Following the U.S. attack on Venezuela late Friday night and early Saturday morning, local elected officials and Forest Grove activists responded by saying the attack was illegal.
"President Trump’s attack on Venezuela, without congressional authorization or imminent threat to the United States, is exactly the same global interventionism that Americans soundly rejected after decades of failed wars and disastrous meddling in other nations’ affairs," said U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, Oregon's senior United States senator.
"No matter what you think of Maduro, Trump’s threat to ‘run’ the country and put ‘boots on the ground’ invites another quagmire that would come at a massive cost of lives and money, and that emboldens every authoritarian who seeks to attack a neighbor," the Democrat continued.
The late night military action resulted in the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, who were flown to New York to face narco-terrorism charges.
"This military operation violated our own Constitution which requires Congressional approval for acts of war," said U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley, also a Democrat.
U.S. Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici, a Democrat, who represents most of Washington County and other portions of Northwest Oregon in Congress, also weighed in on her social media pages.
"Maduro is a corrupt and brutal leader who has destroyed countless lives. He should not be in power, but this unconstitutional regime change threatens greater instability in a country he does not represent," she wrote.
Local leaders weighed in, too.
"This is a very dangerous move, with NO congressional approval," wrote Oregon Senator Janeen Sollman in a statement made on social media. "Congress must hear from us and we must remind them of their place in these decisions," she added. The senator represents Forest Grove, Cornelius, and parts of Hillsboro in State Senate District 15.
Sollman joined a protest in Forest Grove on Sunday afternoon where more than 20 members of Indivisible Forest Grove gathered at the flagpole east of Safeway to protest the Trump Administration's actions in Venezuela.
Ruthie Carlo, a spokesperson for the group, which describes itself as a progressive grassroots organization, said their members planned to protest for about four hours.
"We are out here protesting the illegal actions the United States has taken in Venezuela," Carlo said.
She said that people who viewed their protests as a sign of support for Maduro were wrong.
"I don't think any of us support Maduro," she said. "We disavow the illegal kidnapping of him for trumped up drug trafficking charges, and we want to support the people of Venezuela," she added.
