Heather Brandon-Smith
Foreign Policy Director @fcnl.bsky.social | Adjunct at Georgetown Law.
War powers, AUMF, law of war, use of force, international law
- Reposted by Heather Brandon-SmithMight be a tad bit late once the U.S. has attacked a NATO ally. The War Powers Resolution is notable because it provides the *minority* a mechanism for forcing votes on unauthorized military actions. Senator Tillis is in the majority which has many more tools available—and available now.
- Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC), to Bloomberg TV: “If there is military action against #Greenland, I will be one of the first people to file and co-sponsor a War Powers Resolution. It will pass.”
- Reposted by Heather Brandon-Smith🚨The Senate is expected to vote again tomorrow on passage of War Powers Resolution to block further unauthorized strikes on Venezuela. With Senators facing intense pressure from the Trump admin, it’s crucial they hear loud and clear from their constituents! ⬇️
- Reposted by Heather Brandon-SmithThe Trump administration's campaign of murderous strikes in Latin America carries grave implications -- both for people in the region, and here at home. FCNL's @hbrandon-smith.bsky.social breaks down what to know. ⬇️
- Reposted by Heather Brandon-SmithGrieving every life lost in Iran and urging an end to all violence and repression. Congress should act to prevent more senseless wars by the White House and support a path for diplomacy and democracy.
- Reposted by Heather Brandon-SmithAs the infamous Guantanamo Bay detention center enters its 25th year, its legacy of torture and human rights violation endures. We joined 100+ partners to once again demand its permanent closure, and an end to the Trump administration's shameful detention of migrants there. ⬇️ #CloseGuantanamo
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- "Although it is sometimes asserted (including recently by Vice President J.D. Vance) that every presidential administration has claimed the War Powers Resolution is unconstitutional, that claim is inaccurate." 👇
- Reposted by Heather Brandon-Smith🚨Big News! The Senate has voted to advance a War Powers Resolution aimed at blocking President Trump from launching further military action against Venezuela. This is a major testament to the power of grassroots advocacy🙌. Let's keep up the pressure! #WarIsNotTheAnswer!
- Great to speak with @theintercept.com about the lack of public support for the U.S. invasion of Venezuela, and to be quoted alongside @bcfinucane.bsky.social.
- “We have been saying all along that Americans don’t want war in Venezuela,” said FCNL’s @hbrandon-smith.bsky.social. The administration should “listen to the American people and bring an end to this operation.”
- Reposted by Heather Brandon-SmithHonored to have my war powers scholarship referenced by @charliesavage.bsky.social in @nytimes.com. www.nytimes.com/2026/01/06/u...
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- Thank you @raskin.house.gov and @reptedlieu.bsky.social for your letter to AG Bondi requesting an investigation into the Trump administration's boat strikes in the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean. "To be clear, the entire Caribbean operation appears to be unlawful" s3.amazonaws.com/quorum-pdf-l...
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- My latest for @sojo.net on the Trump administration's unlawful boat strikes in international waters: sojo.net/magazine/jan...
- Thank you @durbin.senate.gov for your letter to Sen. Grassley requesting a hearing on the boat strikes "These strikes are extrajudicial killings and shocking violations of fundamental principles of due process and the right to life under U.S. and international law" www.politico.com/f/?id=000001...
- Reposted by Heather Brandon-SmithMany experts warn that under international law, President Trump's blockade of Venezuela is an act of war. 🚨The House will vote TODAY on two War Powers Resolutions to block President Trump from launching unauthorized, disastrous new war against Venezuela. Action resource⬇️
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- Thank you to @jayapal.house.gov and Rep. Thomas Massie for introducing a bill to sunset the 2001 AUMF after 240 days. It's long past time to bring an end to the forever wars. jayapal.house.gov/2025/12/16/j...
- Reposted by Heather Brandon-SmithExtraordinary courage from Ahmed al Ahmed, a Muslim, 43-year-old father of two, who bravely risked his life to save his neighbors celebrating Hanukkah. Praying for his full & speedy recovery. And so deeply inspired by his example.
