Tim Kaine

Nov. 7 (UPI) — Republicans narrowly defeated a bipartisan bill in the Senate requiring congressional approval for military action against Venezuela as the Trump administration continues a military buildup in the region and attacks on alleged drug boats in nearby waters.

The GOP lawmakers rejected Senate Joint Resolution 90 in a 51-49 vote on Thursday evening, with Republican Sens. Rand Paul of Kentucky and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska casting ballots in favor of the measure with their Democratic colleagues.

The resolution was introduced by Paul, and Democratic Sens. Adam Schiff of California and Tim Kaine of Virginia in response to reporting that President Donald Trump was considering military ground strikes against Venezuela.

Venezuela has long been a target of Trump, who, during his first administration, launched a failed multiyear pressure campaign to oust its authoritarian leader, President Nicolas Maduro.

Since returning to the White House in January, Trump has used his executive powers to target drug cartels, including the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang. Trump has claimed, without providing evidence, that TdA has “invaded” the United States at Maduro’s direction, despite his own National Intelligence Council concluding in May that the regime “probably does not have a policy of cooperating” with TdA.

The vote was held as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced a 17th known military strike on an alleged drug trafficking boat in Caribbean international waters. Since Sept. 2, the United States has killed around 70 people in the attacks.

The attacks have drawn domestic and international criticism and allegations of war crimes, murder and extrajudicial killings. Some Democrats called on the Trump administration to answer questions over the legality of the strikes without gaining proper congressional approval.

Following the Thursday vote, Kaine said the Trump administration told some members of Congress that it lacked legal authority to launch any attacks into Venezuela. Some worry that an attack could devolve into a full-scale war.

“Trump’s illegal strikes on boats in the Caribbean and threats of land strikes in Venezuela recklessly and unnecessarily put the U.S. at risk of war,” Kaine said in a statement.

In a separate statement, he criticized his Republican colleagues, stating: “If the U.S. is going to put our nation’s sons and daughters into harm’s way, then we should have a robust debate in Congress in front of the American people.”

Sen. Todd Young, a Republican of Indiana, voted against the bill on Thursday, and explained in a statement that he has been informed of the legal rationale behind the strikes and does not believe the resolution is appropriate right now, but that could change.

“My vote is not an endorsement of the administration’s current course in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific. As a matter of policy, I am troubled by many aspects and assumptions of this operation and believe it is at odds with the majority of Americans who want the U.S. military less entangled in international conflicts,” he said.

Nov. 2 (UPI) — The United States killed three people in its latest strike against alleged drug trafficking boats in the Caribbean, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has announced.

Hegseth said in a post to social media Saturday that American forces conducted a kinetic strike against the vessel in international waters.

He said three “narco-terrorists” were on board and all three were killed.

“These narco-terrorists are bringing drugs to our shores to poison Americans at home — and they will not succeed,” he said. “The department will treat them exactly how we treated Al-Qaeda. We will continue to track them, map them, hunt them and kill them.”

At least 64 people have now been killed by the U.S. in 15 strikes on alleged drug trafficking boats in the Caribbean and the Pacific Ocean since they began in September.

The strikes have been celebrated by families who have lost their children to fentanyl poisoning, some of whom recently rallied in the nation’s capital for a day of remembrance.

“One boat, two boat, three boat — boom!” a mother who lost her 15-year-old son to Percocet laced with fentanyl told Fox News is how she feels about the strikes on boats allegedly transporting drugs to the United States. “Who did it? Trump did it!”

President Donald Trump in September told reporters that he had authorized the CIA to operate in Venezuela during the summer as the Pentagon was directing a slow military buildup in the waters off the South American country.

On Oct. 24, weeks into the anti-drug trafficking campaign, Hegseth directed the USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group to transit to the Caribbean. The group includes three destroyers, in addition to the aircraft carrier.

There already were eight naval surface vessels, a submarine and roughly 6,000 soldiers deployed to the area before the strike group was ordered there from the Mediterranean.

