Natasha Bertrand

US is making plans to intercept Venezuela-linked oil tanker that Russia has claimed ownership of, sources say | CNN Politics The US is making plans to try to intercept a fleeing oil tanker that Russia has claimed ownership of, according to four people familiar with the matter, setting up a possible confrontation between Was...

The US is making plans to try to intercept a fleeing oil tanker currrntly in the North Atlantic that Russia has claimed ownership of, per 4 sources, setting up a possible confrontation between Washington and the Kremlin…

www.cnn.com/2026/01/05/p...

The 1989 legal opinion, authored by Bill Barr, concluded that the president has the inherent constitutional authority to deploy the FBI to investigate and arrest individuals for violating US law, "even if those actions contravene international law."
The FBI was on the ground w/Delta Force on Friday.

New: Trump administration officials are internally pointing to a 1989 legal opinion and the subsequent US invasion of Panama as precedent to justify the operation that was carried out in Venezuela on Friday night without US congressional authorization, per 3 sources.

Exclusive: CIA carried out drone strike on port facility on Venezuelan coast | CNN Politics The CIA carried out a drone strike earlier this month on a port facility on the coast of Venezuela, sources familiar with the matter told CNN, marking the first known US attack on a target inside that...

Exclusive: The CIA carried out a drone strike earlier this month on a port facility in Venezuela, sources told CNN, marking the first known US attack on a target inside that country. This is the attack Trump has repeatedly alluded to in recent days. www.cnn.com/2025/12/29/p...

Exclusive: Top lawyer for military joint chiefs told chairman that officers should retire if faced with an unlawful order | CNN Politics How should a military commander respond if they determine they have received an unlawful order?

Exclusive: Top lawyer for military joint chiefs told chairman that officers should retire if faced with an unlawful order. That advice is raising serious concerns among current and former officials. Latest: www.cnn.com/2025/12/19/p...

Potentially a big day on the Hill tomorrow…

Hegseth, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Gen. Dan Caine and SecState Marco Rubio are expected to brief the Gang of 8 tomorrow afternoon

Separately, outgoing Southern Command commander Adm. Alvin Holsey is expected to virtually meet HASC and SASC leaders.

Exclusive: Boat at center of double-tap strike controversy was meeting vessel headed to Suriname, admiral told lawmakers | CNN Politics The alleged drug traffickers killed by the US military in a strike on September 2 were heading to link up with another, larger vessel that was bound for Suriname — a small South American country east ...

New: Alleged traffickers killed by the US military in a strike on September 2 were not heading toward the US, Adm Bradley told lawmakers yesterday, per people briefed.
Instead they were heading to link up with another vessel that was bound for Suriname. www.cnn.com/2025/12/05/p...

Exclusive: Survivors clinging to capsized boat didn’t radio for backup, admiral overseeing double-tap strike tells lawmakers | CNN Politics The two men killed as they floated holding onto their capsized boat in a secondary strike against a suspected drug vessel in early September did not appear to have radio or other communications device...

New: The men killed as they floated holding onto their capsized boat after the Sept 2 secondary strike did not appear to have radio or other comms devices, top military official overseeing the strike told lawmakers, undercutting claim they could have called for backup. www.cnn.com/2025/12/04/p...

Classified Pentagon watchdog report on Hegseth’s use of Signal sent to lawmakers | CNN Politics A classified final version of the Pentagon inspector general’s report into Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s use of Signal to discuss sensitive military operations has been delivered to the House an...

New: A classified final version of the Pentagon inspector general’s report into Hegseth’s use of Signal to discuss sensitive military operations has been delivered to lawmakers for review, and a declassified, redacted version is set to be released publicly on Thursday. www.cnn.com/2025/12/02/p...

US military carried out second strike killing survivors on a suspected drug boat that had already been attacked, sources say | CNN Politics The US military carried out a follow-up strike on a suspected drug vessel operating in the Caribbean on September 2 after an initial attack did not kill everyone on board, sources familiar with the ma...

