More on Trump’s War against Venezuela…..

The Admiral in charge of the US Southeen Command which executes the Trump efforts against Venezuela quits?

Hmmmmmm?

Navy Adm. Alvin Holsey, the head of U.S. Southern Command, is stepping down from the job roughly one year into it.

Why it matters: SOUTHCOM oversees military operations across Central and South America and in the Caribbean Sea.

• U.S. warships are massing in the region, and troops have killed more than two-dozen people who the Trump administration has accused of drug smuggling and other illicit activity.

The latest: Holsey, in a statement shared on X, said he was retiring from the Navy in mid-December after decades of service.

• “The SOUTHCOM team has made lasting contributions to the defense of our nation and will continue to do so,” he said.
• Holsey did not directly address the boat strikes in his message.

The intrigue: Holsey had expressed concerns about military attacks on alleged drug boats, according to the New York Times. Another outlet, Reuters, reported there was tension brewing between the admiral and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

What they’re saying: Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.) in a statement described the “unexpected resignation” as “troubling.”

• “At a moment when U.S. forces are building up across the Caribbean and tensions with Venezuela are at a boiling point, the departure of our top military commander in the region sends an alarming signal of instability within the chain of command.”….

More….

Members of Congress have begun asking questions about Trump’s ‘War’ against Venezuela…

A bipartisan group in the Senate is planning to force a vote on legislation that would bar the United States from engaging in hostilities inside Venezuela without explicit authorization by Congress.

The measure faces long odds given the unwillingness of most Republican lawmakers to challenge President Trump, who would be all but certain to veto it. But a vote on the legislation, which is required, would put Congress on the record on whether to rein in Mr. Trump’s escalating and legally questionable military campaign against Venezuela.

Senators Tim Kaine of Virginia and Adam B. Schiff of California, both Democrats, have teamed with Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky, a Republican, on the resolution, worried that the Trump administration’s order of covert C.I.A. action in Venezuela could be the first step toward an all-out war.

The measure would block the president from carrying out any military action “within or against” Venezuela unless it was “explicitly authorized by a declaration of war or specific authorization for use of military force” by Congress. Under the 1973 War Powers Act, aimed at limiting a president’s power to enter an armed conflict without the consent of Congress, such a resolution must be considered and voted upon under expedited procedures…

…

The president is required under law to notify key figures in Congress as soon as possible about covert actions or the use of lethal force. But the White House has so far not briefed that group of lawmakers about the C.I.A. operations in Venezuela, according to two people familiar with the confidential process, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

Mr. Trump holds the authority to use lethal force and conduct covert operations without congressional approval, but only to counter an imminent threat…

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image…Adm. Alvin Holsey, commander of the U.S. Southern Command, in Washington last year.Credit…Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, via Getty