Trump, who notified Congress that he was engaged in conflict with drug cartels, has said in recent weeks as the naval presence has grown that he is considering whether to allow strikes inside Venezuela to combat the cartels and weaken Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro‘s administration.

But the strikes have raised concerns of escalating an conflict that could to war with Venezuela and Colombia, according to reports.

U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., filed a bipartisan bill that aims to prevent the Trump administration from entering a full-throated war with Venezuela.

Critics of the Trump administration’s actions have expressed that only Congress can declare war.

On Friday, the office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights said they violate international law and amount to extrajudicial killings.

“Under international human rights law, the intentional use of lethal force is only permissible as a last resort against individuals who pose an imminent threat to life,” High Commissioner Volker Türk said.

“Based on the very sparse information provided publicly by the US authorities, none of the individuals on the targeted boats appeared to pose an imminent threat to the lives of others or otherwise justified the use of lethal armed force against them under international law,”

Oct. 29 (UPI) — The U.S. Senate on Tuesday night passed legislation terminating the national emergency declaration to impose duties on Brazilian imports, dealing a blow to President Donald Trump‘s use of the punitive economic measures to penalize the South American country for prosecuting his ally, former President Jair Bolsonaro.

The Senate voted 52-48 in favor of S.J. Res. 18, with five Republicans — Sens. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, Thom Tillis of North Carolina, Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Rand Paul, also of Kentucky — joining their Democratic colleagues in ending the emergency and, consequently, the tariffs.

The bipartisan bill was introduced by Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., and Paul.

Speaking from the floor prior to the vote Tuesday, Paul criticized the tariffs as a tax being levied against the people of the United States — taxes, which fall under the purview of the House of Representatives, not that of the executive branch.

“The Senate is compelled to act because one person in our country wishes to raise taxes without the approval of the Senate, without the approval of the House, without the approval of the Constitution,” he said, referring to Trump.

“The idea that one person can raise taxes is contrary to our founding principles.”

Tariffs have been a central mechanism of Trump’s trade and foreign policy, using them to right what he sees as improper trade relations as well as to penalize nations he feels are doing him and the United States wrong.

Starting in April, Trump imposed a 10% baseline tariff on nearly every country under a national emergency declaration, the legality of which is being challenged in court. In late July, Trump imposed an additional 40% tariff on Brazil via an executive order under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.

Trump had threatened Brazil with tariffs over how Bolsonaro “has been treated.”

Bolsonaro was being prosecuted at the time the tariffs were imposed for attempting a coup following his 2022 election loss to current President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. In September, he was sentenced to 27 years in prison.

In his floor speech Tuesday, Kaine asked what threat to the U.S. economy, national security or foreign policy did Brazil pose to the United States to necessitate the national emergency.

“We have a trade surplus with Brazil: $7 billion a year in goods, $23 billion a year in services,” he said. “This president has said their prosecution of a disgraced politician is a national emergency for the United States? How could that be? Mr. President, if this is a national emergency, any president of any party could say that anything is a national emergency for the United States.”

Sept. 20 (UPI) — Replacements have been named for the acting U.S. attorney and nominee for the Eastern District of Virginia who was forced out after failing to bring criminal charges against New York Attorney General Letitia James regarding mortgage loan fraud.

Erik Siebert notified staff on Friday that he resigned, but President Donald Trump said he was fired. Siebert was nominated for the position and was awaiting Senate confirmation.

Trump posted on Truth Social he plans to nominate Lindsey Halligan, who “proved herself to be a tremendous trial lawyer, and later represented me (and WON!) in the disgraceful Democrat Documents Hoax, as well as MANY other major, high profile cases.” He was referring to his handling of classified material after leaving office following his first term.

Halligan, who is currently a special assistant in the White House, does not have any prosecutorial experience and her law license is in Florida, ABC News reported.

“Lindsey is a tough, smart, and loyal attorney, who has worked with me for a long time,” Trump posted on Truth Social on Saturday night. “As a Partner at the biggest Law Firm in Florida, Lindsey proved herself to be a tremendous trial lawyer.”

