting of his Cabinet for 2025.

Trump has begun by talking about what he says is a historic $18 trillion in investments in the United States, citing money spent in the country from other nations, as well as what he said was record spending on Black Friday.

Musician Sabrina Carpenter and the publisher of the beloved children’s character Franklin the Turtle are disavowing the Trump administration’s use of their music and imagery to support its agenda.

Responding to the use of her song “Juno” in a video montage depicting ICE raids, Carpenter tweeted Tuesday: “this video is evil and disgusting. Do not ever involve me or my music to benefit your inhumane agenda.”

And on Monday, “Franklin the Turtle” publisher Kids Can Press condemned Hegseth’s post on X of a manipulated image showing Franklin aiming a bazooka at boats.

“We strongly condemn any denigrating, violent, or unauthorized use of Franklin’s name or image, which directly contradicts these values,” the publisher said in a tweet.

Wilson began with attacks on Democratic lawmakers and mainstream media.

She also maintained the Trump administration’s assertions that the U.S. military’s attacks on alleged drug boats off the Venezuela coast are “lawful.” At least 83 people have been killed in at least 21 strikes in a campaign now facing House and Senate scrutiny.

Wilson also rebuked a Washington Post story that reported that the U.S. military killed two survivors of an initial boat attack on Sept. 2. Wilson maintained that the second strike was ordered by Adm. Frank Bradley, and that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth “100%” agrees with both strikes.

“As the White House confirmed yesterday, the decision to strike the narco-terrorist vessel was made by Admiral Bradley, operating under clear and long standing authorities to ensure the boat was destroyed and the threat to the United States was eliminated,” Wilson said.

Jeff Landry said he received that commitment from Trump himself.

“He said, ‘Don’t worry Jeff, we’ll have them there in two weeks,’” Landry said, recounting a Monday morning phone call with Trump.

The governor, who spoke with reporters during an event honoring victims of the New Year’s Day Bourbon Street attack, provided no additional details on the deployment.

Landry requested in September that the federal government send 1,000 guard troops, citing concerns about crime in some of Louisiana’s most populous cities.

It’s a district that Trump won by 22 percentage points in 2024, but House Speaker Mike Johnson joined other Republicans in tamping down expectations ahead of Tuesday’s U.S. House special election in Tennessee.

“Special elections are strange animals and anything can happen,” Johnson said. “And when you’re in a deep red district, sometimes people assume that the Republican, the conservative will win. And you cannot assume that.”

Johnson said at his Tuesday press conference that he spent nearly 10 hours in the district the day before, holding nearly a dozen events. Winning the race is both crucial for the GOP’s narrow majority and viewed as a potential barometer ahead of next year’s midterms.

Speaker Mike Johnson says “we didn’t commit to that” when asked whether House Republicans would pursue a short-term extension of health care subsidies before they soon expire.

Johnson’s comment comes as he spoke to reporters Tuesday. Some of the Republicans in key swing districts have been calling for a short-term extension to prevent premiums from soaring next year for thousands of their constituents. But time is running short as lawmakers wrap up their work before the holiday break.

Johnson said only a small percentage of Americans are affected by the subsidy increases kicking in next year for those on Affordable Care Act exchanges.

“All of this hullabaloo is over 7%. Now, every American, 100% of Americans need their health care costs to come down. Republicans have ideas to do that. Now, what I’ve got to do is build consensus deliberately around the best ideas.”

Most of the Pentagon’s press corps turned in their access badges rather than submit to new rules restricting what they can report.

Pentagon press secretary Kingsley Wilson is holding Tuesday’s event with “invited press only” able to ask any questions. It’s also being broadcast on the Pentagon’s website, among other places.

The Pentagon’s last on-camera press briefing was in June after U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear sites. This briefing comes amid increasing scrutiny of U.S. military strikes against alleged drug boats off Venezuela and reports that survivors of one attack were killed in what may have been a criminal act.

Several conservative news outlets and internet influencers agreed to the new press policy. Virtually all other media organizations declined to go along over concerns it will restrict them to reporting what Hegseth approves.

