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Subscribe to RSSSens. John McCain, R-Ariz., Lindsey Graham, R.-S.C., and Joseph Lieberman, I-Conn., have penned a Washington Post op-ed warning that the United States' reluctance to provide assistance to opposition fighters against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces could harm U.S. interests.
"America’s disengagement from this conflict carries growing costs — for the Syrian people and for U.S. interests," Sunday's op-ed read, adding that the United States is "increasingly seen across the Middle East as acquiescing to the continued slaughter of Arab and Muslim civilians."
NBC News
People resisting the army of President Bashar al-Assad in northern Syria cope with loss and prepare for fighting.
Syria premier defects to anti-Assad opposition, spokesman says
In contrast to Libya, where there is "profound gratitude" after the U.S. intervened on the side of the rebels last year in their struggle to depose longtime leader Moammar Gadhafi, "when the Assad regime finally does fall, the Syrian people are likely to feel little goodwill toward the United States," the senators wrote.
Much more than in Libya, moreover, the United States has significant national security interests at stake in Syria. These include preventing the use or transfer of the regime’s massive chemical- and biological-weapons stockpiles — a real and growing danger — and ensuring that al-Qaida and its violent brethren are unable to secure a new foothold in the heart of the Middle East. Our decisions and actions have been woefully insufficient to safeguard these interests and others.
The senators' voices follow those of foreign policy experts, three of whom urged the United States last week to do more to bring the violence in Syria to an end.
Foreign policy experts urge US to intervene in Syria
Testifying before the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, Martin Indyk, vice president and director of Foreign Policy at the Brookings Institution; James Dobbins, director of the International Security and Defense Policy Center at the RAND National Defense Research Institute; and Andrew Tabler, senior fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, all agreed that the United States should start arming the Syrian opposition under the right conditions.
"At this point, given the direction of the conflict, I think that what we need to do is assess which groups could we and should we arm at what point, and make that decision," Tabler told the senators. "I think that we're actually at that decision given where the conflict is going."
Indyk agreed, but advocated for intervening in a "wise way."
"We need to do it in a way that, first of all, we understand who we're supporting and what their intentions are," he said.
On Monday, Syrian Prime Minister Riyad Hijab defected to the opposition seeking to overthrow Assad, a spokesman for Hijab said, marking one of the most high-profile desertions from the Damascus government.
Syrian state TV said Hijab had been fired, but an official source in Amman told Reuters that the dismissal followed his defection to neighboring Jordan with his family.
Despite this and other high-profile defections, the senators' op-ed warns that "Bashar al-Assad’s regime is far from finished," and its "indiscriminate violence against civilians, using tanks and artillery, helicopter gunships, militias, snipers and, for the first time, fighter aircraft" will continue.
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- Slideshow: The lives of Syria rebels fighting for freedom
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As of this moment, United States is not losing any lives, money, nor anything else by not helping them. Syria is not part of NATO (by location) nor any other military alliance. We can't support Israel and have Syria working against us in that area. Let the UN and those wanting to assist do it, and without us. Let China or Russia take care of the problem. As far as I am concerned, China can take over the Syria and keep it. Just keep the US out. Let Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz., Lindsey Graham, R.-S.C., and Joseph Lieberman, I-Conn., lead in front any military action,
Rightly said.
Iran wars and Afghan wars have brought thousands of soldier dead and maimed and economy shattered with huge debts. Saudis and Jewish lobby, Pakis gained.
Both these Saudis and Israel are outsourcing their dirty jobs to the US too many times.
One makes blunders!
Only too greedy like these Sens push others again and again for few personal gains.
The USA Should keep its nose out of Syria ! Let the fools kill one another . We do not need to get involved in another war. The three Senators are stupid to even think of aid or military gear to the rebels . They have weak minds , forgot what happened in Egypt. They are making noise as usual but remember empty barrels make the most noise rolling down a hill. Enough said !!
U.S. declares war on world. If the current fallback position is continous, neverending war maybe we should bring back the draft to ensure we have adequate manpower for the job.
Old man McCain needs to quit harping about Obama not going to war in Syria and sit down and read the Constitution. Article 1, section 8 says Congress shall declare war. So get a delaration of War, old man, then gripe about Obama not acting on it. Lieberman, you are a distasteful person who thwarted the best health care coverage possible out of your resentment for the Dems not wanting you for a Senate candidate. Get over it. Graham, as a JAG officer you know about the Constitution and the role Congress has to play. You're just another racist opposing Obama no matter what.
While I fully support staying out of Syria, I guess you missed Obama using our military assets in Libya without a Congressional declaration or War, or, even more recently, Obama already sending (cough, cough, wink, wink) "advisers" to Syria. Does Obama get a pass on the Constitution because he uses Royal Decree?
The Republican TeaBilly Conservatives are all about the Constitution, unless it doesn’t fit their Evil Agenda. Can you say Self Righteous Hypocrite? You Bet Cha…Fer Sure.
We need to stay out of their fight and problems and no US involvement at all.
I am so glad we did not elect Mr. McCain. He is the biggest warmonger in the country. While all of the other Replicans were lambasting the President for taking action in Libya, McCain was criticizing him for not doing it sooner. I am tired of war. Let our boys come home.
Personally, I find it kind of comical that we have only three elected representatives that are concerned with inaction of any kind.
