The Intercept Briefing
Greg Grandin on Trump’s “Universal Police Warrant”
From Venezuela to Greenland, the Trump administration is redefining and invoking the Monroe Doctrine to seize whatever it wants, whenever it wants.
License to Kill
Since September 2025, the Trump administration has conducted an undeclared war in the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean, killing scores of civilians by deploying drone strikes on boats they allege are carrying drugs.
Experts in the laws of war and members of Congress say the strikes are illegal extrajudicial killings because the military is not permitted to deliberately target civilians — even suspected criminals — who do not pose an imminent threat of violence.
The Intercept is covering how the war on terror and the war on drugs are becoming one and the same.
After Undercounting Boat Strike Killings, U.S. Military Updates Death Toll
After questions from The Intercept, U.S. Southern Command updated its count of civilians killed in boat strikes to 123.
Five GOP Senators Vote to Move Forward Bill Blocking Future Trump Attacks on Venezuela
Far-right Sen. Josh Hawley joined four other Republicans to advance a war powers resolution in a symbolic rebuke to Trump.
The U.S. Is Leaving Boat Strike Survivors to Drown
The Coast Guard called off its search for people who jumped into the sea after watching the U.S. military destroy another ship.
Congrats to Donald Trump on Starting the Least Popular War in Recent Memory
Americans usually rally ’round the flag for a new war, but polls show Trump’s attack on Venezuela is deeply unpopular.
How Congress Blew All Their Chances to Stop Trump’s War With Venezuela
“As with most things, it is going to come down to political will within Congress, particularly on the GOP side of the aisle.”
Pentagon Official on Venezuela War: “Following the Old, Failed Scripts”
“It bears an unsettling resemblance to the occupation of Iraq, where promises of liberation quickly gave way to years of insurgency.”
Voices
The Media Refuses to Call Trump’s Venezuela Attack an Act of War
By framing this brazen act of aggression in euphemistic terms, the media is falling in line with Trump.
“We Are Going to Run the Country”: Trump Boasts of Regime Change in Venezuela
U.S. forces attacked Caracas and multiple states in Venezuela and captured President Nicolás Maduro and his wife.
CIA Was Behind Venezuela Drone Strike, Source Says
The December 24 drone strike in Venezuela is the latest in a long tradition of CIA interventions in Latin America — which often lead to destabilization and blowback.