Copy in clipboard...
US Democrats rip Trump administration for ‘illegal’ strikes on Venezuela
The move, many argued, was “illegal” without congressional approval.
Senator Andy Kim specifically called out Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth over the operation — pointing to remarks the officials made during briefings late last year.
“Secretaries Rubio and Hegseth looked every Senator in the eye a few weeks ago and said this wasn’t about regime change. I didn’t trust them then and we see now that they blatantly lied to Congress,” Kim wrote on social platform X.
“This strike doesn’t represent strength. It’s not sound foreign policy,” he continued. “It puts Americans at risk in Venezuela and the region, and it sends a horrible and disturbing signal to other powerful leaders across the globe that targeting a head of state is an acceptable policy for the US government.”
Senator Ruben Gallego echoed him, calling it the “second unjustified war in my life time.”
Jim McGovern also questioned the military operation, saying, “Without authorization from Congress, and with the vast majority of Americans opposed to military action, Trump just launched an unjustified, illegal strike on Venezuela,” he wrote on X. “He says we don’t have enough money for healthcare for Americans — but somehow we have unlimited funds for war??”
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez argued that the move was more about oil and regime change than drugs.
“They need a trial now to pretend that it isn’t. Especially to distract from Epstein (scandal) + skyrocketing healthcare costs,” the New York Democrat added.
Democrats have railed for months against the Trump administration’s moves in the Caribbean, including mounting pressure on Venezuela and strikes against alleged drug trafficking boats.