On Friday night, MSNBC aired a segment raising alarming speculation that President Donald Trump could potentially wield the U.S. military as a personal instrument to target individuals, sparking debate over legal and constitutional boundaries.
The discussion followed the Pentagon’s recent approval to deploy the Gerald R. Ford carrier strike group to U.S. Southern Command, a move intended to increase pressure on Venezuela and combat transnational cartel activity across South America.
During the broadcast of Deadline: White House, host Alicia Menendez framed the deployment in the context of potential abuse of military power. “Even the fact that there are officers who are having that conversation tells you about the five-alarm fire that we are in,” Menendez said, suggesting that Trump’s administration could justify lethal action against suspected drug traffickers “like enemy troops, instead of arresting them for prosecution.”
Guest Tom Nichols, a staff writer for The Atlantic, agreed, asserting that such measures would violate both U.S. law and international treaties. “The American president has said, ‘I can point the U.S. military any place I want and kill anyone I want,’” Nichols said. He characterized the remarks as part of a broader effort to normalize using the military for personal or political ends.
“He is acclimating people to the notion that the military is his private army unconstrained by law, unconstrained by norms, unconstrained by American traditions. I don’t really think this has anything to do with drugs,” Nichols added.
Nichols further speculated that Trump’s military posture could serve as a distraction from political scandals and low approval ratings. “This is about getting out from under his already dismal record,” he said. “The president may be thinking, ‘I may well have us in a war by the time the elections roll around, which will enable me to say any opposition to me and my party is basically treason and unpatriotic.’”
Menendez endorsed Nichols’ analysis, remarking, “Tom Nichols, your brain and my brain have gone to the exact same place.”
Despite these claims, polling data suggests a majority of Americans view Trump as delivering on his campaign promises. CNN analyst Harry Enten reported on October 7 that 52 percent of voters believe Trump is fulfilling his 2024 pledges.
The administration’s military maneuvers in the southern Caribbean come amid rising challenges posed by drug traffickers, who have increasingly employed commercial ships, low-flying aircraft, and smaller maritime deliveries to evade detection. In response, the Trump administration deployed naval forces to the region in August after designating multiple Latin American cartels as Foreign Terrorist Organizations, while U.S. bombers have conducted patrols near Venezuelan airspace to demonstrate military strength.
Analysts caution that the escalating campaign could risk drawing Washington into a broader regional conflict. The administration has also targeted Colombia, with the Treasury Department announcing sanctions on President Gustavo Petro days after he publicly called for Trump’s removal.
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