US Lawmakers Seek Vote on War Powers If Trump Attacks Venezuela

(Patria) - US lawmakers who have repeatedly tried to curb President Donald Trump's aggression against Venezuela said on Tuesday they will introduce a new resolution to force Congress to vote on the issue if the administration carries out an attack within Venezuela, Reuters reported.

"Unauthorized military action against Venezuela would be a colossal and costly mistake that needlessly risks the lives of our service members," Democrats Tim Kaine of Virginia, Chuck Schumer of New York and Adam Schiff of California, and Republican Rand Paul of Kentucky said in a joint statement.

"In the event of an attack, we will invoke the War Powers Resolution to force a debate and vote in Congress that would block the use of U.S. forces in hostilities against or within Venezuela," they said.
Three House lawmakers, Democrats Jim McGovern of Massachusetts and Joaquin Castro of Texas and Republican Thomas Massie of Kentucky, introduced their own resolution on Tuesday that would also block the Trump administration from engaging in hostilities within or against Venezuela without congressional approval.

U.S. troops have carried out at least 21 attacks on suspected drug-smuggling vessels in the Caribbean and Pacific since early September, killing at least 83 people, as Trump escalates a military buildup against the government of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.

The Trump administration is considering options to combat what it calls Maduro's role in supplying illegal drugs that have killed Americans. The Venezuelan president has denied any ties to the illegal drug trade.

Members of Congress have long accused presidents of both parties of trying to circumvent the Constitution's requirement that Congress, not the president, authorize anything beyond brief military action. Regarding Venezuela, Democratic lawmakers and some Republicans say they are concerned that Trump has waged a three-month military campaign without congressional approval.

Lawmakers from both parties have also expressed concern in recent days over a Washington Post report that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered troops on Sept. 2 to fire on a vessel a second time to kill survivors of the first strike, which could violate international law.

"We May Have a Problem"

Republican-led congressional committees said over the weekend they would investigate the Venezuela campaign, the second time in recent days that members of Trump's party have expressed concern about one of his policy initiatives.

Last week, several Republican lawmakers criticized the White House over its handling of a proposed peace plan for Ukraine that they said favored Russia.

Senator Mike Rounds, a Republican from South Dakota who serves on the Armed Services and Intelligence committees, said he was still trying to determine the facts of the attack, as well as the laws that apply to it.

"But as I understand it, we may have a problem if you are killing survivors in the water after an attack," Rounds said on Tuesday. "Once we get the facts, then we can begin to make the decisions that need to be made."

White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said on Monday that Hegseth had authorized Admiral Frank Bradley to carry out the Sept. 2 attacks, and that the attacks were carried out to protect U.S. interests, occurred in international waters and were consistent with the laws of armed conflict.

Hegseth said on Tuesday at the White House that he had witnessed the first attack that day and then recused himself, learning only "hours later" that Bradley had ordered a second. He said Bradley had "full authority" to carry out the second attack and that he "made the right decision to sink the ship and eliminate the threat."

Several lawmakers have repeatedly tried, and failed, to force Trump to get congressional approval for the campaign against Venezuela.

Trump's Republicans in the Senate blocked a resolution in November that would have prevented him from attacking Venezuelan territory without congressional approval.
In October, Senate Republicans blocked a resolution that would have stopped attacks on vessels.