Warner fumes over GOP-only briefing on Venezuela boat strikes
Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) expressed strong outrage after the Trump governance held a national security briefing on recent military strikes against venezuelan drug boats exclusively for Senate Republicans, excluding Democrats. Warner condemned the move as “corrosive” too democracy and “dangerous” for national security, criticizing the administration for sidelining the constitutional role of all senators, regardless of party affiliation, in overseeing military actions. he accused the Trump administration of politicizing national security and turning troops into pawns,and called for accountability. Some Republican senators at the briefing also voiced concerns about the exclusion of Democrats,emphasizing that such briefings should be bipartisan. Warner highlighted that this kind of partisanship undermines the proper functioning of national security processes and the separation of powers.
Warner fumes that Republican-only Senate briefing on Venezuela boat strikes ‘corrosive’ to democracy and ‘dangerous’
Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) was livid after the Trump administration held a Senate Republican-exclusive national security briefing on Venezuela, accusing the president of jeopardizing national security.
President Donald Trump‘s relationship with congressional Democrats has been worse than during his first term, marked by deep mistrust. In one of the biggest shows of this tension, the Trump administration briefed only Republicans on recent military strikes against Venezuelan drug boats. Warner, the ranking member on the Senate Intelligence Committee, viewed the move as an outrage, calling for a response in an impassioned speech to reporters.
“I think we hit a new low. Let me be blunt: What the administration did in the last 24 hours is corrosive, not only to our democracy, but downright dangerous for our national security,” Warner began.
In addition to the meeting, Senate Democrats were also snubbed when the Trump administration shared its legal justification for the strikes with only Republicans.
“They shared it with one political party. That is not how the system is supposed to work. That is not how national security decisions are supposed to be made,” Warner said.
“In any normal administration, somebody would be fired for this kind of abuse,” Warner complained. “Every senator — Democrat, Republican, independent — has a constitutional role to play when the United States uses military force, and to make that review. It’s not optional. It’s a freaking duty.”
Warner said the Trump administration’s behavior has turned troops into political pawns and jeopardized the well-being of soldiers. He then shamed the Republican senators who sat through the meeting without raising any objections.
“So the question I got for my Republican senators: If you’re sitting in this room … didn’t somebody raise their hand and say, ‘Well, holy crap, where are the Democrats?’ Who was willing to say, you know, isn’t there a constitutional obligation here? You know, it is about the separation of powers for the folks who wave their constitution around, read the damn thing, and then explain why you would sit through that briefing and not call foul,” he said.
“Somebody needs to be held accountable for this,” Warner fumed.
The meeting in question was reportedly held to win over Republicans on the fence about Trump’s authority in unilaterally striking drug boats, including Sens. Mike Lee (R-UT) and Todd Young (R-IN).
While no Republicans walked out of the meeting, some were willing to openly speak against the move.
TRUMP RULES OUT ASKING CONGRESS TO OK OPERATIONS AGAINST DRUG CARTELS
“I don’t think that any administration should leave out any party from a briefing of that level of importance,” Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-ND) told CNN.
Sen. Mike Rounds (R-SD) said any related briefing “should be delivered on a bipartisan basis.”
" Conservative News Daily does not always share or support the views and opinions expressed here; they are just those of the writer."
*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases
