U.S. Senator John Fetterman (D-PA) strongly defended President Donald Trump’s use of military force against suspected drug smugglers after a New York Times report questioned the legality of the action.

“Overdosing takes 100,000+ American lives every year. Cartels wage this war against our nation everyday. Maybe it’s time for our nation to push back and hold the cartels fully accountable,” Fetterman wrote on X.

The Times piece, authored by Charlie Savage, said Trump “used the military in a way that had no clear legal precedent or basis” by ordering U.S. forces to kill a group aboard what he described as a drug-smuggling boat.

Conservative lawmakers and analysts countered that because the smugglers were tied to organizations classified as terrorist groups, they were legitimate targets. The men killed this week were identified as members of Tren de Aragua, a Venezuelan gang that has been labeled “narcoterrorists.”