WASHINGTON — The White House said Monday that a Navy admiral acted “within his authority and the law” when he ordered a second, follow-up strike on an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean Sea in a September U.S. military operation that has come under bipartisan scrutiny.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt offered the justification for the Sept. 2 strike after lawmakers from both parties on Sunday announced support for congressional reviews of U.S. military strikes against vessels suspected of smuggling drugs in the Caribbean and the eastern Pacific Ocean. The lawmakers cited a published report that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth issued a verbal order for a second strike that killed survivors on the boat in that September incident.

Leavitt in her comments to reporters did not dispute a Washington Post report that there were survivors after the initial strike in the incident. Her explanation came after President Donald Trump a day earlier said that he “wouldn’t have wanted that — not a second strike” when asked about the incident.

“Secretary Hegseth authorized Admiral Bradley to conduct these kinetic strikes,” said Leavitt, referring to U.S. Navy Vice Admiral Frank Bradley, who at the time was the commander of Joint Special Operations Command. “Admiral Bradley worked well within his authority and the law, directing the engagement to ensure the boat was destroyed and the threat to the United States of America was eliminated.”

The lawmakers said they did not know whether last week’s Post report was true, and some Republicans were skeptical. Still, they said the reports of attacking survivors of an initial missile strike posed serious legal concerns and merited further scrutiny.

The White House weighed in after Trump on Sunday vigorously defended Hegseth.

“Pete said he did not order the death of those two men,” Trump said. He added, “And I believe him.”

Leavitt said Hegseth has spoken with members of Congress who may have expressed some concerns about the reports over the weekend.

Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, also spoke over the weekend with the four bipartisan lawmakers leading the Senate and House Armed Services Committees. He reiterated “his trust and confidence in the experienced commanders at every echelon,” Caine’s office said in a statement.