This Wednesday, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer warned that the US Senate will take action against any unauthorized aggression against Venezuela, in response to recent statements by President Donald Trump.
“Donald Trump does not have the authority to carry out his current plans to use military force in the Caribbean without congressional authorization. If he acts without congressional authorization, the Senate will advance a bipartisan resolution to prevent the unauthorized use of force,” Schumer stated on his Twitter account.
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The warning comes after Trump’s announcement on Tuesday, in which he declared the Venezuelan government a “foreign terrorist organization” and ordered a total embargo on all sanctioned oil tankers destined for or originating from Venezuela. The president justified the measure by claiming that Caracas is withholding “oil, land, and assets that belong to the US,” which, according to him, “must be returned.”
Tensions between the US and Venezuela have escalated in recent weeks due to the Pentagon’s sustained deployment in the region, which includes the USS Gerald Ford, the world’s largest aircraft carrier. Although Washington justifies its military presence in the Caribbean under the pretext of combating drug trafficking, Trump had already asserted in November that “Maduro’s days are numbered,” though he later clarified that he had no plans to declare war.
Democratic members of Congress in the US reject the military blockade order against Venezuela
Democratic lawmakers in the United States expressed open rejection of President Donald Trump’s order to move toward a military and naval blockade against Venezuela, warning that it is a military escalation aimed at forcing regime change and seizing Venezuelan energy resources.
Deeply alarming. Donald Trump is preparing for a regime change war in Venezuela—a war that the American people don’t want and that Congress hasn’t authorized.
This is reckless and criminal. https://t.co/2mpoUdHo9I
— Congresswoman Yassamin Ansari (@RepYassAnsari) December 17, 2025
Congresswoman Yassamin Ansari called the initiative “deeply alarming” and maintained that this is a war that “the American people do not want and that Congress has not authorized.”
Similarly, Senator Chris Van Hollen denounced the narrative of combating drug trafficking as a pretext, and pointed out that the true objective of the offensive against Caracas is “to seize Venezuela’s oil and gas reserves for the benefit of Trump’s billionaire allies.”
“This has nothing to do with stopping drug trafficking,” Van Hollen emphasized. The criticism comes amid growing internal erosion of the Trump administration’s economic and trade policies, damaging unity not only in Congress but also within the Republican Party itself. This is further fueling distrust in the current administration.
Health care costs are soaring. Housing costs are soaring. Grocery costs are soaring.
NO. We do not need Trump to take us into an illegal and unconstitutional war with Venezuela to deflect attention away from the crises our country faces.
What happened to “America First?”
— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) December 13, 2025
For several legislators, the escalation against Venezuela also serves as a distraction from domestic economic difficulties, while simultaneously opening the door to a military confrontation without legislative approval, in violation of the U.S. Constitution.
As the U.S. administration intensifies its pressure on Venezuela, politicians, citizens, and activists in the United States warn that a war in the Caribbean would not only be illegal but also politically costly and morally indefensible. They caution that the conflict could escalate uncontrollably, affecting both the region and the interests of the American people.
From teleSUR English via This RSS Feed.