{"id":2483788,"date":"2025-09-08T16:57:01","date_gmt":"2025-09-08T20:57:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/sen-paul-backed-obama-droning-americans-not-cartel-strike\/"},"modified":"2025-09-08T16:58:35","modified_gmt":"2025-09-08T20:58:35","slug":"sen-paul-backed-obama-droning-americans-not-cartel-strike","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/sen-paul-backed-obama-droning-americans-not-cartel-strike\/","title":{"rendered":"Sen. Paul Backed Obama Droning Americans, Not Cartel Strike"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fsen-paul-backed-obama-droning-americans-not-cartel-strike%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2483788&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article discusses Senator Rand Paul&#8217;s criticism of a recent drone strike authorized by the Trump administration that targeted a Venezuelan drug cartel boat. While Vice President J.D. Vance praised the operation as an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/hayward-the-next-war-a-look-ahead-at-hypersonic-missiles-a-i-space-combat-and-bio-weapons\/\" title=\"Hayward \u2013 The Next War: A Look Ahead at Hypersonic Missiles, A.I., Space Combat, and Bio-Weapons\">effective military action<\/a>, Paul controversially compared it to a lynching, condemning the killing of accused individuals without trial. Paul highlighted the inconsistency in his stance by noting his previous defense of former President Obama&#8217;s drone strikes, which also resulted in American casualties abroad. The strike aimed to combat the flow of narcotics from Latin American cartels that contribute to tens of thousands of American deaths annually. the Trump administration labeled the targeted cartel, Tren de Aragua, as a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/why-this-average-american-is-voting-for-donald-trump\/\" title=\"Why This Average American Is Voting for Donald ...\">terrorist group<\/a>, with trump emphasizing the strike&#8217;s success in killing 11 terrorists without U.S. casualties. The article also references political tensions surrounding the use of military force against <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/watch-the-situation-is-completely-unstable-crenshaw-tours-the-southern-border\/\" title=\"WATCH: \u2018The Situation Is Completely Unstable\u2019: Crenshaw Tours The Southern Border\">drug cartels<\/a> near U.S. borders and debates over congressional authorization for such actions.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"article-body body-md bdr-top-black pt-30\">\n<div class=\"row justify-content-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12\">\n<figure class=\"article-thumbnail mb-30 mb-sm-60\">\n<div class=\"article-thumbnail-caption d-flex align-items-center justify-content-md-end label-xs mt-15\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-camera me-10\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Image Credit<\/span>\/ <a href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/22007612@N05\/24805659185\">Gage Skidmore \/ Flickr <\/a>\/<a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/2.0\/deed.en\">CC By 2.0<\/a>       <\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-share text-center article-share-simple\">\n<h5 class=\"label-sm mb-10\">Share<\/h5>\n<ul class=\"article-share-list list-unstyled m-0 p-0\">\n<li class=\"article-share-facebook m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/09\/08\/rand-paul-compared-trump-cartel-strike-to-lynching-backed-obama-droning-americans\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-facebook\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Facebook<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-twitter m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=Rand%20Paul%20Compared%20Trump%20Cartel%20Strike%20To%20Lynching,%20Backed%20Obama%20Droning%20Americans&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/09\/08\/rand-paul-compared-trump-cartel-strike-to-lynching-backed-obama-droning-americans\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Twitter<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-truth-social m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/share?title=Rand%20Paul%20Compared%20Trump%20Cartel%20Strike%20To%20Lynching,%20Backed%20Obama%20Droning%20Americans&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/09\/08\/rand-paul-compared-trump-cartel-strike-to-lynching-backed-obama-droning-americans\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" fill=\"currentColor\" style=\"width:36px;height:auto;\" viewbox=\"0 0 92 93\"><path d=\"M69.444 55.716H56.772v10.37h12.672zM64.487 37.795V27.32H38.666v38.664h13.18v-28.19zM21.05 27.321h12.653v10.471H21.051z\" https:><\/path><\/svg>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Truth Social<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-link m-0\">       <button data-clipboard-text=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/09\/08\/rand-paul-compared-trump-cartel-strike-to-lynching-backed-obama-droning-americans\/\" data-tooltip-content=\"Copied!\" class=\"clip tooltip\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-link-variant\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Copy Article Link<\/span>       <\/button>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\">       <a href=\"mailto:?subject=Rand%20Paul%20Compared%20Trump%20Cartel%20Strike%20To%20Lynching,%20Backed%20Obama%20Droning%20Americans&amp;body=Sen.%20Rand%20Paul%20harshly%20criticized%20a%20Trump%20administration%20strike%20on%20a%20Venezuelan%20cartel,%20but%20supported%20Obama's%20drone%20strike%20of%20Americans.%20https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/09\/08\/rand-paul-compared-trump-cartel-strike-to-lynching-backed-obama-droning-americans\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-email\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article via Email<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\"><span class=\"printfriendly pf-button  pf-alignleft\"><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/thefederalist.com\/#\" rel=\"nofollow\" onclick=\"window.print(); return false;\" title=\"Printer Friendly, PDF &amp; Email\"><span id=\"printfriendly-text2\" class=\"pf-button-text\"><i class=\"mdi mdi-printer\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<p>The Trump administration used a drone strike to eliminate what it says was a Venezuelan boat filled with narcotics last week. When Vice President J.D. Vance applauded the operation as the &ldquo;highest and best use of our military,&rdquo; Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., compared the strike to a lynching.<\/p>\n<p>After a left-wing social media reply guy <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/krassenstein\/status\/1964341267568984402\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">calling<\/a> the strike a &ldquo;war crime,&rdquo; Vance <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/JDVance\/status\/1964341436096057502\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">replied<\/a> back, &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t give a sh-t what you call it,&rdquo; which triggered Paul&rsquo;s bizarre comparison to lynch mobs in the Jim Crow South.<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2 d-flex justify-content-center\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center; \" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-141676404\">\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-1463670073398-0\" class=\"mb-30\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>&ldquo;JD &lsquo;I don&rsquo;t give a sh-t&rsquo; Vance says killing people he accuses of a crime is the &lsquo;highest and best use of the military,&#8217;&rdquo; Paul said. &ldquo;Did he ever read <em>To Kill a Mockingbird<\/em>? Did he ever wonder what might happen if the accused were immediately executed without trial or representation?? What a despicable and thoughtless sentiment it is to glorify killing someone without a trial.