- US Senate advances measure on Thursday.
- Curbs Trump's authority for Venezuela strikes.
- Limits presidential power to launch attacks.
By a vote of 52-47, the Senate approved the motion to dismiss the War Powers Resolution.
Sen. Tim Kaine, a Democrat, presented the bill, which was approved by five Republicans: Senators Josh Hawley, Lisa Murkowski, Susan Collins, Rand Paul, and Todd Young.
Sen. Steve Daines, a Republican, abstained from voting.
Next week, a definitive vote is anticipated.
As the Trump administration increased military pressure on Venezuela with strikes starting in September last year, Republicans in the upper house rejected two prior attempts to introduce similar resolutions.
With a military action in Venezuela last weekend, the US substantially intensified the conflict and captured President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores.
Prior to the vote, Kaine stated that the Constitution forbids the use of US soldiers in hostilities in Venezuela without a congressional decision.
"Before you send our sons and daughters to war, come to Congress ... and with that, I moved to discharge the Committee on Foreign Relations from further consideration of S.J. Res. 98 to direct the removal of the United States Armed Forces from hostilities within or against Venezuela that have not been authorized by Congress."
Kaine emphasized that his resolution did not contest the execution of Maduro's arrest warrant last week, stating that it would benefit both Venezuela and the United States if Maduro was brought to justice in the United States.
What happens next in the Senate after advancing the resolution?
The US Senate's 52- 47 vote on January 8, 2026, cleared a procedural cloture chain, advancing Sen. Tim Kaine's( D- VA) war powers resolution to check President Trump's Venezuela military conduct without congressional approval.
Next comes bottom debate open to amendments, bottom speeches, and accommodations potentially gauging days amid GOP pushback from Majority Leader John Thune. sympathizers like Sens. Rand Paul( R- KY) and Susan Collins( R- ME) seek final passage by simple maturity( 51 votes), targeting the coming weekpost-MLK Day recess.
Upon Senate approval, the measure moved to the Republican House, where a previous November 2025 interpretation failed 220- 212; Speaker Mike Johnson signals resistance despite narrow GOP perimeters. Trump vows proscription, demanding two- thirds overrides( 67 Senate, 290 House) without broader defections beyond the five GOP legislators( Paul, Collins, Murkowski, Young, Hawley).