The Senate is expected to hold a final vote on a War Powers Resolution aimed at preventing further US military intervention in Venezuela on Wednesday, according to a report from Fox News, as President Trump continues to lash out at Republicans who voted to advance the bill.
The bill, S.J.Res.98, would direct the president to “terminate the use of US Armed Forces for hostilities within or against Venezuela unless a declaration of war or authorization to use military force for such purpose has been enacted.”
Last week, the Senate held a procedural vote to bring the bill out of committee, which passed 52-47. Five Republicans — Senators Rand Paul (KY), Lisa Murkowski (AK), Susan Collins (ME), Todd Young (IN), and Josh Hawley (MO) — joined Democrats in supporting the legislation.
After the vote, President Trump took to Truth Social to attack the Republicans, saying they should “never be elected to office again.” On Tuesday, the president again targeted the five senators in remarks he delivered at the Detroit Economic Club.
“You say, ‘Why are you voting against?’ They can’t give you an answer. They’re unable to give you an answer. It’s like, why are they against the attack on Venezuela? They’re against the attack after they found out. It was the most successful attack, probably,” Trump said.
Hawley explained his decision to support the bill last week by referencing Trump’s threats to launch another attack on Venezuela if the country’s acting president, Delcy Rodriguez, doesn’t do his bidding.
“With regard to Venezuela, my read of the Constitution is that if the President feels the need to put boots on the ground there in the future, Congress would need to vote on it,” Hawley said in a post on X. “That’s why I voted yes on this morning’s Senate resolution.”
Collins and Young explained their vote by pointing to Trump’s suggestion that he may send troops to Venezuela. “The Constitution requires that Congress first authorize operations involving American boots on the ground, and my vote today reaffirms that longstanding congressional role,” Young said.
Paul and Murkowski were the only Republicans to support a Venezuela War Powers resolution back in November. Paul was also a co-sponsor of the bill and has been consistent in his opposition to US intervention in Venezuela and the bombing campaign against alleged drug boats in the region.
The War Powers Resolution doesn’t have a chance of passing the Senate or the House without a veto-proof majority, but its passage could still affect the Trump administration’s actions. For example, back in 2019, when Congress passed a War Powers Resolution aimed at ending US support for Saudi Arabia’s brutal war in Yemen, Trump vetoed the bill, but he also ended the US refueling of Saudi jets that were bombing the country.