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Narcotics pouring across the southern border <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbp.gov\/frontline\/cbp-america-s-front-line-against-fentanyl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">kill tens of thousands of Americans each year<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >enrich international terrorist cartels<\/a>. President Trump has been <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/08\/08\/us\/trump-military-drug-cartels.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">treating<\/a> cartel proliferation of such activity within the American homeland as a war, albeit yet another war undeclared by Congress. The strike is one of the very few recent examples of the U.S. military directly protecting Americans at home.<\/p>\n<p>Yet in 2015, when former President Barack Obama approved a drone strike in the Afghanistan-Pakistan border region that reportedly accidentally killed two American hostages in addition to foreign combatants during another congressionally unauthorized war, Paul <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2015\/04\/27\/politics\/rand-paul-drone-obama\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">defended<\/a> Obama.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The world is so partisan, I tend not to want to blame the President for the loss of life here. I think he was trying to do the right thing,&rdquo;&nbsp;he said on <em>Fox and Friends<\/em> at the time. &ldquo;These people were in a war zone and probably got what was coming to them &ndash; the captors. Unfortunately some innocent people also died.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Paul&rsquo;s position on Obama&rsquo;s drone strike <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/GrahamBlog\/status\/592714437032808449\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">drew praise<\/a> from prominent warmonger Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C. <\/p>\n<p>A source close to Vance said it was strange Paul was willing to defend Obama when he droned Americans in the Middle East, but wouldn&rsquo;t defend a strike against foreign terrorists close to America&rsquo;s shores: &ldquo;The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/harris-gives-nearly-25-million-to-downballot-candidates-washington-examiner\/\" title=\"Harris gives nearly  million to downballot candidates - Washington Examiner\">vice president believes<\/a> in the Trump doctrine and using overwhelming force to protect core American interests and save American lives.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Trump <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/americas\/us-military-kills-11-people-strike-alleged-drug-boat-venezuela-trump-says-2025-09-03\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">said<\/a> the Sept. 2 strike &ldquo;resulted in 11 terrorists killed in action. No U.S. Forces were harmed in this strike,&rdquo; and the boat had &ldquo;a lot of drugs.&rdquo; According to Trump, the U.S. military identified the boat&rsquo;s crew as members of Tren de Aragua, a Venezuelan gang the U.S. government designated a terrorist organization earlier this year.<\/p>\n<p>The strike took place after Trump <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/americas\/us-venezuela-tensions-rise-us-warships-arrive-southern-caribbean-2025-08-28\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">increased<\/a> the number of U.S. warships in the Caribbean to quell threats from Latin American cartels.<\/p>\n<p>Paul&rsquo;s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">\n<div class=\"article-author-description fst-italic\">      Breccan F. Thies is the White House correspondent for The Federalist. He previously covered education and culture issues for the Washington Examiner and Breitbart News. He holds a degree from the University of Virginia and is a 2022 Claremont Institute Publius Fellow. You can follow him on X: @BreccanFThies.<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-30 bdr-top-bold-black\">\n<div class=\"row g-0 align-items-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6\">\n<div class=\"article-author-profile d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center justify-content-md-start\">\n<div class=\"article-author-details\">\n<div class=\"label-md\">Breccan F. Thies<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author-twitter label-sm d-flex align-items-center mt-10\">             <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter me-5\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>             <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Visit on Twitter<\/span>            <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/BreccanFThies\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"text-decoration-none\">@BreccanFThies<\/a>           <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6 d-flex justify-content-center justify-content-md-end mt-15 mt-md-0\">        <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/author\/breccan-thies\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">More Articles<\/a>     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-tags bdr-top-black mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-15 pt-md-45\">\n<ul class=\"list-unstyled d-flex flex-wrap align-items-center mb-0 mx-n10 p-0\">\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/cartel\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Cartel<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/cartels\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">cartels<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/congressional-authorization\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">congressional authorization<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Donald Trump<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/drone-strikes\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">drone strikes<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/foreign-wars\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">foreign wars<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/j-d-vance\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">J.D. Vance<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/rand-paul\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Rand Paul<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/terrorism\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">terrorism<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/tren-de-aragua\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Tren de Aragua<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/unauthorized-wars\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">unauthorized wars<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/venezuela\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Venezuela<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/war\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">war<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Trump admin used drone strike on Venezuelan drug boat<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":179,"featured_media":2483789,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/24805659185_c7912a534f_k.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[62866,62865,62867],"class_list":["post-2483788","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-obama-drone-policy","tag-senator-rand-paul","tag-us-drone-strikes"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/24805659185_c7912a534f_k.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2483788","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/179"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2483788"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2483788\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2483792,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2483788\/revisions\/2483792"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2483789"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2483788"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2483788"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2483788"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}