NewsNation host Leland Vittert took Democrats and the liberal media to town Monday night over their newfound obsession with Secretary of War Pete Hegseth’s alleged “war crime” committed in early September. The On Balance host cut through the noise by arguing the reasonable and obvious: the strikes in the Caribbean were warranted and not unprecedented, and that Democrats have always lost when going after President Trump on common sense issues. After reporting the facts of the case, Vittert played a short compilation of clips from CNN’s The Situation Room, Chuck Todd on his podcast with Chris Cillizza, and Joe Scarborough on MS NOW’s Morning Joe, all of which were critical of the Trump administration’s actions: The Washington establishment is simply horrified that the Trump administration is killing drug runners, and they want you to be horrified as well. And they're happy. You can see that in their pensive smiles. Because to them this will be the issue that finally ends the Trump Presidency, or at least defangs Trump. Trump is doing what he does in every one of these situations: he stays defiant. Vittert then provided a brief history lesson to prove that the administration’s recent campaign against drug traffickers in fact had precedent, citing similar actions taken by former Presidents Clinton, Bush and Obama in Colombia and Peru: “I don't remember anybody being charged with war crimes. […] Yet when Trump does it, we are to believe that it is completely unacceptable.” Other networks haven't wanted to acknowledge there were similar actions by other presidents.      The other major point of Vittert’s argument: “When Democrats attempt to bring down Trump and Hegseth on the process, on the rules, it's a losing argument.” Vittert didn’t even need to pull out a textbook to recall Democrat-darling Kilmar Abrego Garcia from El Salvador: … minor problem for Democrats, he had ties to MS-13, strong ties. Democrats back then were arguing the process, the rules, the due process of how exactly he was extradited and why this was terrible, and then Kristi Noem was gonna get fired, and it was gonna bring down the Trump administration. It didn't work for Democrats then, it's not going to work for them now. Not to mention the “Russia, Russia, Russia” hoax, his two impeachments, and various lawsuits filed against him in-between his two terms. It’s been a futile witch hunt. In conclusion, based on Presidential precedent and the left’s TDS addiction, the inevitable endgame of the last few days’ controversy was clear: Arguing over the ins and outs of international law and whether or not Hegseth violated it is a pointless exercise […] To most reasonable Americans, blowing up boats bringing drugs into America makes sense. Call it common sense. When Democrats tried to defeat Trump on process issues, on common sense issues, they lose every time. They get excited, it's like Lucy and the football. They think this is going to be the time. Every time this happens, it actually makes Trump stronger. Only time would tell whether the latest attacks against Hegseth, Admiral Bradley, Joint Chief of Staff Chairman Caine or whoever else will actually stick. Needless to say, Trump will most likely come out unscathed and quite possibly, for the umpteenth time, vindicate The transcript is below. Click "expand" read: NewsNation’s On Balance with Leland Vittert December 1, 2025 9:01:33 p.m. EST LELAND VITTERT: If you watch TV this morning, much of the media and Democrats could not contain their glee, that a “double tap” strike on a boat that was running drugs might be the end of Pete Hegseth’s time as Secretary of War. The Washington Post reports Hegseth ordered the Navy to, quote, “Kill them all,” speaking of the alleged drug smugglers aboard a boat leaving Venezuela. The Navy admiral in charge of the strike then allegedly ordered a second missile strike on survivors of the first strike. [Cuts to clip] FMR. DEFENSE SEC. LEON PANETTA [on The Situation Room, 12/01/25]: I don't think there's any question that that's a war crime. ELIE HONIG [on The Situation Room, 12/01/25]: Well, Wolf, they were, in a word, illegal. CHUCK TODD [on Chris and Chuck Chat!, 12/01/25]: It's the kiss of death. It is — look, we know who the fall guy is going to be. JOE SCARBOROUGH [on Morning Joe, 12/01/25]: It’s a dangerous time legally for Pete Hegseth. It gets more dangerous if he is spending this time furiously going around trying to cover it up. [Cuts back to live] VITTERT: The Washington establishment is simply horrified that the Trump administration is killing drug runners, and they want you to be horrified as well. And they're happy. You can see that in their pensive smiles. Because to them this will be the issue that finally ends the Trump Presidency, or at least defangs Trump. Trump is doing what he does in every one of these situations: he stays defiant. [Cuts to clip] PRES. DONALD TRUMP [on 11/30/25]: And Pete said he said he did not want them — he didn't even know what people were talking about. So, we’ll look at — we’ll look into it. But no, I wouldn't have wanted that, not the second strike. [Cuts back to live] VITTERT: Okay, so Hegseth is distancing himself a little bit after a meeting in the Oval Office. He wrote on X, “Admiral Mitch Bradley is an American hero, [a] true professional, [and] has my 100% support. I stand by him and the combat decisions he has made — on the September 2 mission and all others since.” So, no matter what really happened there and both in the Pentagon and then what happened actually to the smugglers and the boat, these actions are nothing new. The Clinton administration shot down more than a dozen drug trafficking planes near Colombia and Peru from 1995 to 2001. I don't remember anybody being charged with war crimes. Bush's CIA started and Obama's continued a covert action in Colombia that killed dozens of revolutionaries from 2007 through 2013. Yet when Trump does it, we are to believe that it is completely unacceptable. You are all of a sudden hearing all of these words: the rules of war, the rules of engagement, laws of armed conflict, international law, the Geneva Convention. This would just be a political observation, but it’s also a human observation. Nobody liked the hall monitor in high school, or the RA, the person in college who told you couldn't drink after 10 p.m. in the dorms. Nobody likes those people. When Democrats attempt to bring down Trump and Hegseth on the process, on the rules, it's a losing argument. Remember just a couple of months ago, Democrats were losing their minds over the Maryland man deported to El Salvador. Kilmar Abrego Garcia turned into a household name and a household hero. And yes, minor problem for Democrats, he had ties to MS-13, strong ties. But Democrats back then were arguing the process, the rules, the due process of how exactly he was extradited and why this was terrible, and then Kristi Noem was gonna get fired, and it was gonna bring down the Trump administration. It didn't work for Democrats then, it's not going to work for them now. Arguing over the ins and outs of international law and whether or not Hegseth violated it is a pointless exercise, and here's why. To most reasonable Americans, blowing up boats bringing drugs into America makes sense. Call it common sense. When Democrats tried to defeat Trump on process issues, on common sense issues, they lose every time. They get excited, it's like Lucy and the football. They think this is going to be the time. Every time this happens, it actually makes Trump stronger.