Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Sen. Tammy Duckworth, an Illinois Democrat, engaged in a sharp and sometimes tense exchange Wednesday as Rubio defended the Trump administration’s foreign policy during testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
The hearing focused largely on Venezuela and recent U.S. actions in the region, including strikes on vessels suspected of drug trafficking and the capture of Venezuelan strongman Nicolás Maduro. Duckworth pressed Rubio aggressively, rapidly shifting between questions about war powers, immigration law, and allegations of abuse.
“Mr. Secretary, are we currently at war with Venezuela?” Duckworth asked early in the exchange.
“No, we’re not in a state of war in Venezuela,” Rubio responded.
Duckworth then pivoted to the Alien Enemies Act, arguing that the law has historically been used only during declared wars. She noted that the Supreme Court has described the statute as a wartime power and claimed it was previously invoked only during the War of 1812, World War I, and World War II, when it was used to intern civilians.
“Are you really arguing that the president should be able to wield an internment law?” Duckworth asked.
Rubio attempted to respond but was repeatedly interrupted. When he was finally able to speak at length, he made clear that the administration’s actions are aimed at violent criminal organizations, not innocent civilians.
“Let me be clear with you,” Rubio said. He explained that President Donald Trump’s designation of groups such as Mexican drug cartels, the Venezuelan prison gang Tren de Aragua, and MS-13 as foreign terrorist organizations reflects the reality that these groups are actively harming the United States.
“These gangs and narco-trafficking groups are waging war on the United States,” Rubio said. He pointed specifically to Tren de Aragua, describing it as a criminal organization directly responsible for narcotics trafficking that has spilled into American communities.
Duckworth then abruptly accused the administration of torture. “Who did we torture?” she asked.
“We haven’t tortured anybody,” Rubio shot back. “We’ve arrested people that are members of gangs, and we’ve deported them.”
Duckworth countered by claiming many of those deported were legally allowed to remain in the country and pressed Rubio on whether he would advise Trump to rescind his invocation of the Alien Enemies Act.
Rubio responded that questions about the domestic application of the law should be directed to the Department of Justice, but he did not retreat from the administration’s broader position.
“The United States is most certainly confronting terrorist and criminal organizations operating in our hemisphere that pose a grave danger to the United States,” Rubio said, as Duckworth continued to interrupt him. “Anyone who believes that gangs that flood our country with fentanyl or cocaine are not threats to the United States is not living in reality and certainly does not reflect the opinion of most Americans.”
Duckworth then suggested that Trump was prepared to deploy U.S. troops to Venezuela, an assertion Rubio immediately challenged. While he rejected the idea that the administration is seeking war, Rubio emphasized that every president retains the authority to defend the country against imminent threats.
“Every president retains the right to defend the United States against an imminent threat,” Rubio said. He offered a hypothetical example, noting that if hostile actors such as Iranian drones were deployed in Venezuela and posed a danger to the U.S., the president would be justified in responding.
“But we hope we don’t get to that point,” Rubio added. “We don’t expect to get to that point. We’re not trending in that direction. That’s a fact.”
The exchange highlighted the stark divide between Democrats and the Trump administration over how to confront foreign criminal organizations and protect U.S. national security, with Rubio forcefully defending the administration’s approach as grounded in reality and the safety of American citizens.
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