Free Republic

"When we declare war is supposed to be done by Congress. It's not supposed to be done willy nilly," Paul addedRepublican Sen. Rand Paul again slammed President Donald Trump over the administration's continued strikes against alleged drug boats off Venezuela, reiterating that any armed conflict should be approved by Congress. Speaking with British journalist Piers Morgan, Paul rejected the administration's claim that the strikes were targeting smugglers carrying different drugs, including fentanyl. "There is no fentanyl made in Venezuela. Not just a little bit, there's none being made. These are outboard boats that, in order for them to get to...

resident Donald Trump warned on Friday that Venezuelan planes will be "shot down" if they put the United States in a "dangerous position." Why It Matters Trump's warning comes after the Pentagon said two Venezuelan planes flew near a U.S. Navy vessel in international waters amid an expanded U.S. military presence in the southern Caribbean. The comment comes as Washington and Caracas trade increasingly sharp warnings following a U.S. strike this week on a boat the administration says was tied to the Venezuelan-linked Tren de Aragua gang. The exchange raises questions about the risk of further military escalation in the...

As tensions heighten in the Middle East amid the escalating Israel-Hamas war, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced late Saturday that the U.S. will redeploy one of its strike groups to the Persian Gulf, as well as send additional air defense systems to the region. Austin also said that he has placed additional U.S. forces on "prepare to deploy orders," but did not detail how many. Austin earlier this week ordered 2,000 troops to be prepared to deploy to the Middle East. The latest decision followed "detailed discussions with President Biden on recent escalations by Iran and its proxy forces across...

If nothing else comes of it, the latest round of Pakistani aggression against India served as yet another signal to the U.S. that the time has come to cut its losses and walk away from Afghanistan. On February 14, a Pakistani terrorist from Jaish-e-Mohammad terrorist organization, infiatrated the Indian side of the disputed Jammu and Kashmir province and murdered more than forty Indian paramilitary forces in a suicide bombing..... Regarding China, however, even as this concern informed U.S. decisionmakers, Pakistan expanded its strategic and political ties with China. In 2016, 63 percent of Pakistan’s foreign military assistance was Chinese....