The United States Senate on Thursday moved to curtail President Donald Trump’s authority to carry out further military operations in Venezuela without explicit congressional approval, in a rare bipartisan rebuke of the president.
A procedural vote on the war powers resolution passed 52–47, with all Democrats and five Republican senators supporting the measure. The resolution bars additional U.S. hostilities against Venezuela and is framed as a constitutional safeguard to ensure congressional oversight over military actions. Final passage is expected next week and is largely seen as symbolic given the likely veto by President Trump.
The legislation follows recent U.S. military activity in Venezuela, including nighttime air and naval strikes and the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, which lawmakers from both parties described as exceeding law-enforcement operations and constituting acts of war.
Senator Rand Paul, a Republican co-sponsor, said: “Bombing another nation’s capital and removing their leader is an act of war, plain and simple. No provision in the Constitution provides such power to the presidency.”
President Trump, in an interview with The New York Times, described the U.S. role in Venezuela as potentially long-term, saying the country could be overseen “for years” to access its oil reserves. Republican opponents of the resolution defended Trump’s actions as part of his authority to safeguard national security.
Despite the Senate’s move, the resolution faces an uphill battle in the House and is expected to encounter a presidential veto, making its enactment uncertain. Observers note that this marks one of the strongest congressional assertions of war powers in decades, highlighting tensions over the scope of executive authority.