Earlier Saturday, Attorney General Pam Bondi appointed Mary “Maggie” Cleary, an attorney active in Republican politics, as acting U.S. attorney for the division, according an internal email obtained by Politico and The Washington Post.

This month, Cleary rejoined the DOJ as a senior counsel in the criminal division in the District of Columbia after working in the Culpepper Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office and Virginia state agencies.

She was placed on administrative leave in the DOJ’s Virginia Western District for being on Capitol grounds during the riot on Jan. 6, 2021. Clear said she was “framed” and was ultimately cleared.

Cleary will serve until a nominee is confirmed.

“This evening, I submitted my resignation as interim US Attorney for EDVA,” Siebert’s email, obtained by ABC News, read. “For the last eight months, I have had the pleasure of leading the finest and most exceptional of DOJ employees, who care deeply about our nation and our EDVA community. Thank you for the lessons you have taught me, the sacrifices you have made, and the pursuit of justice you strive for every day.”

On Saturday, Trump posted on X that he “withdrew the Nomination of Erik Siebert as U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, when I was informed that he received the UNUSUALLY STRONG support of the two absolutely terrible, sleazebag Democrat Senators, from the Great State of Virginia. He didn’t quit, I fired him! Next time let him go in as a Democrat, not a Republican.”

He was referring to Virginia Sens. Tim Kaine and Mark Warner.

In a joint statement, Kaine and Warner said Siebert lost his job because his office was “unable to find incriminating evidence of mortgage fraud” against James, noting that there had been bipartisan support for his nomination.

“In April, after an extensive interview process that included the input of a bipartisan panel of former Virginia U.S. attorneys and other well-respected members of the Virginia legal community, Warner and Kaine sent a letter to the White House recommending Siebert for the U.S. attorney position,” they wrote. “In May, the White House announced that Siebert was formally nominated for the role,” Warner and Kaine said.

Both senators from a nominee’s state are sent a blue slip in which they may submit a favorable or unfavorable opinion of a nominee, regardless of their party. The Senate Judiciary Committee takes blue slips into consideration when deciding whether to recommend that the Senate confirm a nominee.

Media outlets, including CNN and The New York Times, reported that Justice Department prosecutors in Virginia believed they have not gathered enough evidence to indict James.

“Erik Siebert is an ethical prosecutor who refused to bring criminal charges against Trump’s perceived enemies when the facts wouldn’t support it,” the senators wrote. “The Eastern District of Virginia is at the forefront of significant cases essential to our national security, and just like any court in America, should be focused on justice instead of a thin-skinned president’s vendettas.”

Siebert, who worked for 15 years in Virginia as an assistant U.S. attorney, was the lead attorney for the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force and the deputy criminal supervisor for the Richmond Division.

He was also a police officer with the Metropolitan Police Department in Washington, D.C.

In March, he appeared with Attorney General Pam Bondi, Republican Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin and FBI Director Kash Patel on the arrest of an alleged MS-13 gang member in Northern Virginia.

Before posting on Truth Social, Trump told reporters, “Yeah, I want him out. When I learned that they voted for him, I said, I don’t really want him.”

New York’s attorney general is among three people targeted by the Trump administration for alleged loan fraud involving claims about two primary residences in Virginia and New York. No Republicans have been named, though Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin have two primary residences on loan paper, ProPublica reported.

William Pulte, director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, wrote a letter to Bondi alleging that James had “in multiple instances, falsified bank documents and property records to acquire government-backed assistance and loans and more favorable loan terms.” The letter was obtained by CBS News.

“The allegations are baseless,” James told NY1, “The allegations are nothing more than a revenge tour.”

James has been in Trump’s crosshairs since June 2022, when she sued Trump and the Trump Organization, alleging they inflated the values of properties.

Trump was ordered to pay $355 million in restitution for “ill-gotten gains” from his inflated financial statements, state Superior Court Judge Arthur Engoron ruled. With interest, the amount was raised to $527 earlier this year. But the Appellare Division in New York earlier this year canceled the fine and James has appealed.

