Senate Rebukes Trump With Vote to Limit Venezuela War Powers (1)

The US Senate took rare action to rein in President Donald Trump with a bipartisan vote advancing a measure to block further military action against Venezuela without authorization from Congress.

Democrats forced the 52-47 floor vote Thursday and gained enough Republican support to advance the war powers resolution (S.J.Res.98) just days after the president ordered an operation to capture Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro.

The procedural motion aimed at clawing back Congress’ power to declare war gained support from Republican Sens. Rand Paul (Ky.), Susan Collins (Maine), Todd Young (Ind.), Josh Hawley (Mo.), and Lisa Murkowski (Alaska).

The resolution’s narrow advance shows a key shift in Trump’s hold over Republicans as the party grapples with divisions over his military operations and Congress’ power to authorize war. Administration officials suggesting the possibility of operations in other countries has drawn bipartisan blowback, but only a few Republicans had shown interest in curtailing the administration’s military authority.

Trump said Republicans “should be ashamed” of the senators who supported the measure in a social media post after the vote, adding that they “should never be elected to office again.” The White House said he would veto the resolution if it reaches his desk.

“This Vote greatly hampers American Self Defense and National Security, impeding the President’s Authority as Commander in Chief,” Trump said.

Still, the Republican senators who supported the measure defended their votes as consistent with opposition to lengthy military campaigns.

“President Trump campaigned against forever wars, and I strongly support him in that position,” Young said. “A drawn-out campaign in Venezuela involving the American military, even if unintended, would be the opposite of President Trump’s goal of ending foreign entanglements.”

The bipartisan push, backed by Paul and Democratic Sens. Tim Kaine (Va.), Adam Schiff (Calif.), and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (N.Y.), was privileged, one of the few ways for the minority to force floor votes in the GOP-controlled Senate.

“The Senate really took a critical step to reasserting its Constitutional authority and toward stopping President Trump as he’s lurching toward another endless, expensive war,” Schumer said. “This vote moves the resolution one step closer to final passage.”

The Senate will still need to take a vote on final passage of the resolution after it advanced Thursday through the motion to discharge from committee. Kaine and Schumer said the Senate will continue to consider the measure with debate and votes next week.

While the legislation is considered nonbinding, it sends a symbolic message that lawmakers aren’t necessarily willing to rubber-stamp the administration’s military operations and are clamoring to claw back their authority. Paul said that amendments could be allowed when the Senate takes up the resolution.

Previous efforts to limit Trump’s power have lacked enough GOP support and failed. The Senate in November rejected a similar war powers resolution on Venezuela with just two GOP supporters: Paul and Murkowski.

“Invoking the War Powers Act at this moment is necessary, given the President’s comments about the possibility of ‘boots on the ground’ and a sustained engagement ‘running’ Venezuela, with which I do not agree,” Collins said about her vote in favor of the resolution.

Maduro Operation

US forces on Jan. 3 captured Maduro and his wife in an early morning raid. Maduro was sent to the US to face criminal charges following a series of airstrikes, marking a significant escalation in the Trump administration’s months-long campaign against the country. Trump has been assembling American military forces in the region for months, authorized attacks on alleged drug-running boats, and orchestrated a blockade of sanctioned oil tankers going to and leaving Venezuela.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio briefed lawmakers on Capitol Hill Wednesday on the actions in Venezuela. Democratic senators left the classified briefing calling for public hearings to conduct oversight.

Rubio pushed back on Democrats’ criticisms of their strategy and said officials have gone into “great detail” with senators about the planning. He said the next steps include stabilizing Venezuela and ensuring American, Western, and other companies have access to the Venezuelan oil market.

“We don’t want it descending into chaos,” Rubio said.

After the vote, Hawley said that if Trump determines that he needs troops in Venezuela, then “Congress would have to be on the hook.”

Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) voted for the measure after suggesting he might oppose it. Fetterman said he backed it “so we can continue this important debate on the floor of the Senate.”

More to Come

Senators are planning to introduce resolutions to prevent military action in other countries without congressional authorization as Trump officials have teased the possibility of further operations.

Trump has repeatedly signaled an interest in Greenland, and his administration this week said that they are discussing options including the use of military force to acquire it. Republican lawmakers have pushed back on the notion of seizing Greenland.

“I’m sick of stupid,” said Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), who voted against the Venezuela war powers resolution. “I want good advice for this president, because I want this president to have a good legacy. And this nonsense on what’s going on with Greenland is a distraction from the good work he’s doing, and the amateurs who said it was a good idea should lose their jobs.”

Read More: Senior Republicans Oppose US Military Incursion in Greenland

Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) said he is proposing a resolution to block Trump from invading Greenland. Kaine said he expects to see war powers resolutions on Cuba, Mexico, Colombia, Nigeria, and Greenland.

“Our colleagues are going to have many more opportunities to vote on this,” Kaine said.