Trump’s Regime Change War on Venezuela is Patently Illegal

Today, President Trump announced a “large scale strike” on Venezuela that toppled its leader Nicholas Maduro, who has been kidnapped and flown to the U.S. to stand trial, according to attorney general Pam Bondi. In response, Lisa Gilbert, co-president of Public Citizen, issued the following statement:

“President Trump has launched an unjustified regime-change war without seeking the required congressional approval for the use of force. This is patently illegal, and yet another demonstration of this administration’s disregard for the Constitution and the separation of powers in our democratic system.

“We don’t know yet what the human toll of this attack will be for the Venezuelan people, but we do know that this is an assault on the rule of law in our country, and on the rules-based international order. Our system of checks and balances is being degraded before our eyes, and we urgently need Congressional accountability for this lawless president to put an end to this disintegration."