By late August 2026, U.S. forces had used missiles against suspected drug boats 68 times under Trump, killing 227 people. A DEA assessment cited by Reason said the strikes did not affect U.S. cocaine supply or prices and led traffickers to change routes.
Trump's administration has defended the attacks as part of an armed conflict with criminal groups, while legal experts and lawmakers have disputed that rationale. A Washington Post report cited by Reason said two men who survived the first strike were killed in a follow-up attack; Adm. Frank M. Bradley reportedly told lawmakers they might retrieve the cocaine, a threat the article describes as speculative.
At a Senate hearing in March, Southern Command chief Gen. Francis L. Donovan said he could not provide measures of effectiveness for the campaign, although traffickers' patterns had changed, and said the strikes were not the answer. Trump claimed in April that 98.2% of drugs entering the U.S. by sea had stopped; the article said the figure was difficult to verify.
