House Foreign Affairs Ranking Member Meeks Requests Rubio’s Attendance for Public Hearing on Venezuela

Washington, D.C. - Representative Gregory W. Meeks, Ranking Member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, invited Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Deputy Secretary Chris Landau to participate in a special meeting Meeks and Committee Democrats will host on Wednesday, January 14th.

Despite repeated requests from Ranking Member Meeks, Chairman Brian Mast has refused to hold public hearings on the administration’s actions in the Caribbean and Venezuela policy. The hearing will be an opportunity for Rubio and Landau to inform the American public on the administration’s actions. 

A PDF of the letter can be found here. 

“I am writing to request your participation at special meeting on Venezuela held by Democratic Members on the House Foreign Affairs Committee on Wednesday, January 14th, 8:30 AM EST, in Rayburn House Office Building Room 2168. As Members of Congress, we have a constitutional duty to conduct oversight of the Executive Branch. The recent, unauthorized military operations in Venezuela raise serious questions into the Administration’s objectives in Venezuela, which have run counter to what has been communicated to Member of Congress at briefings late last year.

"For the past three months, we have struggled to understand the Administration’s justifications for a military buildup and use of military force in the Caribbean and Venezuela. First, we were told it was the drugs, then it was regime change, then it was oil. The American people deserve straight answers from the Administration to understand why military action was taken without Congressional authorization, why the lives of service members were put at risk, and why millions of their tax dollars were spent on a military operation that did nothing to advance a democratic transition and left those running Maduro’s regime intact, with no plan for what comes next. Democratic Members of this Committee and our fellow Americans deserve transparency and justification from this administration before jumping into another forever war. We look forward to your attendance on Wednesday, January 14th.”

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