The White House pushed back Tuesday on criticism of its drone program, the day after a Department of Justice memo leaked detailing the conditions in which it views drone strikes targeted at American citizens abroad as legal.
White House press secretary Jay Carney said that the Obama administration's drone program was "legal,""ethical" and "wise" during the daily press briefing today.
"The U.S. government takes great care in deciding to pursue an al-Qaida terrorist, to ensure precision, and to avoid loss of innocent life," Carney said.
The DOJ memo, which was first reported by NBC, says that the government can order the killing of American citizens abroad if there is reason to believe they are “senior operational leaders” of al-Qaida or “an associated force." It also concludes that lethal force is justified if the person poses an "imminent threat" without reasonable chance for capture.