Senate blocks Schiff bid to have Pentagon release boat strike video

David Lightman, McClatchy Washington Bureau on Dec 17, 2025

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

WASHINGTON — The Senate blocked a bid Wednesday by Sen. Adam Schiff to require the Pentagon to make public an unedited video of the September U.S. strike that killed two people who had survived an initial attack on an alleged drug boat near Venezuela.

“This is going to come out. It’s just a question of how long we have to fight to make this available to the American people,” the California Democrat told the Senate.

Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., blocked his proposal from being considered.

Senators were briefed on the video earlier this week, and Wednesday, the Senate passed a defense bill that puts pressure on the Pentagon to release videos of strikes against alleged drug boats near Venezuela.

The bill would hold back part of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s travel budget until he allows the House and Senate Armed Services Committee to see the videos.

Schiff wanted to go a step further.

“The public should see this, and I hope that we’ll have support to make it public,” he said.

“I found the legal explanations and the strategic explanations incoherent, but I think the American people should see this video. And all members of Congress should have that opportunity. I certainly want it for myself,” he added.

His bill would require Hegseth to make the unedited video of the strikes “against designated terrorist organizations in the area of responsibility of the United States Southern Command available to all members of Congress no later than 10 days after enactment of the bill.”

Within 15 days of passage, the bill would require the video of the strikes be made available to the public on a Pentagon website.

The controversy centers on a September 2nd U.S. attack in which a second strike on an alleged drug boat killed two people who had survived the first strike.

_____