Five Senate Republicans joined with Democratic lawmakers in a surprise rebuke of President Donald Trump Thursday, voting to advance legislation that would force the commander in chief to seek Congress’ OK before taking any additional military action in Venezuela.
Trump attacked the lawmakers in a Truth Social post after the procedural vote, saying they “should never be elected to office again” and that the measure they supported “greatly hampers American Self Defense and National Security.”
Here’s a closer look at each of the GOP lawmakers and how they explained their votes:
Rand Paul of Kentucky: Paul was a co-sponsor of the war powers measure and has been outspoken in his concern across multiple presidencies that the executive branch has overstepped its authority to use military force without congressional consent.
Lisa Murkowski of Alaska: She sided with similar Democratic-led war powers measures in the past, lamenting that White House officials have not provided enough legal justification for attacks on drug traffickers or for the operation to remove Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.
Susan Collins of Maine: Collins said in a statement that voting to limit presidential powers was “necessary” because of Trump’s recent comments about potentially using ground troops and a sustained military engagement in Venezuela.
Josh Hawley of Missouri: Hawley similarly said that Trump’s “boots on the ground” comments illustrated the need to reinforce Congress’ role in approving future military actions. The conservative has been a staunch defender of Trump’s policies in the past.
Todd Young of Indiana: Young expressed support for the operation to capture Maduro but said in a statement that he is concerned about the potential for a long-term military presence in the country: “I — along with what I believe to be the vast majority of Hoosiers — am not prepared to commit American troops to that mission.”
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this report misspelled Nicolás Maduro’s name.
