Young Speaks About Situation in Venezuela on Senate Floor

WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senator Todd Young (R-Ind.) spoke on the Senate floor about the situation in Venezuela and the War Powers Act.

In his remarks, Young discussed his interactions with senior national security officials and the commitment he received that if President Trump were to determine American forces are needed in major military operations in Venezuela, the Administration will come to Congress in advance to ask for an authorization of force.

To watch Young's full floor speech, click here.

Senator Young's full remarks are below:

Since the beginning of this year, there's been a lot of conversation both here in Washington and around the country about the future of American involvement in Venezuela and how that relates to the War Powers Act.

As we head to a recess - my colleagues head back to their respective states and other locales - I just wanted to take a minute and update my constituents on how this U.S. Senator is approaching this situation.

First, I want to reiterate that I support President Trump's decision to bring Nicolás Maduro to justice for his many crimes. I know I speak for countless Hoosiers in expressing my gratitude that after years of oppression, the Venezuelan people now have a new hope.

In fact, I've taken meetings in recent days with diplomats, national security luminaries, business people, expats, and others, and those meetings have reinforced the reality for me that right now we have an opportunity for brighter days ahead in Venezuela. And I know the Administration is working with multiple stakeholders to affect that sort of positive change that we are all hoping for.

And I, of course, also want to commend the bravery and professionalism of U.S. personnel who carried out this successful law enforcement mission in Venezuela earlier this month. Highly impressive. Highly sophisticated. I'm awestruck by the mission, all that it accomplished, and I thank the men who were part of that.

Now, while I applaud and stand with the President and his team on the law enforcement action taken in Venezuela to remove Nicolás Maduro. That law enforcement is now complete. I just want to clarify that for many of my constituents.

I've also expressed concerns about the possibility of American military involvement in Venezuela as we move forward.

The President and members of his national security team have openly stated that the United States now "runs" Venezuela.

And because we can't predict the future, no one can guarantee, with certainty, that an American military presence won't be required to stabilize the country.

So, I - along with what I believe to be the majority of Hoosiers - am not prepared to commit American troops to that mission.

I strongly believe that any such commitment of U.S. forces in Venezuela must be subject to debate and authorization in Congress. And that is what animated so much of my activity in recent days and weeks.

Now that belief is not a new one to this situation or to this President.

For over a decade and under multiple presidents, I've pushed for Congress to fulfill its role defined in the Constitution on matters involving the use of military force.

Since U.S. involvement in Venezuela began last year, I've pushed for briefings and other forms of congressional engagement.

Just last week, because of those concerns, I ultimately voted to advance a War Powers resolution to make my concerns crystal clear to the Administration and to my colleagues.

The reality though is this, even if the Senate had adopted the resolution - had it not been derailed through a procedural vote - it likely would have died in the House of Representatives, very likely. Or at a minimum been vetoed by the President. That much was clear.

Given that … reality, I've had numerous conversations with senior national security officials over the past week since the first vote took place.

And in those conversations - some in person, some by phone - I've received assurances that there are, number one, no longer any American troops in Venezuela.

I've also received a commitment that, if President Trump were to determine American forces were needed in major military operations in Venezuela, the Administration will come to Congress in advance to ask for a formal authorization on the use of military force.

And lastly, Secretary Rubio has agreed to my request to appear before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to provide a public update on Venezuela immediately after the recess - facilitating the very type of public debate and, if necessary, someday, authorization around these matters.

Hopefully working the muscle memory of this institution and its various committees on issues of war powers, so that they may be more inclined to exercise those prerogatives in the future.

For those like me who want Congress to perform its longstanding role in these issues, the commitments I've secured are major commitments that will help keep Congress better informed, help ensure we make better decisions, and ensure in this situation that any future commitment of U.S. forces in Venezuela is subject to public debate and authorization here in this body.

So let me just end by saying that President Trump campaigned against forever wars.

Millions of people strongly supported him in that position.

I strongly support him in that position, still today.

And I believe that a drawn-out campaign in Venezuela involving the American military, even if unintended, would be the opposite of President Trump's goal of ending foreign entanglements.

But I also make that statement with humility, understanding that world events are fluid. The world is complicated - circumstances can change.

What all of us in this body should want is the opportunity to perform oversight and provide input on these critical foreign policy issues on behalf of those we represent.

If we must make a decision - a very difficult decision - at some point in the future, our constituents should be able to hold us accountable for those decisions.

Regardless of who serves as president or which party controls the White House, Congress must get back to carefully fulfilling its constitutional responsibilities.

I am pleased that we have a path forward toward that goal now, and I look forward to the next steps in the weeks ahead.