Wait, We're Still Killing People at Sea Without Trial or Declaring War?

I am writing as a constituent in appalled disbelief. I assumed these illegal, unconstitutional military strikes in international waters had ended months ago. They have not. Under "Operation Southern Spear," the military has used lethal force to execute people at sea in international waters since September 2025. Eleven months later, the death toll exceeds 215 human beings killed without charge, evidence, or trial. Not a single one of these lethal actions has ever been authorized by Congress. Independent legal experts, UN officials, and former military prosecutors have repeatedly warned that summarily killing people in international waters violates both international law and our own Constitution. By replacing statutory maritime law enforcement and due process with lethal air strikes, the administration is committing extrajudicial executions that violate the Fifth Amendment and bypass federal courts entirely. Because there is no judicial process or public evidence, there is no way to establish who is actually being killed, leaving reports of dead local fishermen unaddressed. Even if the administration were to ignore domestic and international law, the policy fails on its own strategic terms. During March testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Marine Corps Gen. Francis Donovan, Commander of U.S. Southern Command, explicitly stated that "the boat strikes aren't the answer," calling them "probably not the most effective tool" against trafficking networks. Multiple independent analyses confirm these strikes have failed to disrupt drug flows—meaning Congress is allowing extrajudicial killings that even top military commanders admit do not work. Article I of the Constitution reserves the power to authorize military force exclusively to Congress. The War Powers Resolution of 1973 was written specifically to prevent presidents from conducting indefinite, undeclared military campaigns. The 60-day statutory window for these operations expired long ago, yet Congress has held no vote to authorize, restrict, or halt these strikes. I urge you to take three concrete actions immediately: 1. Sponsor or co-sponsor a War Powers Resolution directing the executive branch to halt all unauthorized lethal military strikes on maritime targets in international waters. 2. Support strict appropriations riders in the upcoming National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) to defund and prohibit kinetic military strikes against non-state targets outside declared conflict zones. 3. Demand that the Department of Defense and Department of Justice publicly release all legal rationales, Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) memos, and rules of engagement used to justify these strikes. By standing silently as the executive branch wages an illegal, undeclared military campaign, members of Congress are failing to support and defend the Constitution—abandoning the very oath of office you swore to uphold. Congress has allowed nearly a year of unauthorized military action to pass without asserting its constitutional authority. I expect you to act immediately, and I expect an explanation for your silence thus far.