The Shadow
WASHINGTON (VR) – U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Vice Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, joined U.S. Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Adam Schiff (D-CA), and 21 Senate colleagues in introducing legislation to restrict the president’s authority under the 217-year-old Insurrection Act.
The legislation would reform the centuries-old Insurrection Act that gives the president broad and vague authority to deploy troops – either with or without the request of a state – to suppress “any insurrection, domestic violence, unlawful combination, or conspiracy.” The current law has been used sparingly by other presidents given the potential for the military to escalate tensions, rather than restore order, during a domestic crisis.
“It’s clear that President Trump is unworried about defying the limits on executive power clearly outlined in our Constitution. Though he has not yet invoked the Insurrection Act, his threats to do so indicate a pressing need for congressional reform. This urgent legislation would establish the checks and balances needed to ensure that our military is deployed only in accordance with our laws and not as an instrument of personal or political power,” Sen. Warner said.
Specifically, the Insurrection Act of 2025 would:
• Narrow and clarify the criteria for the domestic deployment of military troops for law enforcement purposes;
• Specify that the use of the military is a last resort and is authorized only if the use of civilian law enforcement authorities would be insufficient.
• Clarify that the law cannot be used to suspend habeas corpus, impose martial law, or deputize private militias to act as soldiers;
• Require the president to consult with Congress prior to invoking the Insurrection Act and receive Congressional approval if the President seeks to exercise authority under the Act for longer than 7 days;
• Require a report to Congress providing an explicit justification for the use of the Insurrection Act’s authority, as enumerated in this legislation, and a full description of the scope and duration of its use;
• Provide for judicial review to ensure that individuals, or a state or local government, may bring a civil action if the president’s authority under the Insurrection Act is misused or abused.
Joining Sens. Warner, Blumenthal, Padilla, and Schiff in introducing this legislation are U.S. Sens. Jack Reed (D-RI), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Edward J. Markey (D-MA), Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Chris Coons (D-DE), Peter Welch (D-VT), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Andy Kim (D-NJ), John Hickenlooper (D-CO), and Mark Kelly (D-AZ).
