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Senate Republicans blocked an attempt to end President Donald Trump’s ability to continue attacks against alleged drug boats in the Caribbean.
Senate Democrats, led by Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., forced a vote on a war powers resolution that would have halted the Trump administration’s strikes against alleged Venezuelan drug boats.
Kaine, along with senators Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and Rand Paul, R-Ky., introduced the resolution earlier this month after Trump signaled he would authorize strikes on Venezuelan soil. They argued that the strikes, and possible intervention on the ground, shouldn’t be able to continue without congressional authorization.
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Despite the strikes on alleged drug boats giving members on both sides of the aisle heartburn, the push failed largely along party lines except for Paul and a defection by Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, who voted for a previous resolution to block Trump’s strikes in the Caribbean earlier this month.
Trump earlier this month acknowledged that he authorized the CIA operations in the region for two reasons; that Venezuela had “emptied their prisons into the United States of America” and that drugs were flowing in from the country.
“We have a lot of drugs coming in from Venezuela, and a lot of the Venezuelan drugs come in through the sea,” Trump said. “So, you get to see that, but we’re going to stop them by land also.”
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In their resolution, the trio contended that whether United States forces should be engaged in hostilities within or against Venezuela should be answered following a full briefing to Congress and the American public of the issues at stake, a public debate in Congress, and a congressional vote as contemplated by the Constitution.”
So far, the administration has carried out 16 strikes against vessels in the region that led to a death toll of 66 people.
Trump earlier this week ordered that the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford head to the Caribbean as part of his administration’s ongoing fight against drugs.
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The failed vote also came after congressional leaders and chairs of the House and Senate Armed Services and Intelligence committees were briefed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth on Wednesday as part of a bid by the administration to clue lawmakers in on the rationale behind the strikes.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said after the briefing, “What we heard isn’t enough. We need a lot more answers.”
Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chair James Risch, R-Idaho, said he was “fully satisfied” by the briefing, adding the administration has a “good legal justification for what they’re doing.”
“The president really ought to be congratulated for saving the lives of young American people,” Risch said.
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