Democrats to force vote to limit Trump’s war powers after strikes on Venezuelan boats: NPR

Two Democratic senators respond to a series of unprecedented US military strikes against suspected drug traffickers at sea ordered by President Trump with a plan to force a Senate vote on a war powers resolution blocking the commander in chief’s escalation of action.

Senators Adam Schiff, Democrat of California, and Tim Kaine, Democrat of Virginia, are pushing for the vote despite strong chances of passage, as support among Republicans appears limited so far. They say the White House has provided no evidence to justify the attacks, which they say are illegal and unconstitutional.

The two Democrats also say it is clear that Congress did not authorize the use of such force.

“The resolution would end the exploding of ships,” Schiff told reporters at the Capitol before the vote. “It would also address the administrations’ threat to potentially go beyond detonating ships at sea to attack land targets in Venezuela or elsewhere.”

Last month, Trump ordered three U.S. military strikes on ships after administration officials suspected them of carrying members of the Tren de Aragua criminal gang that was trafficking drugs from Venezuela. So far, 21 people have been killed, but their identities have not yet been shared.

Venezuelan officials say at least some of those killed were not gang members, creating a new malaise in the region. But Trump The administration insists the strikes were entirely legal, arguing that drug traffickers now pose military threats rather than police threats.

The move upended the U.S. drug enforcement program, in which the Coast Guard traditionally intercepts ships at sea, confiscates illegal drugs and arrests suspected drug traffickers to face criminal charges.

Kaine said more than two dozen congressional Democrats wrote to the Trump administration demanding answers to a series of questions regarding the legal basis for the strike, but have yet to get a response weeks later. Kaine, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said a closed-door briefing had been held so far for senators, but it had provided little clarity.

“A room full of administration people,” Kaine told reporters. However, “no information on why it is necessary to attack rather than prohibit”.

Kaine and Schiff fear that military strikes could unexpectedly and unintentionally lead the United States into war.

It is unclear whether many Republicans will join Democrats in the effort, with a vote expected in the coming days. However, Schiff and Kaine said they could revisit the resolution if it didn’t pass on the first try.

It seems at least a Republican, Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky.which has long pushed the limits of war powers, is on board. Many others, like Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., defended the administration’s actionsarguing that the rules of engagement have changed.

However, Schiff and Kaine say that without the identities of those killed, it is possible that the United States made a mistake or may do so in the future.

“I have no clear idea who the people who were on those ships were, or even if the administration knows their identities, and that’s a real problem,” Schiff said. “Are they killing people who weren’t involved in trafficking? I just don’t know the answer to that question.”

Kaine says this fuels a new wave of questions.

“The suspicious mind in me says it’s because there are no right answers,” he said.