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The last week’s firestorm over the so‑called “double tap” boat strike began with a screaming Washington Post exposé that claimed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had ordered forces to “kill everybody” on a suspected narco‑smuggling vessel — and that a follow‑up strike finished off survivors clinging to wreckage. That horrific image was tailor‑made for outrage, and the Post’s anonymous sourcing immediately sent cable news into a feeding frenzy.
But the rush to judgment collapsed as clearer reporting emerged: The New York Times, citing multiple officials, found Hegseth had authorized a lethal strike to destroy a vessel and its cargo, not explicitly ordered that survivors be executed after an initial strike failed to accomplish that mission. That clarification matters because the difference between a lawful kinetic interdiction and a filmed atrocity is the difference between oversight and a criminal referral.
Hegseth and the Pentagon were quick to push back against the anonymous narrative, calling the Post’s framing “fabricated, inflammatory, and derogatory” and insisting operations have been lawful and aimed at narco‑terrorists who traffic poison into our communities. The White House likewise backed Hegseth while promising oversight, which is exactly what patriotic Americans should want: accountability without instant character assassination by anonymous sources.
Congressional briefings that followed — including classified showings of strike footage to lawmakers — left members deeply divided, with Democrats denouncing what they described as shocking imagery and Republicans demanding context and proof before condemning the military. Those briefings underline the only sane path forward: a full, bipartisan, fact‑finding process that releases what can be released and protects real operational details. The spectacle of cable anchors presuming guilt while refusing to wait for hearings did no favors to truth or to our troops.
Conservative commentators are right to call out the mob‑style rush from some corners of the media; that doesn’t excuse wrongdoing if wrongdoing occurred, but it does expose the weaponization of anonymous leaks to try and topple an administration’s national security team. Media outlets that peddle scandal first and verify later deserve to be held to account — not rewarded with more eyeballs for smearing commanders and SEALs who go into harm’s way.
We should demand transparency: both the classified videos and the legal memos justifying these operations should be reviewed by Congress in a setting that protects sources and methods while giving the public confidence in how we wield force. At the same time, patriotic Americans must defend the principle that our military cannot be hung out to dry by anonymous hit pieces; every service member deserves a fair accounting, not a preordained narrative crafted for ratings and political theater.
This episode is a reminder that truth is a process, not a sound bite. Conservatives who love country and law want rigorous oversight, due process, and support for troops — in that order. Let the committees do their work, expose any real misconduct, and then hold those responsible to account; but don’t let the modern media mob substitute scandal for evidence and justice for headlines.
