WASHINGTON, Jan. 8 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. Senate on Thursday advanced a resolution aimed at limiting U.S. President Donald Trump's ability to take further military action against Venezuela.
The measure would require "the removal of United States Armed Forces from hostilities within or against Venezuela that have not been authorized by Congress."
The vote was 52 to 47, with five Republican senators joining all Democrats in support of the measure.
A Senate floor vote is expected to pass the resolution next week.
The move came days after the Trump administration launched a large-scale military strike in Venezuela on Jan. 3, taking by force the oil-rich South American country's President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, before putting them in custody in New York, drawing worldwide condemnation and concern.
"This Vote greatly hampers American Self Defense and National Security, impeding the President's Authority as Commander in Chief," Trump wrote on his social media platform, Truth Social.
"In any event, and despite their 'stupidity,' the War Powers Act is Unconstitutional, totally violating Article II of the Constitution, as all Presidents, and their Departments of Justice, have determined before me," the U.S. president said, claiming that the five Republican senators who voted with Democrats "should never be elected to office again."
Tim Kaine, a Democrat from Virginia, introduced the resolution last month after the Trump administration reportedly killed two people who survived the initial U.S. boat strike in the Caribbean on Sept. 2, 2025.
The legislation was co-sponsored by Republican Senator Rand Paul, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Democratic Senator Adam Schiff.
"The indication from the administration (is) that this is not a few days or a few weeks, it's likely a few years of U.S. occupation and involvement in this country," Kaine said Wednesday on the Senate floor.
"This is not an arrest warrant. This is far bigger than that," said the Democratic senator, referring to the U.S. raid to take Maduro by force.
"Make no mistake, bombing another nation's capital and removing their leader is an act of war, plain and simple," said Paul, the resolution's lone Republican co-sponsor. "No provision in the Constitution provides such power to the presidency."
"I believe invoking the War Powers Act at this moment is necessary, given the President's comments about the possibility of 'boots on the ground' and a sustained engagement 'running' Venezuela, with which I do not agree," Republican Senator Susan Collins said in a statement.
However, many Republican lawmakers defended the Trump administration's military action, though the White House had neither informed Congress in advance nor tried to seek approval from Congress, arguing that the boat strikes and the raid on Maduro were well within the president's constitutional authority.
Trump on Wednesday evening told The New York Times that the United States expects to run Venezuela and extract oil from its vast reserves for years. Asked how long the United States would remain Venezuela's political overlord, Trump answered, "I would say much longer."
The international community is deeply shocked by the Trump administration's raid on Maduro. Multiple countries have issued statements strongly condemning the U.S.'s blatant use of force against a sovereign state and action against its president, which is widely believed to have violated international law. ■