Senate Democrats vote to force war powers to block Trump’s strikes on alleged drug boats

Washington – Senate Democrats plan to force a vote under the War Powers Act on Wednesday aimed at preventing continued US strikes on alleged drug-carrying boats off the coast of Venezuela.

the accuracyThe resolution, led by Senator Adam Schiff of California and Senator Tim Kaine of Virginia, would prevent the US military from engaging in hostilities with “any non-state organization that engages in the promotion, trafficking, distribution of illicit drugs, and other related activities” without authorization from Congress.

“There was no authorization for the use of force by Congress in this manner,” Schiff said on Wednesday, noting that the strikes risked escalating into an all-out conflict with Venezuela. “I feel like it’s patently unconstitutional.”

The strikes in the Caribbean Sea sparked a bipartisan backlash, with lawmakers questioning their legality. Congress, which has the sole authority under the Constitution to declare war, has not authorized the use of military force against drug cartels.

The Trump administration says it has carried out four strikes on alleged drug smuggling boats near Venezuela since September 2, killing at least 21 people.

in notice The Trump administration told Congress after the second strike in mid-September that the United States was in a “non-international armed conflict” with drug cartels that it classified as terrorist organizations. The drugs smuggled by these gangs kill tens of thousands of Americans every year, and constitute an “armed attack” against American citizens, according to the White House.

The Trump administration has specific Several drug cartels and cartels have been designated as terrorist organizations, including Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua, Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel, and El Salvador’s MS-13.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who was at the Capitol on Wednesday to meet with Senate Republicans, told reporters that the president has the authority to order strikes without authorization from Congress.

He added: “These are strikes directed against imminent threats against the United States.”

Regarding allegations that the United States is acting in self-defense, David Janowski, acting director of the Constitution Project, said that “the situation in the Caribbean is not the case.”

The war powers resolution introduced by Democrats said designating drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations “does not provide the president with legal authority to use force against members of designated organizations or any foreign nation.”

Keane said the administration did not provide answers to lawmakers’ questions about the intelligence supporting the strikes, their legal rationale or why the decision was made to attack the boats rather than intercept them.

“The White House is not insisting on any congressional authorization,” Kaine said. “These military actions must cease unless authorized by Congress – they cannot cease for a time, permanently, forever; they cannot be stopped – unless authorized by Congress.”

Under the War Powers Resolution of 1973, the president must consult Congress before bringing armed forces into hostilities, unless there is a declaration of war or other congressional authorization. If Congress does not authorize the use of military force, the president must withdraw the troops within 90 days. The law was enacted in response to the Vietnam War to check the president’s authority to wage war without congressional approval.

Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky has been the GOP’s loudest critic of the strikes on alleged drug smuggling boats. After the first strike, Paul was condemned by Vice President J.D. Vance, who said that “killing cartel members who poison our citizens is the highest and best use of our military.”

“What a despicable and reckless feeling it is to glorify killing someone without a trial,” Paul books.

Paul later reiterated his view to reporters, saying the strikes risked killing innocent people, and there was no evidence the boat was headed to the United States. He pointed out that the United States never boarded the boat to search for drugs before it was bombed.

“I don’t care whether it’s a Republican or a Democratic president, I think we can’t arbitrarily kill people without some kind of process,” he said.

There were similar efforts by Congress over the summer to reassert its authority to declare war as tensions rose between Israel and Iran. The United States became directly involved in the 12-day war by bombing Iranian nuclear facilities before Iran and Israel agreed to a ceasefire.

After Iranian strikes, Senate They voted against It is a measure that Kaine introduced in the days before the bombings to prevent President Trump from using further military force against Iran.

“The situation in Iran was very limited in time,” Janowski said. “The administration has made it very clear that they are continuing, and in fact have continued, to conduct these strikes in the Caribbean. So I think that certainly creates more continued urgency for Congress to act somehow in this situation.”

Schiff said that Congress had abandoned its responsibilities to declare war because members did not want to announce the issue. He said this sets a dangerous precedent.

“We are blowing up ships thousands of miles from our shores,” Schiff said. “What’s to stop another country from deciding that, well, they’re going to use the same precedent to blow up ships thousands of miles from their shores, whether in the South China Sea or elsewhere, with the alleged rationale that they’re involved in some kind of trafficking and so they take action? I don’t think that’s a practice we want to see other countries adopt.”

Eleanor Watson,

Christina Corojo and

Grace Kazarian

She contributed to this report.