Pulte has also targeted California Sen. Adam Schiff, a Democrat, and Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, appointed by President Joe Biden. Trump fired Cook, but the district and appeals courts have ruled that Trump doesn’t have the authority to fire someone from the Federal Reserve without due process and only for cause. Trump has asked the Supreme Court to weigh in.

Sept. 20 (UPI) — The acting U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia was forced out after failing to bring criminal charges against New York Attorney General Letitia James regarding mortgage loan fraud.

Erik Siebert notified staff on Friday that he resigned, but President Donald Trump said he was fired. Siebert was nominated for the position and was awaiting Senate confirmation.

On Saturday, Attorney General Pam Bondi appointed Mary “Maggie” Cleary, an attorney active in Republican politics, as acting U.S. attorney for the division, according an internal email obtained by Politico and The Washington Post.

This month, Cleary rejoined the DOJ as a senior counsel in the criminal division in the District of Columbia after working in the Culpepper Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office and Virginia state agencies.

She was placed on administrative leave in the DOJ’s Virginia Western District for being on Capitol grounds during the riot on Jan. 6, 2021. Clear said she was “framed” and was ultimately cleared.

“This evening, I submitted my resignation as interim US Attorney for EDVA,” Siebert’s email, obtained by ABC News, read. “For the last eight months, I have had the pleasure of leading the finest and most exceptional of DOJ employees, who care deeply about our nation and our EDVA community. Thank you for the lessons you have taught me, the sacrifices you have made, and the pursuit of justice you strive for every day.”

On Saturday, Trump posted on X that he “withdrew the Nomination of Erik Siebert as U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, when I was informed that he received the UNUSUALLY STRONG support of the two absolutely terrible, sleazebag Democrat Senators, from the Great State of Virginia. He didn’t quit, I fired him! Next time let him go in as a Democrat, not a Republican.”

He was referring to Virginia Sens. Tim Kaine and Mark Warner.

In a joint statement, Kaine and Warner said Siebert lost his job because his office was “unable to find incriminating evidence of mortgage fraud” against James, noting that there had been bipartisan support for his nomination.

“In April, after an extensive interview process that included the input of a bipartisan panel of former Virginia U.S. attorneys and other well-respected members of the Virginia legal community, Warner and Kaine sent a letter to the White House recommending Siebert for the U.S. attorney position,” they wrote. “In May, the White House announced that Siebert was formally nominated for the role,” Warner and Kaine said.

Both senators from a nominee’s state are sent a blue slip in which they may submit a favorable or unfavorable opinion of a nominee, regardless of their party. The Senate Judiciary Committee takes blue slips into consideration when deciding whether to recommend that the Senate confirm a nominee.

Media outlets, including CNN and The New York Times, reported that Justice Department prosecutors in Virginia believed they have not gathered enough evidence to indict James.

“Erik Siebert is an ethical prosecutor who refused to bring criminal charges against Trump’s perceived enemies when the facts wouldn’t support it,” the senators wrote. “The Eastern District of Virginia is at the forefront of significant cases essential to our national security, and just like any court in America, should be focused on justice instead of a thin-skinned president’s vendettas.”

Siebert, who worked for 15 years in Virginia as an assistant U.S. attorney, was the lead attorney for the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force and the deputy criminal supervisor for the Richmond Division.

He was also a police officer with the Metropolitan Police Department in Washington, D.C.

In March, he appeared with Attorney General Pam Bondi, Republican Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin and FBI Director Kash Patel on the arrest of an alleged MS-13 gang member in Northern Virginia.

Before posting on Truth Social, Trump told reporters, “Yeah, I want him out. When I learned that they voted for him, I said, I don’t really want him.”

New York’s attorney general is among three people targeted by the Trump administration for alleged loan fraud involving claims about two primary residences in Virginia and New York. No Republicans have been named, though Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin have two primary residences on loan paper, ProPublica reported.

