First congressional briefing on Trump’s Venezuela operation splits lawmakers

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A choose group of lawmakers obtained their first closed-door briefing on Capitol Hill on Monday following the Trump administration’s weekend army strikes in Venezuela and the seize of President Nicolás Maduro — a gathering that rapidly divided alongside political strains.

The roughly two-hour assembly deep within the bowels of Congress featured prime administration officers offering a labeled briefing to congressional leaders and the chairs and rating members of the armed providers, intelligence and overseas relations committees.

Not one of the Trump officers, who included Secretary of State Marco Rubio , Lawyer Common Pam Bondi, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Joint Chiefs of Employees Chair Gen. Dan "Raizin" Caine and Secretary of Conflict Pete Hegseth, spoke after the assembly.

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<source media="(max-width: 767px)" srcset="https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2025/11/343/192/speaker-of-the-house-mike-johnson-government-shutdown-fox-news-002.jpg?ve=1&tl=1, https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2025/11/686/384/speaker-of-the-house-mike-johnson-government-shutdown-fox-news-002.jpg?ve=1&tl=1 2x" height="192" width="343"><source media="(min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1023px)" srcset="https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2025/11/672/378/speaker-of-the-house-mike-johnson-government-shutdown-fox-news-002.jpg?ve=1&tl=1, https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2025/11/1344/756/speaker-of-the-house-mike-johnson-government-shutdown-fox-news-002.jpg?ve=1&tl=1 2x" height="378" width="672"><source media="(min-width: 1024px) and (max-width: 1279px)" srcset="https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2025/11/931/523/speaker-of-the-house-mike-johnson-government-shutdown-fox-news-002.jpg?ve=1&tl=1, https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2025/11/1862/1046/speaker-of-the-house-mike-johnson-government-shutdown-fox-news-002.jpg?ve=1&tl=1 2x" height="523" width="931"><source media="(min-width: 1280px)" srcset="https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2025/11/720/405/speaker-of-the-house-mike-johnson-government-shutdown-fox-news-002.jpg?ve=1&tl=1, https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2025/11/1440/810/speaker-of-the-house-mike-johnson-government-shutdown-fox-news-002.jpg?ve=1&tl=1 2x" height="405" width="720"> Speaker of the Home Mike Johnson, R-La., walks from the chamber to talk with reporters after the ultimate vote to carry the longest authorities shutdown in historical past to an finish, on the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2025. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP Photograph)

However a handful of lawmakers did, and questions nonetheless lingered about what precisely would come subsequent for U.S. involvement within the nation, if different related operations can be carried out throughout the globe, and who precisely was working Venezuela.

Home Speaker Mike Johnson , R-La., stated that there was no expectation that the U.S. can be on the bottom, nor would there be any "direct involvement in every other method past simply coercing the interim authorities to to get that going."

"We aren't at warfare," Johnson stated. "We would not have U.S. armed forces in Venezuela, and we're not occupying that nation."

"This isn't a regime change ," he continued. "This can be a demand for change of conduct by a regime. The interim authorities is stood up now, and we're hopeful that they are going to be capable to appropriate their motion."

Home International Affairs Committee Chair Brian Mast, R-Fl., echoed Johnson, and reiterated that the operation was a "particular legislation enforcement operate that befell that took a big impediment out of the way in which for the Venezuelan individuals to go chart a brand new future."

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Senate Minority Chief Chuck Schumer slammed the Trump administration in January over its strike on Venezuela and seize of its chief, Nicolás Maduro, on drug trafficking conspiracy prices. (Heather Diehl/Getty Photos)

He didn’t count on further military action from the Trump administration within the nation, both.

"These items are completed earlier than breakfast," Mast stated. "They do not do protracted warfare operations."

Nevertheless, Senate Minority Chief Chuck Schumer , D-N.Y., countered that the prolonged assembly "posed much more questions than it ever answered."

One rising level of rivalry amongst lawmakers is simply how immediately concerned the U.S. might be, on condition that Trump stated that the U.S. would govern the nation till a correct transition of energy occurred.

Schumer stated that the plan offered behind closed doorways or the U.S. working Venezuela "is obscure, primarily based on wishful considering and unsatisfying."

"I didn't obtain any assurances that we might not attempt to do the identical factor in different international locations," he stated. "And in conclusion, when the USA engages in this sort of regime change and so referred to as nation constructing, it at all times finally ends up hurting the USA. I left the briefing feeling that it might once more."

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Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., questions Russ Vought, not pictured, in a Senate listening to in 2025 in Washington. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Photos)

Schumer, together with Sens. Tim Kaine, D-Va., Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and Rand Paul , R-Ky., plan to drive a vote later within the week on a warfare powers decision that, if handed, would require the administration to get congressional approval earlier than taking additional army motion in Venezuela.

Senate Majority Chief John Thune, R-S.D., stated that he was happy with the briefing and that "it was a really complete dialogue."

Lawmakers will get one other chunk on the apple later within the week when Trump officers once more return to Congress to supply a full briefing to lawmakers on Operation Absolute Resolve.

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Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., and the top-ranking Democrat on the Senate Choose Committee on Intelligence, lauded the army for a "good execution" of the mission, and famous that the area was higher off with out Maduro.