Democrats Renew Impeachment Push Against Trump Over Venezuela Operation Deemed Lawful
WASHINGTON, D.C. — As the midterm elections approach, Democrats have revived impeachment efforts against former President Donald Trump, centering on his administration’s controversial operation to capture Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. Rep. Dan Goldman, D-N.Y., has emerged as a prominent voice threatening impeachment over the Venezuela raid, despite prior court rulings affirming the legality of the mission.
Goldman’s impeachment threat marks a return to what some legal experts call “lawfare,” a strategy that uses legal mechanisms to energize political bases. Constitutional law professor Jonathan Turley criticized the move, calling it an “abusive ‘snap impeachment’” and highlighting the irony that the operation was previously upheld as lawful by the courts. Turley noted that Democrats’ professed outrage contrasts sharply with their silence during similar military actions by Democratic presidents.
“The professed shock over the operation is nothing short of comical from leaders who said nothing when Democratic presidents engaged in similar actions,” Turley wrote in an opinion piece for Fox News. He pointed to President Bill Clinton’s military interventions in Bosnia and President Barack Obama’s campaign in Libya as precedents where impeachment was not pursued despite comparable use of military force without explicit congressional approval.
Under the U.S. Constitution, while only Congress has the power to declare war, presidents have historically exercised authority to deploy military forces without formal declarations. This constitutional nuance has fueled ongoing debates about executive war powers. Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., recently asserted on national television that “the Constitution does not give the president the right to initiate military action,” a claim that legal scholars dispute given the president’s role as commander-in-chief.
Goldman argues that the Venezuela operation constitutes an undeclared war and therefore meets the threshold for impeachment. However, several Democrats have expressed support or at least refrained from condemning the capture of Maduro. This inconsistency has drawn criticism from political commentators who accuse Democrats of selective memory and political opportunism.
Trump himself has responded to the impeachment threats by accusing Democrats of being “meaner” than Republicans and warning that impeachment efforts will escalate if the GOP loses control of the House in the upcoming midterms. The former president’s remarks underscore the heightened partisan tensions surrounding the issue.
The debate over the Venezuela operation also raises broader questions about the limits of presidential power and the role of Congress in authorizing military actions. The U.S. Congress has long grappled with balancing national security needs against constitutional checks and balances. Meanwhile, the Department of Justice has previously upheld the legality of covert operations conducted under executive authority.
As Democrats push impeachment proceedings, they risk alienating moderate voters who may view the effort as politically motivated rather than grounded in legal principle. The strategy recalls the spectacle of the Roman Games, where public entertainment was derived from political theater, according to Turley.
Observers note that the impeachment obsession resurfaces when other pressing issues, such as the economy or public policy debates, lose traction with the electorate. The current focus on impeachment may energize the Democratic base but could also deepen divisions in an already polarized political environment.
For more on the constitutional debate over war powers, see the National Archives’ Constitution transcript. The C-SPAN archives provide extensive coverage of congressional discussions on impeachment and executive authority.
As the political battle intensifies, the question remains whether renewed impeachment efforts will sway voters or simply reinforce existing partisan divides.
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