- Reposted by Heather Brandon-Smith“I’ve never seen as much unanimity among international law experts in opposition to US policy as I’ve seen to this,” said expert Geoffrey Corn.
- “Congress has largely been focused on the double-tap strike. But the consensus among experts is that the entirety of the strikes is illegal.” @naomilachance.bsky.social breaks down the details of Trump’s recent strikes on suspected drug boats in the Caribbean and what makes them illegal.
- The White House has issued a statement of administration policy in support of the NDAA and specifically, the repeal of the 2002 and 1991 Iraq AUMFs: www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/u...
- Thank you @kaine.senate.gov and Sen. Todd Young for all your work to repeal the 2002 Iraq AUMF. Congress should send this to the president's desk asap! www.young.senate.gov/newsroom/pre...
- Reposted by Heather Brandon-SmithThe President of the United States just called for my arrest and execution. In these moments, fear is contagious, but so is courage:
- "...the Trump admin’s assertion is utterly nonsensical because the US is simply not in an armed conflict with any cartel... [The admin] claims extraordinary authorities by merely asserting the existence of a legal condition irrespective of the facts. This is not how the law or reality works."
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- Reposted by Heather Brandon-SmithWe want to speak directly to members of the Military and the Intelligence Community. The American people need you to stand up for our laws and our Constitution. Don’t give up the ship.
- "'The concerning aspect of this move is that it could be a prelude to military action against the Venezuelan government itself,' Finucane said, calling it another step in Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s 'efforts to cloak a regime change operation in the guise of counternarcotics.'”
- Reposted by Heather Brandon-SmithThank you to to @meeks.house.gov, @adamsmith.house.gov, @jahimes.bsky.social, @benniethompson.bsky.social, @crow.house.gov, @repilhan.bsky.social for you leadership to stop this illegal and immoral abuse of military force!
- Reposted by Heather Brandon-SmithNew: House reps have introduced a War Powers Resolution to stop President Trump's murderous boat strikes and military escalation in Latin America. As Rep. Meeks said, these lawless strikes combine the "worst excesses of the war of drugs and the war on terror.”
- Thank you to @meeks.house.gov, @adamsmith.house.gov, @jahimes.bsky.social, @benniethompson.bsky.social @crow.house.gov, and @repilhan.bsky.social for introducing a new war powers resolution to stop the lawless strikes on the high seas. www.nytimes.com/2025/11/18/u...
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- Reposted by Heather Brandon-SmithFCNL’s @hbrandon-smith.bsky.social joined @npr.org to break down Trump’s murderous, lawless strikes at sea: “What the administration is claiming is that it has the right to kill people who are not firing upon the U.S. … and that it can do this indefinitely without any say-so from Congress.”
- "Venezuela today presents many of the same temptations and dangers that Libya did in 2011 ... But a military intervention would not solve these problems, nor would it stem the tide of fentanyl arriving in the US. It would, however, almost certainly make them worse." www.cato.org/blog/dont-re...
- Reposted by Heather Brandon-SmithNEW: In @justsecurity.org I analyze the Trump administration's reported theory for how it can continue its lethal maritime strikes despite the time limit on unauthorized military action imposed by the War Powers Resolution. www.justsecurity.org/123844/war-p...
- Today marks the expiration of the "60-day clock" under the War Powers Resolution. This requires the Trump admin to end its strikes targeting suspected members of drug cartels in international waters. www.justsecurity.org/123717/war-p...
- Over the weekend, the administration made the claim that it does not need to comply with this 60-day clock because its strikes don't constitute "hostilities" as, being largely by drone, they don't endanger the lives of U.S. troops. www.nytimes.com/2025/11/01/u...
- As @bcfinucane.bsky.social states, the administration's claim that strikes killing people in international waters are not "hostilities" under the War Powers Resolution is nonsensical. www.justsecurity.org/123844/war-p...
