Rep. Mike Lawler on Maduro capture: Law requires notifying Congress within 48 hours and President did that

Rep. Lawler (R-NY) on Venezuela

Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) shared his reaction to the capture of Venezuela's Maduro. The captured dictator faces a New York federal judge this afternoon.

In an interview Monday with LiveNow Digital Journalist Caral Lajara, Republican Congressional representative Mike Lawler says President Trump followed the 1973 War Powers Resolution, and notified Congress within 48 hours of deploying armed forces in the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores.

Your initial reaction when you heard, of course, this whole operation, it was really tight-lipped among the Department of Defense? 

"Well, it was obviously well-planned and well-executed. You know, the entire operation took about three hours. And, you know, the fact that they were able to apprehend Maduro and his wife without any casualties on our side, obviously critically important and an impressive feat given what they had to undertake here," said Lawler. 

"The bottom line, as secretary Rubio pointed out, Nicholas Maduro, has been indicted three times in the U.S., he is the illegitimate leader of the Venezuelan government. And to begin the process of holding Maduro accountable for his crimes, including overseeing the narco-terrorist drug trade. And that is, you know, primarily the focus. However, as has been pointed out, when you look at the other issues, including the illicit oil trade with Iran you know, that Venezuela has been engaged in. This is critically important in our region. We do not want China, we do not want Russia, we do want Iran operating with impunity in our regions. And so, you know, there's a lot of factors as to why the administration was working to get Maduro to agree to step down, but ultimately needed to make a decision. And President Trump, as he has proven time and again. Unlike other presidents, is willing to take decisive action."

Obviously, President Trump has said that he did not tell Congress members just to keep the element of surprise and just make sure there's no leaks. What would you say to people on the other side of the aisle or some Democrats that have spoken out against the way this entire situation was conducted? 

"The hypocrisy is quite jarring. Most of my Democratic colleagues said nothing during the Clinton, Obama or Biden administrations when they took military action without authorization from Congress. The law requires notification within 48 hours and the president certainly did that. They abided by the law, as required. Sometimes in these missions, like when President Obama conducted the raid on Osama bin Laden's compound, you cannot tell others that don't need to know in the immediate because of the sensitive nature of the operation. Our military men and women, their safety is paramount. And as has been reported, several news outlets already got in advance a leak from this. And thankfully, they were wise enough not to report it in advance of the attack. But, you know, the more people you bring into the fold before such a operation, you know, the more likely it is that it leaks. And so, you know, this was about operational security more than anything else. Congress was notified within the statutorily required 48 hours," said Lawler. 

What is your message to your constituents and Venezuelans that live in New York City? 

"Look, you've had eight million Venezuelans flee under Maduro's disastrous rain. Many have come to the United States and in particular to New York. And so we have a large Venezuelan population here in New York, and my focus is on how we bring about peace and stability in Venezuela, in the region, and ultimately... You know, allow for the opportunity for folks to go home, to go back to their country, a more stable environment, democratically elected government, and hopefully, given Venezuela's vast oil and mineral reserves, that they can actually grow their economy pretty quickly and in short order, and start to turn things around for Venezuela and the Venezuelan people," said Lawler. 

Congressional representative Lawler is in his second term representing New York’s 17th Congressional District, just north of New York City, which includes all or parts of Rockland, Putnam, Dutchess, and Westchester Counties.