WATCH: Coons asks Bondi if U.S. strikes that killed suspected Venezuelan cartel members are legal

Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., asked Attorney General Pam Bondi on Tuesday to explain the Department of Justice’s legal reasoning for strikes on suspected Venezuelan drug smuggling boats. In a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, Coons said he worried about the constitutionality of the recent strikes authorized by President Donald Trump, saying he’s concerned “what the limiting principle is, whether the government could summarily kill people.” The strikes have killed 21 people in recent weeks, according to the administration. Coons asked Bondi how the department concluded that the strikes were legal.

“Senator Coons, I'm not going to discuss any legal advice that my department may or may not have given or issued at the direction of the president on this matter regarding Venezuela,” Bondi responded. She added that Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro “is a narcoterrorist" who has been indicted in the U.S. The State Department is offering a $50 million reward for information leading to his arrest or conviction.

The oversight hearing, focused on the Department of Justice, comes on the heels of a number of controversial decisions from the agency. That includes the indictment of former FBI Director James Comey, which came days after Trump directly called on Bondi in a social media post to prosecute Comey and other perceived political foes.

Ahead of Bondi’s testimony, more than 280 former DOJ employees wrote a letter urging Congress for more oversight due to the “degradation” of oaths to the Constitution and to upholding the law under the Trump administration.

“Members in both chambers and on both sides of the aisle must provide a meaningful check on the abuses we’re witnessing,” the letter read.

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