Congress, I Seek Redress of a Grievance

An open letter

Photo by Andrew Kinsey on Unsplash

To all Members of the United States Congress,

I write you on a matter of great concern to the constitutional republic that you serve. I am aggrieved by your failure to represent the best interests of the American people as your Oath calls on you to do. Per the First Amendment’s explicit right granted to me as a Citizen, I hereby petition you with said grievance.

It has become abundantly clear that the actions taken to remove Mr. Maduro from his residence in Caracas demonstrate that the President and other officers and members of the Executive Branch have disregarded U.S. constitutional law. They have also violated international law to which the United States is bound by treaty commitments, including the United Nations Charter. The United States is not only a signatory to but one of the authors of this agreement.

These are not merely abstractions. The U.S. Constitution recognizes international treaties in Article II, Section 2, Clause 2, which grants the President power to make treaties with the advice and consent of the Senate, provided two-thirds of Senators present concur. Once ratified, treaties become the “supreme Law of the Land” under Article VI, the Supremacy Clause. Treaties negotiated by the President and ratified by Congress have the force of law under the U.S. Constitution. The President is brazenly violating said law. This constitutes a High Crime and Misdemeanor under Article II, Section 4.

Further, he is not acting alone, but in concert with the Vice President and the entire executive cabinet.

Beyond this most immediate incident of lawbreaking by the President, it must be mentioned that neither Congress nor the President have fulfilled their obligations under the War Powers Resolution. On September 2, 2025, the President introduced U.S. Armed Forces into hostilities when U.S. military forces struck and destroyed vessels in the Caribbean Sea, killing those aboard in what the administration labeled counter-narcotics operations. Under 50 U.S.C. § 1544(b), the President’s authority to continue such hostilities without Congressional authorization terminates after 60 days, with a possible 30-day extension for unavoidable military necessity tied to safe withdrawal. More than 125 days have now elapsed since those initial strikes. Congress has neither declared war nor provided specific statutory authorization for these ongoing military operations. The January 3, 2026 military operation against Venezuela represents an escalation of these unauthorized hostilities, not a separate conflict that would trigger a new 60-90 day period. The President’s continued military action beyond the statutory deadline violates the War Powers Resolution and Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution, which vests war powers exclusively in Congress.

I am writing this on the 5th anniversary of the January 6th attacks on the United States Capitol. Many of you were there on that day when a mob, incited by the then-President, attempted to prevent the certification of electoral votes and thereby overturn the peaceful transfer of power. Some of you fled for your lives. Some of you sheltered in place as rioters breached the building. All of you witnessed an assault on the constitutional framework you swore an oath to defend.

Five years later, that same President—now returned to office—has committed violations of constitutional and international law that are more brazen, more calculated, and more destructive to our constitutional order than the chaos of January 6th. Where that day’s assault on the Capitol was chaotic and ultimately unsuccessful, the current violations are systematic and operational. Where January 6th threatened the peaceful transfer of power, these actions eliminate the constitutional constraints that make democratic governance possible.

You faced a test on January 6th. Many of you failed it by voting to object to electoral certification even after the attack. But you have been given another test—a clearer one. The President has waged war without Congressional authorization in direct violation of Article I, Section 8. He has violated treaty obligations that constitute the supreme law of the land under Article VI. He acts in concert with his Cabinet to systematically eliminate constitutional constraints on executive power.

This is your moment to fulfill the oath you took. Not with words. With action.

I therefore petition this Congress to:

1. Immediately assert Article I war powers authority and demand an authorization vote for any continued military action in Venezuela or the Caribbean theater of operations.

2. Refuse all appropriations for Venezuelan occupation or ongoing Caribbean military operations absent proper Constitutional authorization from Congress.

3. Commence impeachment proceedings against the President for High Crimes and Misdemeanors, specifically: waging war without Congressional authorization in violation of Article I, Section 8; violating treaty obligations under the UN Charter in violation of the Supremacy Clause; and exceeding the statutory authority granted under the War Powers Resolution.

4. Commence impeachment proceedings against participating Cabinet members who have acted in concert with the President to violate constitutional and statutory law.

5. Exercise Congress’s inherent contempt authority under the Constitution to detain executive officials who defy Congressional subpoenas, court orders, or refuse to comply with Congressional oversight.

6. Pass statutory cause of action for violations by Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and Customs and Border Protection officials to close the post-9/11 immunity gap and restore Fourth Amendment protections.

7. Restore constitutional constraint over concentrated power by enacting sectoral ownership limits that prevent coordination of economic, political, and media power as one integrated instrument, with criminal penalties for violation.

The framework must be defended. Now. While it still exists to defend.

Your grandparents understood that the constitutional framework is worth fighting for. They faced the Great Depression, World War II, and debt levels far higher than today’s—and they built the American middle class anyway through democratic action and constitutional governance.

You must do the same.

I await your response and your action.

Respectfully submitted,

Michael Brock,
US Citizen

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