[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 5 (Thursday, January 8, 2026)]
[Senate]
[Pages S99-S100]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                               VENEZUELA

  Mr. KAINE. Mr. President, I have spoken before; so I am going to be 
very brief. And then I am going to call up the business of the Senate, 
this War Powers Resolution.
  Two points. In the aftermath of the briefing yesterday, I have had 
good conversations with colleagues, and many of them have asked me 
about the distinction between the execution of a valid arrest warrant 
and a larger military operation.
  I want to state very clearly that I do not challenge, nor does this 
resolution

[[Page S100]]

challenge, the execution of a valid arrest warrant against Nicolas 
Maduro. That valid arrest warrant bringing him to justice in the United 
States will be good for America and good for Venezuela. We do not 
challenge that.
  In fact, under the War Powers Resolution, I am not even sure that the 
execution of an arrest warrant, even if accompanied by a military 
escort, would rise to the level of hostilities that would allow such a 
challenge, and I certainly wouldn't be calling it up for a vote on the 
floor.
  But this is obviously bigger than the initiation of an arrest 
warrant.
  From the beginning, on September 2, the striking of Venezuelan boats 
in open waters, the amassing of naval assets around Venezuela, the 
President's authorization of covert activities, the seizure of ships, 
the coordinated attack of 150 aircraft that not only extracted 
President Maduro and his wife but also bombed sites around the 
country--this is bigger than an arrest warrant.
  More than 200 enemies have been killed. U.S. troops have been 
injured. Two are still hospitalized. And now we understand, after the 
hearing yesterday and what has been made public, that this will go on 
for a long period of time. The seizure of oil, the dictation of terms 
about elections and the politics of Venezuela will go on for years.
  This is not an attack on the arrest warrant, but it is merely a 
statement that, going forward, U.S. troops should not be used in 
hostilities in Venezuela without a vote of Congress, as the 
Constitution requires.
  The second point I will make is this: We are all humans in this 
place, and one of the things we try to do is minimize votes that we 
might regret. It is impossible to eliminate those.
  We are humans, and we cast thousands of votes even in a single term 
in the Senate. There will be some we might look back on and feel like: 
Oh, maybe we should have done this differently.
  The most likely vote where regret would be most painful is a vote on 
matters of war.
  And I just want to assure my colleagues: Here is something I can 
guarantee you. No one has ever regretted--no one has ever regretted--a 
vote that just says: Mr. President, before you send our sons and 
daughters to war, come to Congress. That is a vote that no one has ever 
regretted, and no one will ever regret.

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