Senate leaders say Armed Services will probe Caribbean strikes; health-care timing remains uncertain

A speaker identified in the transcript as the "Third leader" asked whether the United States is "at war in the Caribbean" and said he believes the president is acting within commander-in-chief authority in recent operations. "I think the president is operating under his authority as commander-in-chief," the speaker said, adding that past administrations have acted similarly.

The speaker characterized drug-cartel violence as having severe costs and said it has "come at a great cost to American citizens," stating the loss of "tens of thousands of lives" in the past year; that numeric claim appears in the transcript without citation. The speaker said the Senate Armed Services Committee will "look into and get the facts on some of the events that have happened down the Caribbean."

Separately, the speaker was asked whether Republicans plan to hold a vote on a party health-care alternative by the end of the year; the speaker said timing depends on what Democrats do and that some members favor bipartisan approaches, but that there was not a clear path forward at present. The transcript also records questions about controversies involving the defense secretary (the transcript uses variant spellings for the official's name); the speaker said he had confidence in the administration's overall policy direction while the Armed Services Committee pursues oversight.

The transcript records no formal declaration of war, no authorization vote, and no vote on health legislation during the recorded exchange; senators described investigations and further discussions as the next steps.