The US military carried out a followup strike on a suspected drug vessel in the Caribbean on Sept 2, killing survivors of the initial strike, sources said.

People briefed on the “double-tap” strike said they were concerned that it could violate the law of armed conflict. www.cnn.com/2025/11/28/p...

The American delegation is: Secretary Rubio, Special envoy Witkoff, Jared Kushner, SecArmy Driscoll, State Dept counselor Michael Needham, US Amb Julie Davis, Deputy NSA Andy Baker, and EUCOM commander Gen. Grynkewich.

Update on the US-Ukraine talks in Geneva today: US and Ukrainian delegations are having a formal meeting now “where they will be ironing out the details of the agreement,” per US official. Previous talks were “conclusive” in some areas, official says.

Exclusive: UK suspends some intelligence sharing with US over boat strike concerns in major break | CNN Politics The United Kingdom is no longer sharing intelligence with the US about suspected drug trafficking vessels in the Caribbean because it does not want to be complicit in US military strikes and believes ...

NEWS: The UK is no longer sharing intelligence with the US about suspected drug trafficking vessels in the Caribbean because it does not want to be complicit in US military strikes and believes the attacks are illegal, sources familiar with the matter told CNN. edition.cnn.com/2025/11/11/p...

Trump admin tells Congress it currently lacks legal justification to strike Venezuela | CNN Politics The “execute order” that launched the US military campaign against suspected drug boats in September also does not extend to land targets, the briefers said, according to the sources.

Trump admin officials told Congress that the US is not currently planning to launch strikes inside Venezuela and doesn’t have a legal justification that would support attacks against land targets right now—but they’re seeking one from DOJ, per US official. edition.cnn.com/2025/11/06/p...

Pentagon cleared giving Ukraine long-range Tomahawk missiles, leaving final decision to Trump | CNN Politics The Pentagon has given the White House the green light to provide Ukraine with long-range Tomahawk missiles after assessing that it would not negatively impact US stockpiles, leaving the final politic...

New: The Pentagon cleared giving Ukraine long-range Tomahawk missiles after assessing that it would not negatively impact US stockpiles, despite Trump suggesting earlier this month that the US might not have enough to give away. Final decision largely political now. edition.cnn.com/2025/10/31/p...

Exclusive: National Guard orders in DC extended through February 2026 | CNN Politics National Guard troops deployed in Washington, DC will remain mobilized in the city at least through February 2026, according to people familiar with the Guard’s orders.

NEW: National Guard troops deployed in Washington, DC, will remain mobilized in the city at least through February 2026. Hegseth extended their orders on Monday. edition.cnn.com/2025/10/29/p...

Looking to speed up building network of migrant detention centers, Trump administration turns to the US Navy | CNN Politics The Department of Homeland Security is funneling $10 billion through the Navy to help facilitate the construction of a sprawling network of migrant detention centers across the US in an arrangement ai...

NEW: The Department of Homeland Security is funneling $10 billion through the Navy to help facilitate the construction of a sprawling network of migrant detention centers across the US in an arrangement aimed at getting the centers built faster. www.cnn.com/2025/10/24/p...

Great video by @averyschmitz.bsky.social (with some narration help by me 🤭) taking a look at what the US military has built up in the Caribbean.

Here’s what the US military has positioned in the Caribbean as Trump pressures Venezuela | CNN The US military has been steadily massing a large number of troops, naval and air assets in the Caribbean over the last two months, conducting training missions off the coast of Venezuela, reopening a...

The US military has been steadily massing a large number of troops, naval and air assets in the Caribbean over the last two months. Here’s what’s been positioned as Trump pressures Venezuela (and, increasingly, Colombia): www.cnn.com/2025/10/19/w...

YouTube video by CNN Trump authorizes CIA operations in Venezuela

Great segment here with @rgoodlaw.bsky.social.

