U.S. Navy Adm. Frank M. Bradley is set to sit down with members of the Senate and House Armed Services and Intelligence committees on Thursday, days after a report from The Washington Post raised serious concerns about a September strike on a boat off the coast of Venezuela.
The Post reported that Bradley, who was head of the Joint Special Operations Command at the time, directed a second hit on an alleged drug boat after Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth ordered that no one should be left alive — an action that legal experts have suggested could constitute a war crime.
Sen. Mark Warner, vice chair of the Intelligence Committee, spoke to “Morning Joe” about what he wants to hear from Bradley about the administration’s controversial strike.
Warner told MS NOW that Bradley has a “great reputation” and that he respects the admiral, but stressed he and his colleagues wanted to “get the truth” about the September strike. “And I’m not sure we’ve had the truth from Hegseth yet,” he added.
The Virginia Democrat said he would like to get answers on exactly what Hegseth ordered and to watch an unedited video of the mission. Warner also said the administration has provided “nothing” to back up its claims that those killed were members of drug cartels.
The senator said the Trump White House had a record of treating “the uniformed military with unprecedented disrespect,” referencing the unprecedented firing of top military leaders and an unusual meeting of generals and admirals earlier this year, which he called Hegseth’s version of a “pep rally.”
According to Warner, the circumstances surrounding the September strike were not a “one-off incident,” which he said “would be bad enough.” Instead, he argued it was part of “a pattern” of the military appearing to carry out “political actions” on behalf of Trump.
“That is not making America safer,” he added.
You can watch Warner’s full interview on “Morning Joe” in the clip at the top of the page.
Allison Detzel is an editor/producer for MS NOW.