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Dec. 16, 2025 13:11-13:14 - CSPAN
02:54
Sen. Schumer on Venezuela Boat Strikes

Sen. Chuck Schumer demands access to classified Sept. 2 Venezuela boat strike footage, refused by DoD despite secure review by all 100 senators, calling the administration’s secrecy "deeply troubling." He criticizes unclear policy objectives and President Trump’s contradictory statements, warning of escalation into an "endless war" without defined limits. Transparency, he insists, is critical to prevent missteps and inform the public amid potential regional conflicts. [Automatically generated summary]

Participants
Appearances
c
chuck schumer
sen/d 02:10
p
pete hegseth
admin 00:33
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Speaker Time Text
pete hegseth
To the senators and soon to the House.
It's all classified.
We can't talk about it now.
We're also going to tomorrow allow the Hask and SASC to see the unedited video of September 2nd alongside with Admiral Bradley, who has done a fantastic job, has made all the right calls, and we're glad he'll be there to do it.
But in keeping with long-standing Department of War policy, Department of Defense policy, of course, we're not going to release a top-secret, full unedited video of that to the general public.
Haske and SASC and appropriate committees will see it, but not the general public.
chuck schumer
Okay, good morning.
Look, I reiterated my demand of Secretary Hegseth in front of all hundred senators that he allow every senator to see the unedited version, the unedited video of what happened on September 2nd.
He refused.
The administration came to this briefing empty-handed.
That's the major question that we face.
And if they can't be transparent on this, how can you trust their transparency on all the other issues swirling about in the Caribbean?
Every senator is entitled to see it.
There is no problem with sources and methods because the senators will see it in the skiff.
I also believe that every American should see an appropriate version of this, of the unedited, well, they should see an appropriate version of what happened on September the 2nd.
I saw it.
It was deeply troubling.
In my Gang of Eight meeting last week, I asked Secretary Hegseth, let every senator see it.
He said he'd think about it.
Today, he came up with no answer and no tape.
unidentified
So, do you appreciate anything that is his reasoning?
chuck schumer
His reasoning was that it might give things away that shouldn't be.
I respect classification.
When you do it in the skiff, that argument is undercut.
It's just with senators in the skiff.
unidentified
Can you help us understand if they gave any rationale of what the end goal of these strikes actually is?
pete hegseth
I mentioned that.
chuck schumer
Look, that's the set.
And I sat through this briefing once before last week.
We do not, their policies in the Caribbean are unclear.
We don't know what the limits are.
We don't know where they'll stop.
We don't know what the ultimate goal is.
The president says different things at different times and contradicts himself.
That's why we need full transparency, at least to the 100 senators, and much more transparency to the American people.
We don't want another endless war.
We don't want to stumble into something and given Trump's erratic back and forth on this issue.
I worry about that.
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