He operated outside the U.S., however, and — because capturing enemies means having to deal with captive enemies, most of the means for which were pre-emptively rejected by the current administration — we’re currently relying instead on long-distance assassination by drone strikes.

I think you're overestimating the ease of capturing (as opposed to merely killing) a specific enemy leader. Yes, it's possible -- but it's not as easy or safe as popular fiction makes it seem. It made perfect sense to kill Al-Awlaki rather than to risk American lives and the success of the operation in a difficult attempt to capture him alive.