Tim Kaine

Rule Changes

Led nine Senate war powers attempts; resolution advanced procedurally for first time May 19

The House voted 215-208 on June 3 to order President Trump to end military operations in Iran, the first time either chamber passed such a measure on a final vote since the conflict began February 28. Four Republicans broke with their leadership: Tom Barrett of Michigan, Warren Davidson of Ohio, Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, and Thomas Massie of Kentucky. The Senate advanced a parallel resolution 50-47 in May but has not scheduled a final vote.

Updated Jun 4

Force in Play

Leading bipartisan war powers resolution in the Senate

Operation Epic Fury, launched jointly by the United States and Israel on February 28, 2026, reached day 39 with the heaviest strikes yet on Iran. The campaign has confirmed over 9,000 targets hit, more than 130 naval vessels destroyed, and at least 55 senior regime leaders killed.

Updated May 30

Force in Play

Led failed effort to require congressional authorization

Congress hasn't declared war since 1942, though presidents have ordered 212 military strikes without formal declarations. On January 3, 2026, U.S. special forces raided Venezuela, captured President Nicolás Maduro in his residence, and flew him to New York to face narcoterrorism charges.

Updated May 22

Force in Play

Led bipartisan war powers resolution to restrict Trump's Venezuela authority

Delta Force operators captured Nicolás Maduro and his wife in Caracas at 2 a.m. on January 3 as explosions rocked the capital and helicopters evacuated them to the USS Iwo Jima, bound for New York. By Saturday afternoon, Maduro arrived at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn—the first American military capture of a sitting head of state since Manuel Noriega in 1989.

Updated May 19

Force in Play

Warning about war powers and escalation

The U.S. Coast Guard is now chasing a third Venezuela-linked tanker in international waters near Venezuela—under a judicial seizure order. Two other tankers have already been stopped in the past 11 days, including one dramatic helicopter boarding that the administration amplified on social media.

Updated May 15

Force in Play

Congressional critic of Venezuela operation as unauthorized war

On December 5, 2025, the Trump administration released a 33-page National Security Strategy declaring a Trump Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine. The document formally revives the 19th-century idea of the Western Hemisphere as a U.S. sphere of influence and promises to reassert American preeminence across the Americas.

Updated May 10