William Pulte, director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, wrote a letter to Bondi alleging that James had “in multiple instances, falsified bank documents and property records to acquire government-backed assistance and loans and more favorable loan terms.” The letter was obtained by CBS News.

“The allegations are baseless,” James told NY1, “The allegations are nothing more than a revenge tour.”

James has been in Trump’s crosshairs since June 2022, when she sued Trump and the Trump Organization, alleging they inflated the values of properties.

Trump was ordered to pay $355 million in restitution for “ill-gotten gains” from his inflated financial statements, state Superior Court Judge Arthur Engoron ruled. With interest, the amount was raised to $527 earlier this year. But the Appellare Division in New York earlier this year canceled the fine and James has appealed.

Pulte has also targeted California Sen. Adam Schiff, a Democrat, and Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, appointed by President Joe Biden. Trump fired Cook, but the district and appeals courts have ruled that Trump doesn’t have the authority to fire someone from the Federal Reserve without due process and only for cause. Trump has asked the Supreme Court to weigh in.

July 24 (UPI) — The U.S. Navy needs to complete its shipbuilding program and modernize its weapons systems to effectively address the nation’s defense needs, Adm. Daryl Caudle told the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Committee members questioned Caudle on Thursday morning to consider his nomination for Chief of Naval Operations and reappointment to the grade of admiral.

“I view this nomination as a solemn opportunity to ensure the nation’s maritime dominance never is surpassed by competitors or adversaries,” Caudle told the committee during his opening comments.

“Our sailors are the Navy’s most enduring competitive advantage,” Caudle said. “A stronger Navy means a more effective fleet.”

He said his father was an Army veteran who served in the Korean War and passed on the importance of service to protect American families and their way of life from harm.

Recruitment standards, shipbuilding

Committee Chairman Roger Wicker, R-Miss., said the Navy has lowered its recruitment standards in recent years to enable more people to join its ranks.

He asked how Caudle might ensure the Navy does not permanently rely on lowered standards.

Caudle said the Navy has not lowered its standards but instead has increased access.

“All that graduate from boot camp meet the rigorous standards of that course to the letter,” he told Wicker.

Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, said the Navy has an “overdue” 30-year shipbuilding plan that has not been followed and asked if Caudle would undertake a shipbuilding program to increase the Navy’s size and visibility.

Caudle said King has his “complete commitment” to the Navy shipbuilding program.

Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., also raised the matter of the 30-year shipbuilding program and asked if Caudle would commit to completing the program in a timely manner and on budget.

Caudle affirmed he would do so and cited the Navy’s nuclear submarine program as especially important for ensuring the nation does its part to fulfill strategic agreements with other nations.

Sen. Deb Fischer, R-Neb., raised concerns about the Navy’s force structure design to deter other nuclear powers that are threatening the United States and the world.

Caudle called the matter a “math problem” and said he will work closely with Strategic Command to address growing threats from China and other nations to maximize the Navy’s effectiveness.

Munitions and maintenance

Fischer also asked what the Navy could do to ensure it has an ample supply of munitions to quickly replace those that are expended during naval operations.

King said the Navy has “way too many sole-source vendors that are underproducing” munitions due to difficulties with obtaining the materials needed to make them.

“We need to work through that,” King said, adding that the Navy needs to streamline production for greater efficiency.

“We roll a Ford F-150 off the assembly line every 20 hours, but it takes greater than a year to build an SM-6” missile, he added. “It’s just unacceptable.”

Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, asked about drydock construction in Hawaii and what Caudle would do to complete an under-construction drydock there on time to ensure Naval vessels can use it for maintenance and repairs.

Caudle called the drydock a national asset and said he shares Hirono’s concern regarding the importance of the drydock and getting it completed for as close to its budget as possible.

Weapons systems modernization

Sen. Ted Budd, R-N.C., asked how Caudle might incorporate unmanned weapons systems to counter naval growth among the nation’s potential adversaries.

“There is no question that unmanned robotic autonomous systems will be part of any modern warfare going forward,” Caudle answered.

