01.06.26 - Votes to watch on Venezuela

Over the weekend, President Trump launched an attack on Venezuela without the congressional authorization the Constitution requires. This week, in the face of Trump’s threats against Mexico, Cuba, and Colombia and warnings of another attack on Venezuela, Congress will begin considering legislation to prevent further hostilities without explicit congressional approval. 

While Republican-controlled House and Senate leadership typically decides which votes occur, there are special rules in each chamber to expedite legislation regarding war powers. More on that below. 

What to watch in the Senate

This week, Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) plans to use fast-track rules to force a vote on his legislation, S.J.Res.98, which requires the President to stop U.S. military action in or against Venezuela unless Congress has approved it. The Senate voted on similar legislation in November, but it failed narrowly. 

Should S.J.Res.98 pass, it would move to the House, where there are no expedited procedures to force a vote on this type of legislation: it would be up to Speaker Johnson’s discretion. In the event the Speaker did allow a vote and it passed, it would go before the President to sign or veto. 

What to watch in the House

The House does have an expedited process for a different type of war powers legislation known as “concurrent resolutions.” Representatives Jim McGovern (D-MA) and Joaquin Castro (D-TX) reportedly plan to reintroduce one such resolution this week, requiring the President to stop U.S. military action in or against Venezuela unless Congress has authorized it. 

The House voted on a similar resolution in December, but it failed by a vote of 211-213. A new resolution would be eligible for a House vote towards the end of January. Should the House pass this resolution, its path forward would be murky: according to the Congressional Research Service, requirements around fast-track Senate consideration of concurrent resolutions are unclear since the Senate has never used this process and relied instead on other types of legislation to accomplish the same objective. 

What this means

Upcoming votes on war powers will put Members of Congress on-the-record in support or opposition to hostilities in Venezuela that Americans have said they’d overwhelmingly oppose, that Congress alone has the constitutional authority to greenlight, and that risk adding to a long list of reckless and deadly U.S. military interventions in Latin America. 

These votes will come just days after Republicans allowed health insurance premiums to more than double, on average, for millions of Americans. As such, upcoming war powers votes will also indicate Members’ stances on using taxpayer dollars for costly military campaigns at a time when almost half of the country has trouble affording groceries, bills, health care, and other necessities. 

Similar measures nearly passed before. With the stakes even higher now, we’ll soon find out if enough lawmakers change course.

If you’d like a live update for your group or coalition, reach out to catherine@webuildprogress.org. Thanks!