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View full threadThe administration is claiming the right to kill people who are not firing upon the US indefinitely and without any say so from Congress. That is a breathtaking claim. And even more so in this situation, where the United States is not at war, and it is targeting and summarily executing civilians.
- “Even if we knew for certain that the boats being destroyed … 1) contained illegal drugs; 2) those drugs were headed for our shores; and 3) all on board were criminals, it would still be grossly illegal and immoral to blast them out of the water … This is murder.” www.thebulwark.com/p/trump-targ...
- “These attacks – and their mounting human cost – are unacceptable. The US must halt such attacks and take all measures necessary to prevent the extrajudicial killing of people aboard these boats, whatever the criminal conduct alleged against them.” www.ohchr.org/en/press-rel...
- Rep. Adam Smith saying that the president has determined that drug trafficking deserves the death penalty and he has appointed himself judge, jury and executioner. Said that in yesterday's briefing the admin didn't try to defend the legality of boat strikes. www.cfr.org/event/conver...
- "Lt. Gen. Joe McGee ... left his position earlier this month" Sources said "that McGee had frequently 'pushed back' against Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine on issues ranging from Russia and Ukraine to military operations in the Caribbean." www.cnn.com/2025/10/29/p...
- "The fact that the vessels our forces are attacking are encountered on the high seas does not give the president any more authority to employ lethal force than if drug traffickers were found selling drugs on an American street." www.nationalreview.com/corner/the-b...
- "Treating international drug smuggling as an armed conflict and drug traffickers as combatants has implications far beyond the legal realm. U.S. adversaries could use this precedent to gain advantage on the global stage." www.militarytimes.com/opinion/2025...
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- "That Trump can concoct a war and then summarily kill people is all the more troubling as Trump deploys troops in Democratic-run cities. What would stop him from claiming to be at 'war' with protesters or other critics and ordering them shot?" www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
- Sen. Rand Paul calling the boat strikes what they are: "...I would call them extrajudicial killings ... And this is akin to what China does, to what Iran does with drug dealers. They summarily execute people without presenting evidence to the public. So, it’s wrong.” thehill.com/homenews/sen...
- Reposted by Heather Brandon-Smith🚨 Did you know? The last remaining nuclear weapons treaty between the U.S. and Russia is set to expire in February. On Tuesday, join FCNL's Allen Hester for a webinar hosted by @winwithoutwar.bsky.social to learn how you can join advocates mobilizing to stop a nuclear arms race. Register ⬇️
- Thank you @meeks.house.gov for calling for a hearing on the recent strikes in the Caribbean that have killed at least 43 civilians. Congress cannot remain silent while the administration summarily executes people without charge or trial. s3.amazonaws.com/quorum-pdf-l...
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- UN Experts on US strikes in Caribbean Sea: "... the use of lethal force in international waters without proper legal basis violates the international law of the sea and amounts to extrajudicial executions” www.ohchr.org/en/press-rel...
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- Reposted by Heather Brandon-Smith@isabelaalhadeff.bsky.social spoke w/ Alien Enemies Act internees & family: “We’re going to be a memory fairly soon & we haven’t done all we wanted to do, which was to prevent something like what’s happening today from happening again to another group of people.” www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
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- Reposted by Heather Brandon-SmithWe are saddened by the news of @repraulgrijalva.bsky.social’s passing and are holding his loved ones in the light. We are grateful for his years of public service and leadership for a more a just and peaceful world.
- Reposted by Heather Brandon-Smith@brennancenter.bsky.social works on the Alien Enemies Act in coalition with Karen Ebel (German American Internee Coalition) and Grace Shimizu (Japanese Peruvian Oral History Project). Everyone should read Karen and Grace's piece opposing the president's abuse of the Alien Enemies Act. /1
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- Reposted by Heather Brandon-Smith"The entire point of doing this at Guantanamo is to apply the machinery of the post-9/11 state to this latest version of the Enemy." "It is to entrench in the public mind a conflation of migration and terrorism." @attackerman.bsky.social
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