Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) said on Sunday that he plans to reintroduce a War Powers Resolution that would block President Trump from launching a war with Venezuela without congressional authorization.
Kaine’s previous bill to block an attack on Venezuela failed in a vote of 49-51, with just two Republicans, supporting the resolution, but he expects more support as the Trump administration has continued its military buildup in the region and after President Trump declared the closure of Venezuela’s airspace, which is an act of war if it means the US is enforcing a no fly zone.
“It failed, but that was before all of these assets have amassed around Venezuela, and before President Trump said that the airspace needs to be closed,” Kaine told CBS News’ “Face the Nation.”
Polling has consistently shown that the idea of going to war with Venezuela is extremely unpopular among Americans, yet the administration continues to move in that direction, including by designating a non-existent drug cartel, the so-called “Cartel of the Suns,” as a “Foreign Terrorist Organization.”
Kaine also said that he plans to reintroduce a War Powers Resolution to stop the bombing campaign against alleged drug-running boats in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific, following the report from The Washington Post that said the US military bombed survivors of its initial strike to follow Secretary of War Pete Hegseth’s order to kill everyone aboard the vessel.
The previous bill to stop the attacks on boats failed in a vote of 48-51. “The circumstances have changed in the months since we had that vote. In each of these instances, we were able to get two Republicans to vote together with Democrats,” Kaine said. “We think the escalating pace and some of the recent revelations, so, for example, the recent revelation about the ‘kill everyone’ order apparently dictated by Secretary Hegseth. We do believe that we will get more support for these motions when they are refiled.”
