WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥� Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other top officials briefed leaders in Congress late Monday on the striking amid mounting concerns that is embarking on a new era of U.S. without consultation of lawmakers or a clear vision for running the South American country.
Republican leaders entered the closed-door session at the Capitol largely supportive of Trump’s decision to forcibly remove from power, but many Democrats emerged with more questions as Trump maintains a fleet of naval vessels off the Venezuelan coast and urges U.S. companies to reinvest in the country’s underperforming .
A that would prohibit U.S. military action in Venezuela without approval from Congress is heading for a vote this week in the Senate.
鈥淲e don’t expect troops on the ground,鈥� said House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said afterward.
He said Venezuela’s new leadership cannot be allowed to engage in narcoterrorism or the trafficking of drugs into the U.S., which sparked Trump’s initial campaign of that have killed more than 115 people.
鈥淭his is not a regime change. This is demand for a change in behavior,鈥� Johnson said. “We don’t expect direct involvement in any other way beyond just coercing the new, the interim government, to get that going.鈥�
Johnson added, “We have a way of persuasion 鈥� because their oil exports as you know have been seized, and I think that will bring the country to a new governance in very short order,鈥� he said.
But Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, emerged saying, 鈥淭here are still many more questions that need to be answered.鈥�
鈥淲hat is the cost? How much is this going to cost the United States of America?鈥� Rep. Gregory Meeks of New York, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said afterward.
Lawmakers were kept in the dark
The briefing, which stretched for two hours, came days after the surprise military action that few, if any, of the congressional leaders, knew about until after it was underway 鈥� a remarkable delay in informing Congress, which has ultimate say over matters of war.
Administration officials fielded a range of questions 鈥� from further involvement of U.S. troops on the ground to the role of the that appeared to have been sidelined by the Trump administration as the country鈥檚 vice president, , swiftly became the country鈥檚 interim president.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman Air Force Gen. Dan Caine and Attorney General Pam Bondi, who brought drug trafficking charges against Maduro, all joined the classified session. It was intended for the so-called 鈥済ang of eight鈥� leaders, which includes Intelligence committee leadership as well as the chairmen and ranking lawmakers on the national security committees.
Asked afterward if he had any more clarity about who is actually running Venezuela, Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Intelligence Committee, said, 鈥淚 wish I could tell you yes, but I can鈥檛.鈥�
Leaders of the Senate Judiciary Committee 鈥� Republican chairman Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa and ranking Democrat Sen. Richard Durbin of Illinois 鈥� said they should have been included in the classified briefing, arguing they have oversight of the Justice Department under Bondi.
Earlier in the day, Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer warned that Trump鈥檚 action in Venezuela is only the beginning of a dangerous approach to foreign policy as the president publicly signals his interests in Colombia, Cuba and Greenland.
鈥淭he American people did not sign up for another round of endless wars,鈥� Schumer said.
Afterward, Schumer said the briefing, 鈥渨hile extensive and long, posed far more questions than it answered.鈥�
Republicans hold mixed views reflective of the deepening schism within Trump’s 鈥淢ake America Great Again鈥� movement as the president, who vowed to put America first, ventures toward overseas entanglements many lawmakers in both parties want to avoid 鈥� particularly after the long wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
No clarity on what comes next
Next steps in the country, and calls for elections in Venezuela, are uncertain.
The Trump administration had been in talks with , who took the place of her ally Maduro and offered 鈥渢o collaborate鈥� with the Trump administration. Meanwhile, Trump has been dismissive of Venezuelan opposition leader , who last month won the Nobel Peace Prize for her struggle to achieve a democratic transition in her nation. Trump has said Machado lacks the 鈥渟upport鈥� or 鈥渞espect鈥� to run the country.
But Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., a staunch Trump ally, said he plans to speak soon with Machado, and called her 鈥渧ery popular if you look at what happened in the last election.鈥�
鈥淪he eventually, I think, will be the president of Venezuela,” Scott said. “You know, this is going to be a process to get to a democracy. It鈥檚 not easy. There鈥檚 a lot of bad people still there, so it鈥檚 going to take time. They are going to have an election and I think she will get elected.鈥�
Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., who has been a leading critic of the Trump campaign of boat strikes against suspected drug smugglers, said there are probably a dozen leaders around the world who the U.S. could say are in violation of an international law or human rights law.
鈥淎nd we have never gone in and plucked them out the country. So it sets a very bad precedent for doing this and it鈥檚 unconstitutional,鈥� Paul told reporters. 鈥淭here鈥檚 no way you can say bombing a capital and removing the president of a foreign country is not an initiation of war.鈥�
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Associated Press writer Kevin Freking contributed to this story.
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