He said they are used in the Russia-Ukraine war, in space and Middle East conflicts.

“We’re all learning from this,” he said. “Everyone is, including our adversaries.”

He said the Navy must invest in robotic autonomous weapons systems and ensure the command structure and operational systems are in place to maximize their effectiveness.

During his questioning, King suggested directed-energy weapons are the “future” of naval warfare and asked Caudle what his position might be regarding their development and use.

“A directed-energy shot is much cheaper than a $4 million missile,” but the Biden administration “grossly underfunded” development of the weapons system, King said.

Caudle responded that his master’s degree is in directed energy and his thesis was on high-powered lasers.

“I’ve not seen the Navy do an adequate amount of effort translating the research and development into shipboard use,” he said.

“If confirmed, I will make that a priority because it is the infinite magazine, especially against certain targets,” Caudle said.

“Admiral, you just got my vote,” King responded.

The morning confirmation hearing lasted for more than two hours.

Before the confirmation hearing, Sen. Jim Banks, R-Ind., met with Caudle and in a news release said the admiral “knows a stronger Navy means a safer America.”

Caudle is a four-star admiral and would replace former Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti.

If confirmed, Caudle would control a naval fleet that is 14 times smaller than the Chinese fleet and has experienced costly shipbuilding delays, according to Politico.

July 15 (UPI) — U.N. ambassador nominee Mike Waltz denied any sensitive information was shared during a controversial mobile app chat in March while undergoing a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on Tuesday.

The hearing was the first Congressional appearance by Waltz since his controversial participation in a Signal app chat that inadvertently included a journalist while discussing a pending military operation in March against Houthi targets in Yemen.

Waltz was the Trump administration’s national security adviser when the chat occurred, but no mention of the Signal chat occurred until past the hearing’s first hour.

Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., raised using the Signal app to discuss classified matters, which since has been dubbed “Signalgate.”

Waltz said no classified information was shared during the discussion that accidentally included The Atlantic editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg.

“That engagement was driven by and recommended by the CyberSecurity Infrastructure Security Agency [and] by the Biden administration,” Waltz said, as reported by ABC News.

Waltz said Signal is an encrypted app that was authorized by the CSISA and recommended by the Biden administration.

“We followed the recommendation,” Waltz said. “But there was not classified information shared.”

Coons responded by saying he had hoped Waltz would express “some sense of regret” over the matter that he said included “very sensitive, timely information about a military strike on a commercially available app.”

Waltz told Coons they have a “fundamental disagreement” because no classified information was shared during the Signal chat.

Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., said the Defense Department’s inspector general and the Air Force have separate investigations ongoing in the matter and have not drawn any conclusions.

“There are two investigations going on at the Pentagon precisely to determine in an objective and independent way whether classified information was shared,” Kaine said.

Waltz declined to comment because the investigations are ongoing.

The U.N. ambassadorship is the last vacancy to be filled by the Trump administration, and Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, called Waltz one of the nation’s “most well-qualified” U.N. ambassador nominees when introducing him to the committee members, CBS News reported.

Lee said Waltz is skilled at negotiations and has a lot of policy experience to guide him while dealing with the United Nations and representatives of its member nations.

“With Waltz at the helm, the U.N. will have what I regard as what could and should be its last chance to demonstrate its actual value to the United States,” Lee told the committee.

July 12 (UPI) — The State Department on Friday began notifying 1,353 affected workers of their pending job losses as the department reduces its workforce by 15%.

The people losing their jobs amid the downsizing work in positions that are being eliminated or consolidated, a State Department official told media on Thursday, NBC News reported.

“This is the most complicated personnel reorganization that the federal government has ever undertaken,” the official told reporters during a briefing. “It was done so in order to be very focused on looking at the functions that we want to eliminate or consolidate, rather than looking at individuals.”

The State Department notified 1,107 civil service and 246 foreign service workers of their pending job losses, CBS News reported.

The department plans to eliminate nearly 3,400 positions, including many who have already accepted voluntary departure offers this year.

