Stephen Miller and other senior officials discussed strikes on Mexican drug cartels and, following legal reviews, the administration authorized an unorthodox lethal campaign that later shifted focus to Venezuela after Donald Trump designated illicit fentanyl as a weapon of mass destruction.The executive order defines illicit fentanyl under the Controlled Substances Act, excludes legally prescribed medical fentanyl, directs the DOJ to pursue immediate trafficking cases, expands DOD roles and intelligence tools, and names Pam Bondi to prosecute.The campaign has included maritime strikes in the eastern Pacific and Caribbean, at least ninety-five deaths across about twenty-five attacks by administration accounts, a seized sanctioned oil tanker, Pentagon footage of exploding vessels, and sharp criticism from legal, public health and congressional figures including Elizabeth Goitein and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.