Democratic New York Sen. Chuck Schumer said Sunday that he will introduce a War Powers Act resolution aimed at blocking further U.S. military operations involving Venezuela, following an operation announced by President Donald Trump that resulted in the arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores.
Schumer made the remarks during an appearance on ABC’s “This Week” with host George Stephanopoulos.
His comments came one day after President Trump announced in a Saturday post on Truth Social that Maduro and Flores were arrested in Caracas during a law enforcement operation protected by American military forces.
Schumer sharply criticized the operation and accused the Trump administration of acting outside the law.
He characterized the mission as an example of what he described as executive overreach and said Congress must intervene.
“The American people this morning, George, are scratching their heads in wonderment and in fear of what the president’s proposed,” Schumer said.
“The United States will run Venezuela. We have learned though the years, when America tries to regime change and nation-building in this way, the American people pay the price, in both blood and in dollars.”
Schumer also claimed the Trump administration lacked the authority to conduct the operation.
During a Saturday press conference following the capture of Maduro, President Trump said the United States was “running” Venezuela and stated that senior administration officials would oversee the situation.
Trump said Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine would be in charge.
Schumer disputed the scope and legality of the operation, alleging it went beyond defensive actions.
“They did not just do ships off the water,” Schumer said.
“They went inside Venezuela, bombed civilian as well as military places, and it’s a violation of the law to do what they did without getting the authorization of Congress.”
In the aftermath of the operation, several left-wing commentators and Democratic figures publicly condemned the action.
Podcasters Keith Olbermann and Dean Obeidallah called for President Trump’s impeachment in posts on BlueSky.
Congressional Democrats also criticized the mission, describing it as an illegal war.
Schumer accused Trump administration officials of misleading both Congress and the American public about the nature and scope of the operation.
During the interview, Stephanopoulos asked Schumer what steps Congress could take in response.
“What can the Congress do about it is the next question,” Stephanopoulos said.
Schumer responded by pointing to the War Powers Act as a legislative mechanism to limit the president’s authority.
“The next question is very simple, and that is that we have the War Powers Act,” Schumer said.
“That’s a privileged resolution, which means the Republicans can’t block it. Tim Kaine and I and Rand Paul are sponsors of it. It’s gonna come to the floor this week, and if it is voted for positively in both houses, then the President can’t do another thing in Venezuela without the okay of the Congress.”
Schumer’s position marked a notable contrast with his statements about Venezuela during President Trump’s first term.
In 2020, Schumer criticized Trump for what he said was a failure to remove Maduro from power after the Venezuelan leader was indicted in March of that year on drug trafficking charges.
“The President brags about his Venezuela policy? Give us a break. He hasn’t brought an end to the Maduro regime,” Schumer said at the time.
2020. Chuck Schumer criticizes Trump for not bringing an end to the Maduro regime.
Schumer: “The President brags about his Venezuela policy? Give us a break. He hasn’t brought an end to the Maduro regime.” pic.twitter.com/kMkwSWd0yl
— MAZE (@mazemoore) January 4, 2026
The War Powers Act resolution proposed by Schumer is expected to be introduced in the coming days, with debate anticipated in both chambers of Congress.
The move sets up a confrontation between congressional Democrats and the Trump administration over the scope of presidential authority in foreign military operations, as well as the future of U.S. involvement in Venezuela following the arrest of Maduro and Flores.
Let the liberals freak out over Venezuela.
You probably already knew and knew all the details but I found this today and took a moment and so found it interestingly curious.
Here’s a list of U.S. presidents who have authorized airstrikes or military actions without specific Congressional approval, organized by president and notable incidents. These actions were generally justified under the president’s constitutional authority as Commander in Chief or under previous authorizations such as the 2001 or 2002 AUMF (Authorization for Use of Military Force), but they did not involve new congressional votes beforehand:
Harry S. Truman
• Korea (1950) – Deployed U.S. forces and authorized airstrikes in Korea without formal Congressional declaration of war.
Dwight D. Eisenhower
• Lebanon (1958) – Ordered U.S. air and naval forces into Lebanon to stabilize a political crisis.
John F. Kennedy
• Cuba (1961–1962) – Bay of Pigs (though indirectly supported), and later the Cuban Missile Crisis military posture.
Lyndon B. Johnson
• Vietnam (1964) – Gulf of Tonkin airstrikes occurred before the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution was passed.
Richard Nixon
• Cambodia & Laos (1969–1973) – Conducted secret and unauthorized bombing campaigns as part of Vietnam War.
Jimmy Carter
• Iran (1980) – Operation Eagle Claw failed attempt to free hostages
Ronald Reagan
• Libya (1986) – Bombed Tripoli and Benghazi in retaliation for the Berlin discotheque bombing.
• Grenada (1983) – Invasion and airstrikes without prior congressional approval.
George H. W. Bush
• Panama (1989) – Invasion and airstrikes to oust Manuel Noriega.
• Iraq (1990–1991) – Airstrikes began before Congress passed a resolution approving Desert Storm.
Bill Clinton
• Bosnia (1995) – NATO airstrikes in Bosnia without Congressional approval.
• Iraq (1998) – Operation Desert Fox airstrikes against Saddam Hussein.
• Kosovo (1999) – 78-day NATO bombing campaign without Congressional approval.
George W. Bush
• Pakistan, Yemen, Somalia (2001–2009) – Authorized drone strikes relying on the 2001 AUMF but without specific country-by-country authorization.
Barack Obama
• Libya (2011) – Air campaign as part of NATO action to topple Gaddafi, without Congressional approval.
• Syria, Iraq, Somalia, Yemen (2014–2016) – Airstrikes against ISIS and other terror groups under 2001 AUMF, no new authorization sought.
Donald Trump
• Syria (2017, 2018) – Airstrikes against Assad regime over chemical weapons, without Congressional approval.
• Iraq (2020) – Ordered airstrike that killed Iranian General Qassem Soleimani.
Joe Biden
• Syria (2021, 2022) – Airstrikes on Iranian-backed militia groups.
• Somalia & Yemen (ongoing) – Continued air campaigns under prior AUMFs.
Every U.S. president from Truman to Biden has authorized military airstrikes or operations without direct and new Congressional approval at some point during their presidency. So, go sit your America hating asses down and watch the show.
————————–
Chuckles is big mad his kick backs are over…
To be a current democrat you need to be able to be a hypocrite
Incorrect. To have ever been a Democrat one needed to be steeped in hypocrisy. The entire history of the Democratic party of the United States has been one of lies, cheats, theft, fraud, and hypocrisy. The Democrat party was the party of slavery and still is. Democrats invented lynching, Jim Crowe, and the KKK. The Republicans in Congress put up bill after bill for 50+ years to support and recognize civil rights for blacks and women and the Demorcats opposed and/or defeated them every single time until it became clear that the bills would pass regardless of their opposition. At that point, the Democrats started marching with the blacks and women as if they had always been for them. Fraud is a cornerstone of the Democrat party, they call it “honest graft.” Violence has always been a tool on their belt. When Senator Sumner spoke out against slavery in the Senate, a Democrat Representative (not even a Senator) entered the Senate chambers and beat him nearly to death with a walking stick and the Democrats didn’t try to stop him and protected him from punishment. This is who they have always been and always will be. The best we can hope for is they leave the country, but I doubt that will happen unless we make them leave.