The State Department also will close or consolidate many U.S.-based offices as part of the reduction in force that is being done in accordance with a reorganization plan, which members of Congress received in March.

The Trump administration says the downsizing is needed to eliminate redundancy and better enable the State Department to focus on its primary responsibilities.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio created the downsizing plan, which he said is needed due to the department being too costly, ideologically driven and cumbersome, The New York Times reported.

The downsizing isn’t going unchallenged on Capitol Hill.

All Democratic members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Friday opposed the downsizing in a letter sent to Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

“During a time of increasingly complex and widespread challenges to U.S. national security, this administration should be strengthening our diplomatic corps — an irreplaceable instrument of U.S. power and leadership — not weakening it,” the Democratic Party senators said.

“However, [downsizing] would severely undermine the department’s ability to achieve U.S. foreign policy interests, putting our nation’s security, strength and prosperity at risk.”

The Senate Democrats on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee include Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, Chris Coons of Delaware, Chris Murphy of Connecticut, Chris Van Hollen of Maryland and Tim Kaine of Virginia.

The Senate committee’s other Democratic Party members are Jeff Merkley of Oregon, Cory Booker of New Jersey, Brian Schatz of Hawaii, Tammy Duckworth of Illinois and Jacky Rosen of Nevada.

June 28 (UPI) — Senate Democrats have failed in their attempt to curtail President Donald Trump‘s ability to use the military against Iran without congressional approval.

The vote Friday night was 53-47. Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky voted with Democrats to approve the resolution, and Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania was the only Democrat to vote no in invoking the War Powers Act of 1973.

“If we are to ask our young men and women to fight, and potentially give their lives, then we in this body can at least muster the courage to debate if American military intervention is warranted,” Paul who has advocated for restrained foreign policy, said on the Senate floor before the vote.

“Abdicating our constitutional responsibility by allowing the executive branch to unilaterally introduce U.S. troops into wars is an affront to the Constitution, and the American people,” he said.

Fetterman, a staunch supporter of Israel, told reporters he voted against the resolution “simply because I would never want to restrict any future president, Republican or Democrat, to do this kind of military exercise.”

Days before Trump authorized B-2 stealth bombers to strike three Iranian nuclear sites last weekend, Sen. Tim Kaine had already introduced a resolution under the War Powers Act of 1973, which limits a president’s power to enter an armed conflict without the consent of Congress. Israel first struck Iran on June 13 in an effort to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear bomb.

Congress has not issued a formal declaration of war since World War II.

The War Powers Act was approved after President Richard Nixon expanded the Vietnam War into Cambodia. Congress sought Nixon’s power to continue expanding the war amid deep national displeasure about the war. Nixon vetoed the bill, which was overridden by a near unanimous vote of Congress.

In this new situation, the White House would need approval from the House and Senate before U.S. forces could use further military action against Iran.

“I think the events of this week have demonstrated that war is too big to be consigned to the decision of any one person,” Kaine said on the Senate floor. “War is too big an issue to leave to the moods and the whims and the daily vibes of any one person.”

In 2020, eight Republicans joined Democrats in preventing Trump from acting against Iran during his first term in the White House.

“I’ll be voting with Republicans against the war power resolution. When we’re talking about nuclear weapons, the president should have the discretion he needs to act,” Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, who supported the 2020 resolution, posted Thursday X.

Susan Collins, a moderate from Maine, joined her Republican colleagues to vote against the bill.

“I continue to believe that Congress has an important responsibility to authorize the sustained use of military force. That is not the situation we are facing now. The President has the authority to defend our nation and our troops around the world against the threat of attack,” Collins wrote on X after the vote.

In the House, Republican Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky had also introduced a war powers resolution but decided not to press for a vote amid the cease-fire in the Iran-Israel conflict, which announced Monday as his supports hit out against Massie.

The Pro Trump PAC MAGA Kentucky released an ad titled “What Happened to Thomas Massie?” seeking his ouster from the House in 2026 after an interview about the resolution on Sunday morning.