Senate GOP moves to block Dems' war powers push, preserve Trump's authority in rare move
Senate Republicans are mulling an arcane move that, if successful, would kill the bipartisan push to rein in President Donald Trump's war authority in Venezuela.The Senate is a chamber that...
By Fox News · Fox News
Senate Republicans are mulling an arcane move that, if successful, would kill the bipartisan push to rein in President Donald Trump's war authority in Venezuela. The Senate is a chamber that lives and dies by procedure. It guides how bills are considered and how senators speak on the floor, and Republicans hope that a procedure once used by Senate Democrats will work in their favor to nullify Sen. Tim Kaine’s, D-Va., war powers resolution. Republicans are considering making a point of order to table the resolution and argue that because there are no troops on the ground in Venezuela, nor active combat involving U.S. forces, Kaine’s bid is moot. TRUMP RIPS INTO GOP DEFECTORS AS 'REAL LOSERS' AS SENATE READIES FOR FINAL VOTE But whether Republicans can muster support to kill the resolution with the rare move remains to be seen. Five Senate Republicans broke ranks to advance the war powers push last week, and the point of order can pass or fail by a simple 50-vote majority. When asked if the votes were there to effectively turn off the bipartisan push, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said, "Uncertain." Still, Thune made the case that the resolution was likely not germane and able to be turned off, because no actual fighting was happening in Venezuela. TRUMP BLASTS GOP WAR POWERS DEFECTORS, SAYS THEY 'SHOULD NEVER BE ELECTED TO OFFICE AGAIN' "I think that it's pretty clear, in my view at least, that there are no hostilities that exist today, which, as I've suggested before, to me at least means that shouldn't be accorded privilege on the floor, that expedited consideration on the floor for something that doesn't exist at the moment," Thune said. "But nevertheless it’s all about the votes." Senate Democrats made the same argument successfully in 2024 against a war powers resolution from Sen. Ted Cruz , R-Texas. That push was geared toward ending U.S. involvement with the operation of a floating pier off the coast of Gaza. Kaine’s resolution is more forward-lo…