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SENATORS LAUNCH BIPARTISAN BID TO BLOCK TRUMP WAR ON VENEZUELA  
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Julia Conley
October 17, 2025
Common Dreams [[link removed]]

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_ “Congress has not authorized military force against Venezuela,”
said Sen. Adam Schiff. “And we must assert our authority to stop the
United States from being dragged—intentionally or
accidentally—into full-fledged war.” _

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With President Donald Trump
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military action within Venezuela
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by the Central Intelligence Agency after launching several deadly
strikes on boats near the South American country, three lawmakers from
both sides of the aisle on Friday said they would force a new vote on
blocking the White House
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attack there.

Sens. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) and Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) last week
introduced a measure
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rein in Trump’s bombing of boats in the Caribbean, which the White
House has claimed are being used to traffic drugs into the US and
present an imminent threat.

The measure failed, with one Democrat, Sen. John Fetterman
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of the GOP [[link removed]] in opposing it and
two Republicans [[link removed]], Sens.
Rand Paul (Ky.) and Lisa Murkowski (Alaska
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Kaine and Schiff on Friday were reportedly hoping that a new
bipartisan measure, introduced
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Paul, would garner more support from the Republicans.

They said they would force a vote on a war powers resolution to block
the use of force by US troops “within or against” Venezuela unless
it was “explicitly authorized by a declaration of war or specific
authorization for use of military force.”

The 1973 War Powers Act requires Congress
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resolutions regarding a president’s power to enter an armed conflict
without congressional authorization.

“Congress has not authorized military force against Venezuela. And
we must assert our authority to stop the United States
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dragged—intentionally or accidentally—into full-fledged war
in South America
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“Americans don’t want to send their sons and daughters into more
wars—especially wars that carry a serious risk of significant
destabilization and massive new waves of migration in our
hemisphere.”

The lawmakers announced the resolution as it was reported that two
survivors of the military’s most recent drone strike on a boat have
been detained [[link removed]] by
US forces, with legal experts questioning whether they are prisoners
or war or criminal suspects.

The White House has insisted it is acting within its rights to defend
US security by striking boats it believes are carrying drugs—even as
details have emerged calling into doubt the allegations that the
vessels pose a threat.

Venezuela is not a significant source of drugs that are trafficked
into the US—a fact that Secretary of State Marco Rubio
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a reporter brought it up soon after the military began bombing boats,
at least six of which have been struck so far. At least 27 people have
been killed, and the grieving family of one victim spoke out
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and said they had not been involved in drug trafficking.

Even if the vessels were carrying illegal substances, legal experts
and critics in Congress have stressed in recent weeks that they should
be dealt with, as in the past, by federal law enforcement agencies, as
Congress has not authorized military action against Venezuela or drug
cartels.

“The American people do not want to be dragged into endless war with
Venezuela without public debate or a vote,” said Paul. “We ought
to defend what the Constitution demands: deliberation before war.”

Kaine told reporters on Thursday the Congress’ knowledge of legal
rationale for the boat strikes amounts to “a complete black hole.”

Meanwhile, Trump has suggested this week he could further escalate
attacks on Venezuela, saying the Caribbean Sea is “very well under
control”—even though Vice President JD Vance
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the US could accidentally strike fishing boats in its operations
there.

“We are certainly looking at land now,” Trump said Wednesday.

Kaine said he was “extremely troubled that the Trump administration
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considering launching illegal military strikes inside Venezuela
without a specific authorization by Congress.”

“Americans don’t want to send their sons and daughters into more
wars—especially wars that carry a serious risk of significant
destabilization and massive new waves of migration in our
hemisphere,” said Kaine. “If my colleagues disagree and think a
war with Venezuela is a good idea, they need to meet their
constitutional obligations by making their case to the American people
and passing an authorization for use of military force.”

“I urge every senator to join us in stopping this administration
from dragging our country into an unauthorized and escalating military
conflict,” said the senator.

The _New York
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Sen. Todd Young (R-Ind.) could potentially join the effort to pass the
war powers resolution after voting against last week’s measure,
which he said was too broad.

“I am highly concerned,” Young said after the vote last week,
“about the legality of recent strikes in the Caribbean and the
trajectory of military operations without congressional approval or
debate and the support of the American people.”

_Julia Conley [[link removed]] is a
staff writer for Common Dreams._

_Common Dreams [[link removed]] is a
reader-supported independent news outlet created in 1997 as a new
media model._

_Our nonprofit newsroom covers the most important news stories of the
moment. Common Dreams free online journalism keeps our millions of
readers well-informed, inspired, and engaged._

_We are optimists. We believe real change is possible. But only if
enough well-informed, well-intentioned—and just plain fed up and
fired-up—people demand it. We believe that together we can attain
our common dreams._

* Venezuela
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* war powers
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* Adam Schiff
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* Tim Kaine
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* Rand Paul
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