Democratic senators present war powers resolution in attempt to stop Trump in Cuba

Washington — Senate Democrats have introduced legislation that would prevent the United States from attacking Cuba without congressional approval as they seek to force a vote on President Trump’s stated goal of “taking control” of the Caribbean country.

Democrats have repeatedly used war powers resolutions to force debate over Trump’s foreign policy actions, although Republicans have so far largely backed the president. The resolution introduced Thursday by Democratic Senators Tim Kaine, Rubén Gallego and Adam Schiff would require the president to withdraw the military from any hostility with Cuba and could potentially receive a vote by the end of the month.

“Only Congress has the power to declare war under the Constitution, but it operates under the belief that the U.S. military is a palace guard, ordering military actions in the Caribbean, Venezuela and Iran without congressional authorization or any explanation of its actions to the American people,” Kaine said in a statement.

Trump said earlier this week that Secretary of State Marco Rubio was negotiating with Cuba’s leaders as the country faces a crippling energy crisis that has been exacerbated by the US blockade of the island.

“It may be a friendly takeover, it may not be a friendly takeover,” Trump told reporters this week at a news conference in Florida. He added that he and Rubio would focus on that goal after the war with Iran.

cuban president Miguel Díaz-Canel confirmed on Friday that Cuban officials recently held talks with the U.S. government aimed at addressing long-standing differences between the two countries, although he cautioned that any potential agreement is still in the early stages.

“Cuban officials recently held talks with US government officials to seek solutions to the bilateral differences that exist,” Díaz-Canel said during a press conference Friday morning.

He noted that such contacts are unprecedented and pointed to similar discussions during former President Barack Obama’s administration.

Díaz-Canel said that the objective of the talks was to identify “bilateral problems that require solutions based on their severity and impact” and find a solution to them.

The United States has had a tense relationship with Cuba for decades, but Trump’s shift toward using military action to eliminate foreign opponents has raised expectations that the island could be next. Rubio, whose family immigrated to the United States from Cuba in the 1950s, has long pushed for the United States to aggressively oppose the Caribbean nation’s leadership.

Rubio told senators earlier this year that the Trump administration would “love” to see regime change in Cuba, but cautioned that that “doesn’t mean we’re going to directly cause it.” Most Republicans in Congress have supported the Trump administration’s aggressive foreign policy.

However, Democrats have repeatedly turned to war powers resolutions to force debates about how Trump can use military force on foreign nations. They have so far failed to pass any of the resolutions, but the tactic has sometimes forced the Trump administration to explain its goals to Congress.

Democrats also plan to potentially force a vote on a series of war powers resolutions that apply to Iran unless Republicans agree to hold public hearings on the conflict.

“He ran on America First, but it is now clear that he has become a puppet of his party’s war hawks,” Gallego said in a statement.