Trump Expands Anti‑Drug Campaign to Land

President Donald Trump announced the U.S. will broaden its anti‑drug campaign from maritime strikes to potential land operations in countries such as Venezuela, saying “the land is going to be next” and that he would “just...kill people” bringing drugs into the country. Administration officials say they have carried out at least nine lethal strikes on suspected smuggling vessels since September, killing dozens, and have deployed naval assets, aircraft and troops to the region. The White House is advancing a legal theory treating major cartels as non‑state armed or terrorist organizations — officials have likened cartels to ISIS — which it says permits use of force without a new congressional declaration of war. Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth say Congress will be briefed but a formal war vote is unnecessary, prompting bipartisan concerns about executive overreach and erosion of war powers. Mexico has rejected any U.S. troop presence on its soil and Venezuela warned land strikes would dangerously escalate tensions, while legal scholars, rights groups and regional governments warn the approach risks violating sovereignty and causing civilian harm.