Lawmakers who represent Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware responded Saturday to the United States’ military intervention in Venezuela, which included strikes on the country’s military bases, the capital, Caracas, and the capture of President Nicolás Maduro.

President Trump said in a news conference Saturday that the U.S. would “run the country” of Venezuela until a “safe, proper and judicious transition” of leadership. He also said the U.S. would rebuild the nation’s oil infrastructure.

Maduro, meanwhile, was being taken to New York on the USS Iwo Jima, to face charges in the Southern District of New York.

Responses to the military actions from Philly’s local legislators largely fell along party lines, with Republicans praising the strike while most local Democrats called the attack an act of war that lacked Congressional authorization.

Here’s what politicians are saying.

Sen. John Fetterman, D-PA

“Grateful for our U.S. military personnel that handled these orders in Venezuela with precision,” Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania said on X. “I maintain that we have the STRONGEST and MOST LETHAL military in the world—today proves that even more.”

Sen. Chris Coons, D-DE

Democratic Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware said he was grateful that no Americans were killed in the military operation and that he would not mourn Maduro’s removal from power.

“However, there is no reason to believe that Americans are more secure today than they were yesterday,” Coons said in a statement. “President Trump put American service members in harm’s way to capture Maduro, but the president lacks a clear plan for what comes next – how we avoid further violence and instability, prevent more Venezuelans from migrating across the region and arriving at our borders, or curb Venezuelan participation in drug trafficking. This raid risks creating more instability in the region, putting U.S. service members and civilians in the hemisphere at risk, and dividing us further from our regional partners.”

Coons is the ranking member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense.

Sen. Dave McCormick, R-PA

“Congratulations to @POTUS and his team and to our brave troops for this flawlessly executed mission to remove the illegitimate dictator Nicolas Maduro,” Republican Sen. Dave McCormick of Pennsylvania wrote on X.” For years Maduro’s regime killed our children by flooding America’s streets with poison, threatened our borders, and undermined U.S. national security. I urge what’s left of the Maduro regime to honor the will of the Venezuelan people and transition peacefully to rightfully elected leadership.”

Sen. Andy Kim, D-NJ

Sen. Andy Kim of New Jersey said the attack was “not sound foreign policy” in a statement Saturday morning, and claimed Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth “blatantly lied to Congress.”

“Secretaries Rubio and Hegseth looked every Senator in the eye a few weeks ago and said this wasn’t about regime change. I didn’t trust them then and we see now that they blatantly lied to Congress. Trump rejected our Constitutionally required approval process for armed conflict because the Administration knows the American people overwhelmingly reject risks pulling our nation into another war,” Kim said in a statement.

A CBS News poll in November found that 70% of Americans would oppose the U.S. taking military action in Venezuela, and 75% said the Trump administration would need Congressional approval. 

Rep. Jeff Van Drew, R-NJ

“For years, Nicolás Maduro has helped fuel the poison drug trade that’s killing Americans and destroying families,” New Jersey Rep. Jeff Van Drew, a Republican, said on X. “Emergency rooms and first responders are overwhelmed, and taxpayers are spending billions dealing with the fallout after these drugs are already here. America has a responsibility to stop this poison at the source before more Americans are murdered.”

Lt. Gov Tahesha Way, D-NJ

New Jersey’s Lt. Gov Tahesha Way, who is running for the House seat left vacant by Gov.-Elect Mikie Sherrill, issued a statement on the Venezuela operatiion that called it unconstitutional.

“Donald Trump’s actions in Venezuela are unprecedented and dangerous. No president—Democrat or Republican—has the authority to take actions of this magnitude without Congress,” Way said via her campaign. “Trump is once again showing contempt for the Constitution and the checks and balances that protect our democracy. Decisions with serious global consequences demand transparency, accountability, and congressional oversight—not unilateral action. As a member of Congress, I will always defend our constitutional responsibilities and insist that American power be exercised lawfully and responsibly.”

Sen. Lisa Blunt Rochester, D-DE

“The President has unilaterally carried out military activity in the Caribbean and circumvented Congressional approval, as required by the Constitution, because he knew that Congress would not support a senseless and short-sighed regime change ‘mission,'” Democratic Sen. Lisa Blunt Rochester of Delaware said in a statement posted on social media.

“They went as far as to lie to Congress during our recent briefings, saying specifically that their priority was not forceful regime change. The U.S. military is not the president’s personal army,” she continued. You can read the full statement here.

Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, R-PA

Ryan Mackenzie, a House Republican representing the Lehigh Valley, called the operation “a decisive victory for U.S. security and regional stability” in a statement posted on social media.

“Maduro was an illegitimate dictator and narcoterrorist who funneled drugs into the United States — killing countless young Americans. As a result of this operation, the United States, the western hemisphere, and the broader world are safer and more secure,” he said. “We look forward to working alongside the Venezuelan people to establish a democratic and propserous nation that no longer poses a threat to American families.”

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