Clarke calls on Trump to cease military campaign
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This satellite image provided by Vantor shows )from left) the Fuerte Tiuna neighborhood of Caracas, Venezuela, on December 22, 2025 and Fuerte Tiuna neighborhood after US strikes on Saturday.
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Men watch smoke rising from a dock after explosions were heard at La Guaira port, Venezuela, on Saturday.
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Smoke raises at La Carlota airport after explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas, Venezuela, on Saturday.
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Pedestrians run after explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas, Venezuela, on Saturday.
NEW YORK:
Brooklyn Congresswoman Yvette Clarke has called on the Trump administration to end its military action in Venezuela, labelling it a brazen affront to the rule of law and the United States constitution.
In a statement, she said that the military action in Venezuela was taken without consideration of the grave consequences that will inevitably follow.
“This impulsive interventionism does not make Americans safer; it leaves our global reputation in tatters and further destabilises an already volatile region and our South American and Caribbean relations. Worse still, Donald Trump has now threatened a lasting US occupation of Venezuela and refuses to rule out a significant presence of American troops on the ground. The Venezuelan people deserve their chance at freedom. They do not wish to substitute their dictator with America’s,” she said.
Clarke said that the Trump administration’s actions will only serve to embolden and implicitly endorse our adversaries to carry out their own military aggressions against sovereign nations, eroding international norms and the rule of law.
She warned that the US president’s imperial pursuits will not end with Venezuela, and if left unchecked, more illegal military aggressions loom and will undoubtedly come at great cost to American lives, resources, and moral standing.
Clarke said that since the Trump administration first initiated strikes off the coast of Venezuela, Americans have overwhelmingly opposed these illegal military actions and have rightly already rejected this unhinged escalation.
“President Trump lacked both the righteousness and the constitutional respect to bring his war before Congress. Had he done so, I would have voted no,” she said. “In a brazen affront to the rule of law and the US constitution and without any rational consideration of the grave consequences that will inevitably follow, in the dead of night, Donald Trump has plunged the United States into yet another dangerous foreign entanglement by unleashing direct military strikes upon Venezuela’s capital and capturing President Nicolás Maduro and his wife.
Clarke said although Maduro’s authoritarian rule has oppressed Venezuelans and he is a “despot ... this is not a case of the ends justifying the means”.
Chair of the Democratic National Committee Ken Martin also condemned the action.
“Another day, another unconstitutional war from Trump, who thinks the constitution is a suggestion. Congress has war powers – but Republican cowards are hiding under their desks while Trump orders an unauthorised attack against Venezuela,” he said. “Trump promised peace, but has delivered chaos.”
editorial@gleanerjm.com