Also, important observations from @natashabertrand.bsky.social about the dynamics of lawyering within DoD on the Caribbean strikes, including the sidelining of actual experts and reliance on the OLC license to kill.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=L062...

Thank you Brian

At least one US military strike on alleged drug trafficking boat in Caribbean targeted Colombians | CNN Politics At least one US military strike in the Caribbean over the last two months targeted Colombian nationals on a boat that had left from Colombia, according to two people briefed by the Pentagon about the ...

Breaking: At least one US military strike in the Caribbean targeted Colombians on a boat leaving from Colombia, sources tell us.

The deliberate targeting of Colombians suggests the US military’s campaign is wider than previously believed www.cnn.com/2025/10/15/p...

How the Pentagon sidelined lawyers while testing the legal limits of military action | CNN Politics For weeks earlier this year, the Army’s top uniformed lawyer had been raising legal concerns inside the Pentagon about some of the new policies being rolled out dictating how the military can be used ...

NEW: How the Pentagon sidelined lawyers while testing the legal limits of military action
New details here about how the Army’s top uniformed lawyer was fired just weeks after raising concerns about the use of the military domestically and mass firings of DoD employees www.cnn.com/2025/10/15/p...

How the Pentagon sidelined lawyers while testing the legal limits of military action | CNN Politics For weeks earlier this year, the Army’s top uniformed lawyer had been raising legal concerns inside the Pentagon about some of the new policies being rolled out dictating how the military can be used ...

Phenomenal story from @natashabertrand.bsky.social - these lawyers play a vital role in making sure military orders are lawful

Exclusive: Classified Justice Department opinion authorizes strikes on secret list of cartels, sources say | CNN Politics The Trump administration has produced a classified legal opinion that justifies lethal strikes against a secret and expansive list of cartels and suspected drug traffickers, according to multiple peop...

New: DOJ has produced a classified legal opinion that justifies lethal strikes against a secret and expansive list of cartels and suspected drug traffickers—justifying an open-ended war against suspected smugglers, now considered by the US to be enemy combatants. www.cnn.com/2025/10/06/p...

this is wild: while Stephen Miller's guy was in Minnesota for his uncle's funeral, somebody was able to see his entire phone and take pictures of his Signal group chats talking about military deployments to Portland, and brought them to the Strib (gift link: www.startribune.com/trump-offici...)

Trump admin tells Congress the US is in ‘armed conflict’ with drug cartels | CNN Politics Trump admin tells Congress the US is in ‘armed conflict’ with drug cartels

Trump has determined that the US is in an “armed conflict” with drug cartels & deemed them "unlawful combatants," according to the Pentagon. DoD general counsel briefed hill yesterday. The admin has been weighing the combatant designation for months. www.cnn.com/2025/10/02/p...

“It’s about getting the horses into the stable and whipping them into shape,” said a defense official. “And the guys with the stars on their shoulders make for a better audience from an optics standpoint…[message will be] get on board, or potentially have your career shortened.”

Hegseth’s surprise gathering of top military brass is to deliver speech on ‘warrior ethos,’ sources say | CNN Politics Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s surprise gathering of hundreds of generals and admirals in Virginia next week is being called so he can describe the administration’s reinvention of the Department ...

News: Hegseth’s surprise gathering of top military brass in Virginia next week is being called so he can describe the administration’s reinvention of the Department of Defense as the “Department of War” and outline new standards for military personnel, sources say www.cnn.com/2025/09/26/p...

NATO divided on how to respond to repeated Russian incursions | CNN Politics NATO allies are divided over whether the alliance should make it a policy to shoot down Russian jets that violate NATO’s airspace, with some countries including the US, Poland, and Baltic nations sign...

NATO allies are divided over whether to make it a policy to shoot down Russian jets that violate NATO’s airspace, with some countries including the US & Poland signaling that future violations should be met with force, while others, including Germany, urge more restraint. www.cnn.com/2025/09/25/p...