Senate Democrats File War Powers Resolution to Block Unauthorized Cuba Attack

Sens. Tim Kaine, Ruben Gallego and Adam Schiff on Thursday filed a War Powers Resolution that would bar President Donald Trump from engaging U.S. forces in hostilities with Cuba without explicit congressional authorization, directly challenging his recent talk of a possible ‘takeover’ of the island. The measure, which could receive a vote by the end of March, would require the president to remove U.S. troops from any such hostilities, echoing prior Democratic efforts to force debates over Trump’s use of force in Iran, Venezuela and elsewhere. Kaine argued that under the Constitution only Congress can declare war, accusing Trump of treating the U.S. military like a “palace guard” for unilateral actions in the Caribbean and beyond. The move follows Trump’s comments that Secretary of State Marco Rubio is negotiating with Havana amid a U.S.-driven energy crisis there and that any change in Cuba’s regime could be either a “friendly takeover” or not, to be pursued after the Iran war. The resolution underscores mounting concern in Congress that Trump’s pattern of strikes and regime-change rhetoric could expand the current conflict into the Caribbean without public debate or a formal authorization for the use of military force.