Senate Votes To Limit Trump On Venezuela

The Senate on Thursday voted to advancelegislation that would force President Donald Trump to seek congressional approval before taking any new military action in Venezuela, a stunning rebuke for the White House in the first big test of GOP unity since the U.S. capture of President Nicolás Maduro.

GOP Sens. Rand Paul of Kentucky, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Susan Collins of Maine, Todd Young of Indiana and Josh Hawley of Missouri backed the measure to check Trump in a 52-47 vote. Paul, a cosponsor of the resolution, and Murkowski have supported previous attempts to rein in Trump. Democratic Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania also supported the measure despite previously signaling he might oppose it.

The vote is a shocking sign of divisions among Republicans on Trump's plans for the South American country, and an about-face to a November vote on limiting the president that failed. Democrats have promised more tough votes that force Republicans to take a public stance as Trump threatens to seize Greenland and floats military action in Colombia.

The administration did not request congressional approval for the surprise raid that took out the South American country’s leader. Officials have argued the operation was a law enforcement effort against a drug kingpin and therefore didn’t need to seek lawmakers’ consent.

But critics point to Trump’s refusal to rule out further military action, his comment that the U.S. will "run" the country and control its oil sales, and the continued deployment of military forces in the region.

Three Republicans who previously opposed efforts to restrict Trump changed their votes in this latest effort, citing concerns about a possible U.S. military presence in the country. Collins, who chairs the Senate Appropriations Committee, Hawley and Young supported the measure after opposing an earlier resolution that came to the floor before Maduro’s ouster.

“President Trump campaigned against forever wars, and I strongly support him in that position,” Young said in a statement. “A drawn-out campaign in Venezuela involving the American military, even if unintended, would be the opposite of President Trump’s goal of ending foreign entanglements."

Fetterman, who voted alongside fellow Democrats, was seen as a wild card headed into the vote. He hailed the military operation that ousted Maduro, but had supported a previous effort to require Trump to seek congressional input on Venezuela.

The Senate will next debate the measure and vote to pass it. But the resolution would still need to pass the House, which could prove trickier. And if it does, Trump is likely to veto it. The margin of victory in Thursday’s vote was well short of the two-thirds majority needed to override a presidential veto.

One of the measure's sponsors, Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.), insisted Congress needed to weigh in because this was not a one-time operation but a prolonged U.S. involvement in Venezuela’s affairs.

"This is bigger than an arrest warrant," Kaine said on the Senate floor ahead of the vote. "This will go on for a long period of time. The seizure of oil, the dictation of terms about elections and the politics of Venezuela will go on for years."

Most Republicans appeared to side with the administration’s reasoning for the Venezuela raid following after top officials briefed lawmakers behind closed doors on Wednesday.

But both parties still have questions about what comes next. Collins said she supported the operation to arrest Maduro but argued Congress must step in due to the possibility of a sustained engagement.

“With Maduro rightfully captured, the circumstances have now changed," Collins said in a statement. "I do not support committing additional U.S. forces or entering into any long-term military involvement in Venezuela or Greenland without specific congressional authorization."

Hawley said he viewed it as Congress’s responsibility to authorize any future use of the military in Venezuela, even as administration officials say there are no plans to commit troops. If Trump wants to introduce ground troops, he argued, “Congress would need to be on the hook for that.”

The House may soon vote on its own proposal. Rep. Jim McGovern (D-Mass.) on Thursday introduced a Venezuela war powers measure in a bid to force a debate in the lower chamber after a similar measure was narrowly defeated last month.

Joe Gould contributed to this report.