Patricia Zengler
WASHINGTON, Dec 2 (Reuters) – A group of U.S. senators who have repeatedly tried to curb President Donald Trump’s aggression against Venezuela said on Tuesday they would introduce a new resolution to force Congress to vote on the issue if the government launches attacks inside Venezuela.
“Unauthorized military action against Venezuela would be a huge and costly mistake that needlessly endangers the lives of our service members,” Democrats Tim Kaine of Virginia, Chuck Schumer of New York, Adam Schiff of California and Republican Rand Paul of Kentucky said in a joint statement.
“If an attack occurs, we will introduce a war powers resolution to force Congress to debate and vote to prevent the use of U.S. military forces in hostilities against Venezuela or within Venezuela,” they said.
A Republican-led congressional committee has launched an investigation into U.S. military operations off the coast of Venezuela, the second time recently that members of Trump’s party have raised concerns about one of his policy moves.
Last week, several Republican lawmakers sharply criticized the White House’s handling of a proposed peace plan for Ukraine that they said would benefit Russia.
On Venezuela, lawmakers are concerned about the government’s months-long operation without congressional approval and a report that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered a second attack on a ship on Sept. 2 to kill survivors of the first attack, potentially violating international law.
“We may have a problem”
South Dakota Republican Sen. Mike Rounds, a member of the Armed Services and Intelligence committees, said he was still working to establish the facts of the attack and the laws that affected it.
“But my understanding is that if survivors were killed in the water after an attack, we might have a problem,” Lowndes told reporters on Tuesday. “Once we know the facts, we can start making the decisions that need to be made.”
Over the past three months, U.S. forces have carried out at least 21 attacks on suspected drug-trafficking vessels in the Caribbean and Pacific, killing at least 83 people, as Trump stepped up his military buildup against the government of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.
White House press secretary Carolyn Leavitt said on Monday that Hergseth had authorized Admiral Frank Bradley to carry out the attack on September 2. She said the attack was to protect U.S. interests, took place in international waters and complied with the laws of armed conflict.
Some lawmakers have repeatedly tried and failed to force Trump to gain congressional approval for his campaign, arguing that the Constitution states that only Congress, not the president, has the authority to declare war.
Trump’s Senate Republicans blocked a resolution in November that would have prevented him from attacking Venezuelan territory without congressional authorization. ‌In October, Senate Republicans blocked a resolution aimed at deterring ship attacks.
(Reporting by Patricia Zengerle; Additional reporting by Bo Erickson; Editing by Deepa Babington)