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Obama: ‘If we fail to act,’ Assad will continue to use chemical weapons
Hawaii News Now
President Barack Obama speaks on Syria from the East Room of the White House. (Source: CNN).
The U.S. has been working to stop the use of chemical weapons in the Middle East for over three years. So far, no results. Perhaps, the Russian initiative to bring Syria’s chemical weapons inventory under United Nations control will be the first step in solving this dilema. As critical as this issue is, this country has no desire to enter another civil war in the Middle East. The President’s effort to convince Congress to authorize force against Syrian President Assad is being delayed until the diplomatic options are run out. President Obama should have consulted Congress years ago on this issue. If diplomatic efforts fail to stop Assad, then what? Do I hear "mission creep?" In the absence of a clear objective with a definite time line Congress should opt out of this Middle East cauldron. Sometimes I wonder if our experience in Iraq and Afghanistan has taught us anything. Aloha, Russ.
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He hasn’t done anything but embarrass the U.S. since he became president (with a small “p”). The only time he seems to care for about the Constitution that he swore to protect is when he can hide behind it to try and shift the blame for not following through on his idiotic foreign policy statements. In this latest blunder, he shows himself to again be weak and ineffective in the foreign policy arena. This episode accomplishes nothing but lowering the image of the U.S around the world. I don’t believe that we should be in Syria, but if he’s going to shoot his mouth off and issue “don’t cross this line” statements he should at least appear to have a plan to deal with the situation should it happen. Instead he appears to be making it up as he goes stumbling along and then goes whimpering in the corner. This does nothing to stop the clowns in Syria from gassing their people again. Russia will do nothing but stall on any diplomatic action. Barry has once again shown the world that he is weak, ineffective, and obviously out of his depth in foreign affairs.
The President has painted himself and the country into a corner. Just how many “lines in the sand” are necessary before we take action? It’s like the boy who cried wolf too many times. This country has little respect anymore because we can’t come to a decision on anything of substance, whether it be foreign affairs or domestic issues. The president’s speech was disappointing, but not entirely unexpected. An ill-informed, ignorant electorate is largely to blame for our current problems. We get what we deserve. Unfortunately, future generations will reap the results of our inertia, irresponsibility, and incompetence. Russ.
Sorry for the rant, Russ – I normally avoid such political ramblings but this really ticked me off.
Same here. We haven’t learned a thing since Vietnam. George Washington warned us about “foreign entanglements” and Dwight Eisenhower cautioned the nation about the “military and industrial complex” running our public life. Both warnings of these past presidents are ringing true today. We live in a country dominated by irresponsibility, mediocrity, and ignorance. My generation really dropped the ball. Russ.
Nothing will be accomplished in Syria. The killing will go on until one side bleeds to death. The Russians will draw out the negotiations until we just give up and leave the stage. According to NPR, the U.S. is shipping some small arms and supplies to the rebels, but that won’t be sufficient to stop Assad. U.S. foreign policy is being crafted as we go along. No one seems to be on the same page. Our credibility is gone. The jihadist websites are calling for “small scale” attacks within the United States. Isn’t that nice? If and when we decide to push Assad off the international stage, we will be acting alone…maybe France will support us, but I doubt if anyone else will. The real tragedy here is that most Americans have no real grasp of what’s happening in their name. The American voter has been sold “a bill of goods”–and we’re paying the cost of our naivitae, ignorance, and blind trust in politicians that promise the moon but deliver garbage. The political process is a sham with the deaf and dumb leading the blind. Russ.