SALISBURY, Md. - U.S. Senators from Virginia, Delaware and Maryland are sharply criticizing President Donald Trump following a U.S. military and law enforcement operation in Venezuela that resulted in the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.
According to CBS News, U.S. forces launched a targeted operation in Caracas aimed at arresting Maduro, a longtime adversary of the United States who has been accused of human rights abuses, corruption and drug trafficking. U.S. officials said the mission successfully detained Maduro, though several American service members were injured during the operation. No American deaths have been reported, according to officials during an 11 a.m. press conference.
President Trump confirmed the operation publicly, framing the action as necessary to remove what he described as a criminal regime. The administration has not released detailed information about the legal authority for the strike or its long-term plan for Venezuela, other than that "we're going to run the country for now" and that Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth would be working with the people of Venezuela.
The operation immediately drew international attention and criticism. CBS News reported that several U.S. allies expressed concern over the lack of congressional authorization and warned the move could destabilize the region, increase migration pressures and strain diplomatic relationships across Latin America.
Virginia's Kaine: Congress must reassert authority
U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA), ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, called the attack “unauthorized” and said it reflects a troubling expansion of presidential war powers.
"Where will this go next?" Kaine questioned in a statement Saturday morning. "Will the President deploy our troops to protect Iranian protesters? To enforce the fragile ceasefire in Gaza? To battle terrorists in Nigeria? To seize Greenland or the Panama Canal? To suppress Americans peacefully assembling to protest his policies? Trump has threatened to do all this and more and sees no need to seek legal authorization from people’s elected legislature before putting service members at risk."
Kaine said Congress has a constitutional responsibility to authorize military action and warned that bypassing lawmakers puts U.S. service members at risk. He noted that a bipartisan War Powers Resolution he introduced with other senators would prohibit the United States from engaging in hostilities against Venezuela without explicit congressional approval. That measure is expected to come up for a vote next week.
Delaware's Coons: No clear plan for what comes next
U.S. Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) said he was relieved no Americans were killed but questioned the administration’s strategy.
Coons described Maduro as a “murderous dictator” and said he would not "mourn his removal from power" but said removing him without a plan risks further violence and instability in the region. He also criticized the administration for failing to notify Congress until after the operation concluded, calling the action “an act of war” that requires congressional authorization.
"This military action is the next stage in President Trump’s incoherent and arguably illegal Venezuela operation. In recent briefings to Congress, senior administration officials said they were focused on combatting drug trafficking, not regime change, and made clear they had no plan for what would happen if Maduro was removed or overthrown," Coons said in a statement Saturday.
"This was clearly false, and furthermore, a military operation to capture and overthrow a president – even an illegitimate one – is an act of war that must be authorized by Congress. Not only has the Trump administration not sought congressional approval, they did not even notify members of either party in Congress until after the strike had concluded. Protecting democracy should not be done through illegal means."
Coons said the administration must brief Congress on its legal justification for the operation and explain how it plans to prevent regional instability, increased migration and expanded drug trafficking.
Maryland's Van Hollen: ‘Grave abuse of power’
U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) echoed those concerns, calling the strikes a “grave abuse of power” by the president and saying Congress never authorized military action to bring about regime change in Venezuela.
Van Hollen said the administration has failed to provide evidence that Maduro posed an immediate threat to the United States and accused the president of repeating past foreign policy mistakes that endanger American lives.
"Trump seized Maduro and his wife just weeks after he pardoned former Honduran President – and notorious convicted drug kingpin – Juan Orlando Hernández," Van Hollen said in a statement Saturday.
"Maduro is a dictator, but his regime did not pose the immediate threat necessary to warrant U.S. military action on foreign soil without Congressional approval. This is not about demolishing a dictatorship, as we’ve seen Trump cozy up to dictators around the world. This is about trying to grab Venezuela's oil for Trump's billionaire buddies. Congress must not abdicate its constitutional authority and allow control of the world’s most powerful military to fall into just one set of hands."
Uncertain path forward
During Saturday's press conference, Trump said Congress could not be notified ahead of this military action because "Congress has a tendency to leak" and that alerting them would have endangered the mission and lives of the U.S. service members carrying out the attack.
CBS News reported that while Maduro’s capture marks a dramatic escalation in U.S.-Venezuela relations, major questions remain unanswered — including who will govern Venezuela next, how long U.S. forces may remain involved, and whether Congress will move to limit future military action.
Government officials said during Saturday's press conference that Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez was sworn in after Maduro's capture, though this has not yet been confirmed by Venezuela.
As lawmakers debate, the administration faces growing pressure to explain both the legal basis for the operation and its broader strategy for the region going forward.