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Last Updated on January 21, 2026.

WASHINGTON – Ahead of the Senate’s expected vote on S.J.Res.98, the bipartisan Kaine-Paul War Powers Resolution, Win Without War Deputy Director Shayna Lewis released the following statement:

“The stakes of this moment cannot be higher. President Trump has already launched an illegal, unconstitutional military operation in Venezuela, and is now daring Congress to accept it as precedent — threatening the same against Colombia, Mexico, Cuba, and Greenland. These strikes were not authorized by Congress, were not in self-defense, and will not make anyone safer. This operation was a regime-change attack followed by the president’s own declaration that the United States will seize Venezuela’s oil and ‘run’ the country indefinitely, all justified after the fact with elastic legal theories that erase Congress’s war powers altogether. 

“This vote is a referendum on Trump’s actions and a crucial opportunity for the Senate to send a loud and unmistakable message: a president cannot unilaterally start wars or seize resources with military force. Even after the removal of a deeply unpopular leader like Nicolás Maduro, more Americans oppose than support this action, and an overwhelming majority rejects the idea of the U.S. occupying or ‘running’ Venezuela. That opposition will only grow as the human costs mount and the reality becomes clear: Another war for oil, like those we’ve seen in the past, will not deliver stability, security, or democracy.

“We have learned time and time again that when this administration shows us its plans, we must take them seriously. Failing to condemn and check Trump’s illegal actions now will only embolden him and make a future war all the easier to launch. 

“A vote on S.J.Res.98 is not about partisan politics, it’s about defending the Constitution, rejecting wars for oil, and stopping anti-democratic, imperial actions in their tracks before they become permanent fixtures of U.S. foreign policy.”

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Win Without War is a diverse network of activists and national organizations working for a progressive foreign policy in the United States.

January 7, 2026