The president on social media called GOP candidate Matt Van Epps “phenomenal” and a “MAGA Warrior” who “cherishes Christianity and Country Music.”

Trump has repeatedly criticized the Democratic candidate, state Rep. Aftyn Behn, for comments she made about Nashville during a 2020 podcast in which she said “I hate country music.”

Behn, who represents Tennessee’s biggest city, which is considered the home of country music, said the GOP is trying claim she hates Nashville, and she’s “not going to take the bait.”

“I’ve cried no less than 10 times in the Country Music Hall of Fame — the girl that just goes to the Ryman to hang out” she posted Nov. 20 in a Facebook video. “They’re panicking because we’re close to winning. Eyes on the prize, y’all. Let’s go.”

▶ Read more about Tuesday’s congressional election in Tennessee

A faith-based pregnancy center will ask the justices on Tuesday to block a state investigation into whether it misled people to discourage abortions.

The facilities often known as “crisis pregnancy centers” have been on the rise since the Supreme Court’s conservative majority overturned abortion as a nationwide right in 2022. Most Republican-controlled states have been enforcing bans or restrictions on abortion, and some have steered tax dollars to the centers, which generally provide prenatal care and encourage women to carry pregnancies to term.

Many Democratic-aligned states have sought to protect abortion access and some have investigated whether pregnancy centers mislead women into thinking they offer abortions. New Jersey’s attorney general Matthew Platkin sent a subpoena to First Choice Women’s Resource Centers for donor information. First Choice argues the investigation is baseless and the demand for donor lists threatens its First Amendment rights.

Brian Finucane, now a senior adviser with the International Crisis Group, said the U.S. is not in an armed conflict with drug cartels, and “the term for a premeditated killing outside of armed conflict is murder.

“Murder on the high seas is a crime,” he said. “Conspiracy to commit murder outside of the United States is a crime. And under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, Article 118 makes murder an offense.”

The Pentagon’s own manual on the laws of war describes a scenario similar to the Sept. 2 boat strike when discussing when service members should refuse to comply with unlawful orders: “For example,” the manual says, “orders to fire upon the shipwrecked would be clearly illegal.”

Juan Orlando Hernández was serving a 45 year sentence for helping drug traffickers move some 400 tons of cocaine to the United States. The U.S. Bureau of Prisons confirmed Tuesday that he was released from a prison in Hazelton, West Virginia following a pardon from Trump.

“After almost four years of pain, of waiting and difficult challenges, my husband Juan Orlando Hernández RETURNED to being a free man, thanks to the presidential pardon granted by President Donald Trump,” his wife Ana García posted Tuesday.

Asked why he did it, Trump said Sunday that people in Honduras told him Hernández had been falsely accused in “a Biden administration set-up.”

The pardon injected a new element into Honduras’ presidential election, possibly helping the candidate from Hernández’ right-wing National Party as the vote count proceeded Tuesday.

Michael Schmitt, a former Air Force lawyer and professor emeritus at the U.S. Naval War College, said it doesn’t matter whether the U.S. is in “armed conflict” with drug cartels, as the Trump administration asserts — he says such a fatal second strike would have violated both peacetime laws and those governing armed conflict.

“I can’t imagine anyone, no matter what the circumstance, believing it is appropriate to kill people who are clinging to a boat in the water,” said Schmitt.

“It has been clear for well over a century that you may not declare what’s called ‘no quarter’ — take no survivors, kill everyone,” he said.

U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and Russian President Vladimir Putin will discuss an embryonic peace plan that Washington hopes can bring about an end to the nearly four-year war in Ukraine. Coinciding with Witkoff’s trip, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy went to Ireland, continuing his visits to European countries that have helped sustain his country’s fight against Russia’s invasion.

Trump’s doctor, Sean Barbabella, said the president had MRI imaging on his heart and abdomen in October as part of a preventative screening for men his age, according to a memo released by the White House on Monday. Barbabella said Trump’s physical exam included “advanced imaging” that is “standard for an executive physical” in Trump’s age group.