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With President Donald Trump<\/span> mulling military action, lawmakers in the House of Representatives introduced a war powers resolution to block strikes on Venezuela.<\/p>\n Sponsored by Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., the ranking member of the powerful House Rules Committee, the bipartisan legislation would prohibit Trump from launching \u201chostilities within or against Venezuela\u201d without congressional approval.<\/p>\n The measure was initially introduced by four Democrats on Monday. On Tuesday, the office of Republican Rep. Thomas Massie, of Kentucky, said he will co-sponsor it.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cThis new bipartisan push in the House sends a clear signal to President Trump.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n <\/p>\n \u201cThis new bipartisan push in the House sends a clear signal to President Trump and to the war hawks around him that Congress is prepared to stand against any reckless march to war,\u201d said Cavan Kharrazian, a senior policy adviser at the group Demand Progress. \u201cI think even the prospect of members being subject to a public, on-the-record vote on whether to block a new war carries significant political weight and can help deter escalation.\u201d<\/p>\n Democrats typically hold little sway in the GOP-dominated House, but the law under which the resolution is brought gives them a pathway to force a floor vote.<\/p>\n There is a chance, however, the resolution<\/a> may have been brought too late to put House members on the record. McGovern\u2019s introduction starts a 15-day clock, after which he can attempt to force a House floor vote, but Trump may have acted against Venezuela by then.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n The House legislation comes a month after a similar measure in the U.S. Senate fell short by a few votes, thanks to opposition from Republican senators<\/a>. Only two Republicans broke ranks in the upper chamber to attempt to prevent strikes.<\/p>\n The lead sponsor of the Senate measure, Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., said over the weekend that he would reintroduce another war powers resolution in the coming days. His office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the timing.<\/p>\n McGovern previously co-sponsored a broader resolution, along with Rep. Ilhan Omar<\/a>, D-Minn., that would block military action against both Venezuela and transnational criminal organizations, which would also prevent attacks<\/a> on alleged drug smuggling boats.<\/p>\n The more narrowly drawn resolution introduced Monday, however, could garner added support from Republicans, given the broader unpopularity of conflict with Venezuela.<\/p>\n \u201cBoth the administration and members of Congress know that new wars are extremely unpopular with the American people,\u201d said Kharrazian.<\/p>\n Americans oppose taking military action in Venezuela by a 70-30 percent margin, according to a CBS News poll <\/a>conducted November 19-21.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n