Classified Maduro briefing divides lawmakers

The Trump administration was informed on Monday Congress leaders on US military operation that captured Venezuelan leader Nicolas Madurodeepening partisan divisions over the president’s authority to use force without congressional approval.

High Republicans who attended the classified briefing rallied to the president’s defense while Democrats questioned the scope of the operation and pushed for a halt to further military action.

The partisan split screen among briefed lawmakers, who are part of the so-called “Gang of Eight” group authorized to receive highly classified information, underscores the difficulty Congress could face in trying to rein in the president. Donald Trumpthe military efforts of .

US President Donald Trump has said in recent days that the United States I “ran” Venezuela, threatened Colombia and Cuba and renewed its efforts to acquire Greenland. The remarks followed a weekend military strike that captured Maduro in Caracas and took him to the United States to face criminal charges without prior authorization from Congress.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., called the Venezuela raid a “decisive and justified action,” rejecting claims that Trump overstepped his authority.

“We are not at war, we do not have American armed forces in Venezuela and we are not occupying that country,” Johnson said.

“The Constitution gives Congress the power to declare war, that’s true. But it also gives the President of the United States broad powers as commander in chief,” Johnson said.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., meanwhile, said the briefing raised far more questions than it answered.

“The plan for the United States to rule Venezuela is vague, based on wishful thinking and unsatisfactory,” Schumer said. “I received no assurance that we would not try to do the same thing in other countries.”

Senate Democrats plan to force a vote later this week on a measure to suspend Trump’s military action in Venezuela, known as the war powers resolution. The measure, introduced by Sen. Tim Kaine, Democrat of Virginia, would force Trump to cease military action in Venezuela unless Congress approves it.

Kaine introduced a similar resolution in November, which the Senate rejected after only two Republicans — Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Rand Paul of Kentucky — supported it. Republicans hold a 53-47 majority in the Senate, so at least four Republicans would need to break ranks for Kaine’s measure to succeed.

The House of Representatives is also expected to approve the measure. Venezuelan lawmakers narrowly rejected Venezuelan War Powers Resolution 211-213 in December.

“There is real concern regarding Congressional action related to our sole power to declare war,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., said before the briefing. “No further military action should be taken in Venezuela or anywhere else without the explicit approval of Congress, and we must legislate on this.”

Lawmakers were briefed by senior members of the president’s cabinet, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Attorney General Pam Bondi and CIA Director John Ratcliffe. The administration has sought to present the use of the military in Venezuela as a law enforcement measure, since Maduro was the subject of outstanding arrest warrants in the United States.

Rep. Brian Mast, R-Fla., chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, who participated in the briefing, echoed that view.

“This was a law enforcement operation,” Mast said. “This law enforcement operation required great military capabilities… because the individual who had to be brought to justice could call upon an air force, a navy, an army.”

Mast said Trump was not seeking a prolonged military engagement, but did not rule out similar operations if the president deemed them necessary to “defend the homeland.”

Bipartisan leaders of the Senate Judiciary Committee, which has jurisdiction over America’s law enforcement apparatus, were not invited to the briefing, however. They are not traditionally part of the “Gang of Eight,” but issued a joint statement condemning the snub.

“President Trump and Secretary Rubio stated that this was a law enforcement operation that was conducted at the request of the Department of Justice (DOJ), with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA),” read the statement from Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Ranking Member Dick Durbin, D-Illinois.

“The administration’s refusal to recognize our committee’s unquestionable competence in this matter is unacceptable and we are following up to ensure that the committee receives warranted information regarding Maduro’s arrest,” they said.

CNBC Emily Wilkins contributed to this report.