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PBS News<\/p>\n
WASHINGTON (AP) \u2014 The U.S. military said Wednesday that it attacked a boat accused of smuggling drugs in the eastern Pacific Ocean, killing four people on the same day\u00a0the House rejected efforts\u00a0to limit\u00a0President Donald Trump\u2019s\u00a0power to use military force against drug cartels.<\/p>\n
U.S. Southern Command stated on social media that the vessel was operated by narco-terrorists along a known trafficking route. The military didn\u2019t provide evidence behind the allegations but posted a video of a boat moving through water before there was an explosion.<\/p>\n
The attack brought\u00a0the total number of known boat strikes\u00a0to 26 while at least 99 people have been killed, according to numbers announced by the Trump administration. Trump has\u00a0justified the attacks\u00a0as a necessary escalation to stem the flow of drugs into the United States and asserted the U.S. is engaged in an\u00a0\u201carmed conflict\u201d with drug cartels.<\/p>\n
The administration is facing\u00a0increasing scrutiny from lawmakers\u00a0over the boat strike campaign. The first attack in early September involved\u00a0a follow-up strike that killed two survivors\u00a0clinging to the wreckage of a boat after the first hit.<\/p>\n
House Republicans rejected a pair of Democratic-backed resolutions Wednesday that would have forced the Trump administration to seek authorization from Congress before continuing attacks against cartels. They were the first votes in the House on Trump\u2019s military campaign in Central and South America. A majority of Republicans in the Senate had\u00a0previously voted against similar resolutions, and Trump would almost certainly veto them if they were to pass Congress.<\/p>\n