US President Donald Trump has managed to flip the votes of two Republican senators who initially supported a bipartisan war powers resolution aimed at blocking further US attacks on Venezuela. Vice President Joe Vance's tie-breaking vote against the bill led to its defeat in the full Senate.
Sens Josh Hawley and Todd Young, who had voted for the resolution last week but reversed their stance this week after intense lobbying from the White House, were among those who changed sides. Hawley claimed he was assured by Secretary of State Marco Rubio that ground troops would not be deployed to Venezuela.
However, critics are hailing the debate as a partial victory, given that Congress has been forced to confront an issue that GOP leaders had previously sought to avoid. The extraordinary efforts made by the White House to kill the bill highlighted the administration's serious stance on war powers.
The resolution aimed to direct President Trump to terminate US military hostilities in Venezuela unless explicitly authorized by a declaration of war or specific authorization for use of military force. However, despite its failure to pass into law, critics view it as an important step towards reasserting Congress's role in foreign policy decisions.
Critics have also criticized the administration's methods, describing them as "bullying" and "intimidation." Demand Progress spokesperson Cavan Kharrazian said that Congress's war powers should be based on laws, not trust.
Sens Josh Hawley and Todd Young, who had voted for the resolution last week but reversed their stance this week after intense lobbying from the White House, were among those who changed sides. Hawley claimed he was assured by Secretary of State Marco Rubio that ground troops would not be deployed to Venezuela.
However, critics are hailing the debate as a partial victory, given that Congress has been forced to confront an issue that GOP leaders had previously sought to avoid. The extraordinary efforts made by the White House to kill the bill highlighted the administration's serious stance on war powers.
The resolution aimed to direct President Trump to terminate US military hostilities in Venezuela unless explicitly authorized by a declaration of war or specific authorization for use of military force. However, despite its failure to pass into law, critics view it as an important step towards reasserting Congress's role in foreign policy decisions.
Critics have also criticized the administration's methods, describing them as "bullying" and "intimidation." Demand Progress spokesperson Cavan Kharrazian said that Congress's war powers should be based on laws, not trust.
. It feels like the President is getting more and more powerful, and it's scaring a lot of people. I get why some people might think that Congress needs to step up its game and assert its power over foreign policy decisions - it makes sense that we need to make sure our leaders are making decisions that benefit everyone, not just one person or group.
. That can't be easy for them, and I'm sad that they felt pressured into changing their minds. But at the same time, I'm glad that it brought attention to an important issue - we do need to have a conversation about our role in foreign policy, and how Congress can hold the President accountable.
. That's not okay, and we deserve better. We need leaders who will listen to each other and work together, even when they disagree.
they were like super aggressive in there lobbying efforts. anyhoo im glad congress is talkin about war powers & all that jazz. it's crazy how much ppl thought gop leaders were gonna avoid this whole thing, but i guess trump was all "nope, we're doin' this" 
those 2 reps gotta be super nervous after getting roasted by the white house lol anyway, think congress is doing its job by bringing this to light even if it didn't pass...at least now they're talking about war powers and stuff 
still kinda worried tho, what's next? are we gonna see more of these intense lobbying sessions? 
US politics is always so wild! So like, these two republican senators Josh Hawley and Todd Young changed their minds after the white house got all up in their grill 
Marco Rubio was literally calling them out saying no troops would be sent to Venezuela. but seriously how can you just flip your vote like that? 
still thinking about the whole thing and how crazy it's all going to play out 
Trump's got some serious snake oil skills - convinced 2 republicans to flip their votes after just a week? 
that Marco Rubio must have some kinda magic charm 
. anyway, it's good that Congress is finally talking about war powers, even if it was under duress. guess you could say the White House had to 'persuade' them 
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Trump's White House is at it again, using their weight to push through their agenda. I'm not surprised they were able to flip those two Republican senators - they've been trying to muscle in on Congress for years. It's a shame that Josh Hawley and Todd Young caved, though - those guys should know better than to trust some sweet-talking SecSec like Marco Rubio.
. And now that it didn't work out, everyone's saying they were basically bullied into doing the White House' bidding. Like, isn't that against the rules or something? 
️ I've got to say, those 2 Republican senators, Josh Hawley & Todd Young, totally flip-flopped 
but for real though, i'm all about congress taking control of foreign policy decisions it's time to get back to basics! 
I mean, seriously, who changes their vote at the last minute? It's like they're for sale to the highest bidder 
Demand Progress is doing some awesome work, and I'm so here for it! 
. And let's be real, those 'extraordinary efforts' made by the White House were basically just bullying and intimidation tactics 
But at the same time, it's kinda frustrating because Congress was actually making progress on something important.
. Those two senators thought they had it in the bag, but the White House brought out the big guns and flipped their votes 
. Now, Congress might have lost this battle, but they've gained something way more valuable: a conversation about war powers 
. And let's be real, if the administration is willing to go this far to get what they want, then maybe we should be worried about what they'd do with actual war powers 
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