President Obama Hits The PAUSE Button On Syria

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Speaking to the nation on Saturday, Obama indicated that the U.S. will delay military action in Syria until after Congress has had time to discuss the matter and to, perhaps, take votes. He also expressed the hope that other countries will use the time to publicly say whether they approve or disapprove of some sort of action against Syria.

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Type: Discussion • Score: 19 • Views: 8,042 • Replies: 95

So, how long is this extra step going to take??

3 Replies

@oralloy,

Congress gets back on the 9th of September. It seems safe to assume that Congress members will have to indicate where they stand before then.

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@oralloy,

Quote:

So, how long is this extra step going to take??

Long enough for a Seal Team to put two slugs in Assad's surprised face.

Joe(that quick enough for you, Oralloy?)Nation

1 Reply

@realjohnboy,

I think consultation with Congress is a great idea...and I wish all presidents would do that same thing before moving to military action except in a pressing emergency.

We may end up looking like a paper tiger if the Congress refuses to give the president permission to retaliate for the chemical usage...but the precedent being set is one I have wanted to see made for many administrations.

2 Replies

@Frank Apisa,

GHWBush did so prior to bring us into Kuwait. It was the right thing to do then and the right thing to do now.

1 Reply

@JPB,

I think the question to put before Congress is whether this is a situation that is closer to Kuwait or Iraq? Iraq was a mistake (imo), Kuwait was not.

4 Replies

@JPB,

I guess that would depend on whether congress thinks the chemical attack was faked or real and if real, if Assad carried it out. The UN inspectors left today, they're not there to tell who carried out the attack but they will be able to tell if it was carried out. Of course, they didn't get to the sites until five days later after Assad had already bombed the suspected sites, compromising the evidence.

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When was the last time that 80% of Americans agreed on anything?

Quote:

a growing number of Congressional members were beginning to question the administration’s strategy by the end of the week. And an NBC News poll released Friday morning showed that nearly 80 percent of Americans agreed that the president should seek approval in advance of taking military action.

Officials said Obama also was influenced by Friday’s lively debate in the House of Commons, where Prime Minister David Cameron lost a vote in Parliament to authorize participation in an allied strike against Syria. Cameron had been a staunch advocate of military action but was chastened in the wake of the vote. “It is clear to me that the British Parliament, reflecting the views of the British people, does not want to see British military action,” Cameron said. “I get that, and the government will act accordingly.”

While Obama's advisers argued Friday night in private that the humiliating defeat for Cameron starkly illustrated the risks of asking for congressional input, the president responded that the vote in Parliament demonstrated exactly why he should seek a vote on this side of the Atlantic, senior officials told NBC News.

And, the president insisted, seeking legislative backing was the approach most consistent with his philosophy. More

1 Reply

Obama better be moving ahead, since it is just about September, and he won't want to bomb on Yom Kippur. Oh wait, that was Sandy Koufax that wouldn't pitch on Yom Kippur. Never mind.

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@JPB,

background checks?

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@Joe Nation,

Joe Nation wrote:

Long enough for a Seal Team to put two slugs in Assad's surprised face.

Dick.

0 Replies

@oralloy,

oralloy wrote:

So, how long is this extra step going to take??

Long enough for him to get done with the G20 conference and back from his trip to Russia. Once those are done with they will probably take some type of action, otherwise they lose credibility for not backing their "line in the sand".

1 Reply

It would be nice if he waited for the U N inspectors report and more information about who did the gas. Both sides are capable of killing children to advance their agenda. And the bombing should be limited to military targets since our military claims to know where the missles were launched from.

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@rosborne979,

I believe that Syria did use chemical weapons against its own citizens. Obama drew the "line in the sand" that the rest of the world should be repulsed by this.
He miscalculated.
80% of Americans seem to feel it does not concern us. Other countries are content to sit on their hands. And our Congress will wait until they finish their vacation before they formally think about formulating an opinion.

2 Replies

@realjohnboy,

realjohnby wrote:

President Obama Hits The PAUSE Button On Syria

Good. That will give him time to find the DELETE button --- or to find a reason to believe that throwing some bombs onto Damascus will make any difference to the security of the US, the outcome of Syria's civil war, or respect for human rights in Syria.

1 Reply

@realjohnboy,

I think his only miscalculation was with this Congress nonsense. He should have just fired the missiles.

I can't imagine how this debacle is playing in Israel and Iran.

When it comes time to bomb Iran's illegal nuclear program, is Obama going to tell Netanyahu: "Thank you for waiting and letting me be in charge of bombing Iran. Now let me spend a few weeks asking Congress if I'll be allowed to keep up my end of the bargain."??

If it isn't too late for Israel to conduct the bombing campaign, they should break their deal with Obama and start bombing tonight.

1 Reply

@Thomas,

Thomas wrote:

Good. That will give him time to find the DELETE button

Obama does not hate the world so much that he is willing to allow it to become a dystopia where ruthless dictators who use nerve gas against civilians have triumphed over freedom and democracy.

Thomas wrote:

or to find a reason to believe that throwing some bombs onto Damascus will make any difference to the security of the US, the outcome of Syria's civil war, or respect for human rights in Syria.

He's had that reason from the beginning: If the dictators of the world know that they will face military action if they dare to use nerve gas against civilians, they will be less likely to use nerve gas against civilians.

1 Reply

@oralloy,

oralloy wrote:

He's had that reason from the beginning: If the dictators of the world know that they will face military action if they dare to use nerve gas against civilians, they will be less likely to use nerve gas against civilians.

The United States does not have jurisdiction over the dictators of the world. International law does. If the UN's inspectors conclude that Assad has used nerve gas, and the UN then gives the US a mandate to attack, fine with me.

2 Replies

@Thomas,

Thomas wrote:

The United States does not have jurisdiction over the dictators of the world. International law does. If the UN's inspectors conclude that Assad has used nerve gas, and the UN then gives the US a mandate to attack, fine with me.

The UN does not intend to give anyone a mandate to curb the use of nerve gas against civilians, so the US is going to go ahead and do it without a mandate.

1 Reply

President Obama Hits The PAUSE Button On Syria

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