SJRES 90 — Congress 119
A joint resolution to direct the removal of United States Armed Forces from hostilities within or against Venezuela that have not been authorized by Congress.
Official source: https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-joint-resolution/90
Congress.gov subjects: Congressional oversight; Congressional-executive branch relations; Latin America; Military operations and strategy; Venezuela; War and emergency powers; International Affairs
Issues impacted: Defense & National Security (ai, high), Foreign Policy & Sanctions (ai, high)
Official bill text (stored)
Plain-text extraction from Congress.gov text formats. Canonical source remains the official URL above. Full text is prioritized for bills with roll-call votes.
119 SJ 90 IS: To direct the removal of United States Armed Forces from hostilities within or against Venezuela that have not been authorized by Congress. U.S. Senate 2025-10-16 text/xml EN Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain. IIA 119th CONGRESS 1st Session S. J. RES. 90 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES October 16, 2025 Mr. Kaine (for himself, Mr. Paul , and Mr. Schiff ) introduced the following joint resolution; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations JOINT RESOLUTION To direct the removal of United States Armed Forces from hostilities within or against Venezuela that have not been authorized by Congress. 1. Findings Congress makes the following findings: (1) Congress has the sole power to declare war under article I, section 8, clause 11 of the United States Constitution. (2) Congress has not yet declared war upon Venezuela or any person or organization within Venezuela, nor enacted a specific statutory authorization for use of military force within or against Venezuela. (3) United States Armed Forces actions within or against Venezuela, within the meaning of section 4(a) of the War Powers Resolution ( 50 U.S.C. 1543(a) ), are either hostilities or a situation where imminent involvement in hostilities is clearly indicated by the circumstances into which United States Armed Forces have been introduced. (4) The publicly reported authorization for the Central Intelligence Agency to conduct covert lethal operations within Venezuela, the significant augmentation of United States Armed Forces assets, personnel, and operations in proximity to Venezuela, and statements from United States Government officials regarding planning for ground strikes within Venezuela indicate imminent involvement of United States Armed Forces in hostilities within or against Venezuela. (5) The question of whether United States forces should be engaged in hostilities within or against Venezuela should be answered following a full briefing to Congress and the American public of the issues at stake, a public debate in Congress, and a congressional vote as contemplated by the Constitution. (6) Section 1013 of the Department of State Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1984 and 1985 ( 50 U.S.C. 1546a ) provides that any joint resolution or bill to require the removal of United States Armed Forces from imminent engagement in hostilities without a declaration of war or specific statutory authorization shall be considered in accordance with the expedited procedures of section 601(b) of the International Security and Arms Export Control Act of 1976. 2. Termination of the use of United States forces for hostilities within or against Venezuela (a) Termination Pursuant to section 1013 of the Department of State Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1984 and 1985 ( 50 U.S.C. 1546a ), and in accordance with the provisions of section 601(b) of the International Security Assistance and Arms Export Control Act of 1976, Congress hereby directs the President to terminate the use of United States Armed Forces for hostilities within or against Venezuela, unless explicitly authorized by a declaration of war or specific authorization for use of military force. (b) Rule of construction Nothing in this section shall be construed to prevent the United States from defending itself from an armed attack or threat of an imminent armed attack.
Plain-English summary
Confidence: high · Complexity: moderate · Model: grok-4.5
This joint resolution is Congress’s way of telling the President to pull U.S. forces out of any fighting inside or against Venezuela unless lawmakers have clearly voted to allow it.
It starts from a simple point: the Constitution gives Congress alone the power to declare war, and Congress hasn’t declared war on Venezuela or passed any specific law green-lighting force there. The text treats recent moves—reported CIA authority for lethal ops, extra U.S. troops and gear staged nearby, and talk of ground strikes—as already counting as hostilities (or a clear slide into them) under the War Powers rules, the law that tries to keep Congress in the loop when troops head into harm’s way.
So the resolution directs the President to end that use of the military unless Congress declares war or passes a specific authorization. It still leaves the door open for plain self-defense if the United States is attacked or about to be attacked.
Everyday people would mainly notice this as a fight over who gets to okay overseas force—Congress or the White House—and as a possible brake on military action tied to Venezuela until lawmakers take a vote. A try to pull it out of committee for a full Senate vote already failed 49–51, so it hasn’t moved forward that way yet.
Related issues
How a vote maps to positions
Impartial mapping: which issue position a Yea vs Nay advances. When a bill has multiple floor votes, each roll can have its own mapping. Bill-level entries (no roll listed) apply as a default when a roll has no specific map. Used for legislator alignment.
All rolls (bill default)
| Issue | Yea advances | Nay advances | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foreign Policy & Sanctions | Restraint and limited overseas commitments | Status quo / reject this change | Yea mandates ending unauthorized U.S. hostilities in or against Venezuela; Nay rejects that limit and keeps prior executive flexibility. |
| Defense & National Security | Reduce defense outlays or scope | Status quo / reject this change | Yea narrows the scope of authorized military operations regarding Venezuela absent a new war declaration or AUMF; Nay opposes that termination directive. |