Shows you where the priorities are of the majority of our "do-nothing" legislators lie.
So there you go! The Republicans ( and milquetoast Lieberman), want to support al Qaida.
Fightin' Johnny would probably give them a nuke if he could!
Why don't "Fightin" Johnny just fade away and take his "boyfriend" Lyndsey with him.
The Obama administration is handling this quite well, I believe. In fact, I believe there may be some 'help' we the general populous isn't aware of, and if I'm wrong and there isn't any, that's okay too. Assad's days are numbered, even without direct military aid from the U.S. I for one am fine with how Syrian 'may' look upon the U.S. for not rendering more, direct assistance. A very cautious approach to Syrian seems to be working out just fine.
Face it, Syria isn't a major oil producer.
Yes but it happens to be the only place in the Mediterranean where Russia has a naval base. It is also an ally of Iran. And since Russia is an enemy (yes she still is, it will never change) and since Israel wants us to fight her criminal wars we are sponsoring the Islamist rebels bred by our Saudi buddies.
I do not see our interests in Syria as being oil. To me, they are:
1. Syria is an ally of Iran. A change in Syria that favors the USA over Iran should break that alliance.
2. Syria is Russia's only ally in the ME. A change in Syria that favors the USA over Russiashouldl break that alliance.
3. Syria purchases more arms from Russia than any other Arab state. A change in Syria that favors the USA over Russia should end that business arrangement.
4. Syria has stockpiles of chemical weapons that are now at risk at falling into the hands of militants and terrorists should they overthrow the regime. A change in Syria that favors the USA over militants and terrorists could avert those weapons from falling into the very hands that want to use them on us.
The above is the contextion which I consider to be our interests in Syria.
Should we get more involved, in deed directly involved? Let's discuss the isues in one through four above.
Perhaps not these three, McCain, Graham, and Lieberman, but EVERY other Republican on Capitol Hill would scream if Obama even suggested that we should get involved in Syria. As in Libya, I'll support the President's decision. Let's keep partisan politics out of Foreign Policy.
Okay, that's wishful thinking. But it sounds really nice!
Sure, let's get involved in every civil war going on around the world. After all, the USA has unlimited blood & treasure to commit to these piss ant fights. In this case, we'll arm the Syrian Wahabis, the same people that attacked us on 9/11. Yes, the one's we were fighting in Iraq and are still fighting in Afghanistan. THE DEFINITION OF NATIONAL INSANITY, brought to you by the GOP and Israel. Some times the devil that you know is way better than the devils that you know are just as bad ... & maybe worse.
Yes, now that they have a 5 week vacation that they voted themselves, they now feel they can but in once again in the name of huh, huh weapons of mass destruction ? No wait that did not work last time for -what was his name again that cried wolf ? Sending our troops, our neighbors to another forsaken place that has been trading with Russia and China ( hence their abstaining from any UN agreement ). War is good business for only a few that can charge cost overruns and steal plane loads of money like a bush league former president allowed in Iraq where the finance minister took his cut of over $150 million right of the top. WE ARE BROKE AND OWE HOW MUCH!!!!!!! Pull your head out of your stink hole.
For the last 3 months I been telling you that McCain, Lieberman , Graham and Mrs. Hillary have been and still involved in Syria by arming these thugs and training them , The Saudis are paying these people to do that and every one of them have a hidden agenda which none of them care about the interest of the US or our troops , some of them trying to please the Saudis and Qataris ( the founders and still finance Alqaida , our #1 enemy ) and the others are looking out for Israel interest , McCain and Lieberman been to Lebanon twice already in areas where the Muslim extremists and Wahhabi Muslim control , where they have bases for training and interring Syria through these areas , I wonder if they work that hard for the American people and put their lives on the line for us . these people along with the Turks are the cause of all the killings in Syria , the Syrians have captured British and Turks special forces fighting along the rebel thugs and french military have been captured in Homs where the worst of the fighting been going on, we should be ashamed of our politicians and even MR.Obama for arming these killers of the Christians in Syria , I thought we were fighting these Alqaida thugs every where in the world , would some body remind the honorable senators that THESE PEOPLE ARE THE SAME PEOPLE THAT ATTACKED US ON 9/11 WITH THE SAME LEADERS ( THE SAUDIS AND QATARIS ) and would some body remind them that there is an honor and respect for our fallen heroes that they should not forget , and patriotism that money should not be able to buy .
Killers of Christians? Do you really think our government gives a @!$%# about religion? The only time they care about religion is when it is time to get re-elected and when they try to get the votes of Evangelical nutjobs. Other than that they don't really care. They will kill (or sponsor killing) of Muslims and Christians alike in foreign countries if it means profit or some other geo-political benefits. And it is good that you mentioned 9/11 and the Saudis. Saudis are our puppet regime and they spread violent Islamist ideas. Could it be that these ideas benefit our interests and thus we allow our puppet to spread them? Don't forget it is US that sponsored building the extremist religious schools and training camps in Pakistan. Schools that Taliban came out of. So in essence Taliban is our product too. Could it be that there is no real war there, just a pretext to stay in Afghanistan and build pipelines? Why do we sponsor Syrian rebels? Because it will remove Russian presence from the region. Why did we sponsor Taliban? To build pipelines to gas rich Central Asian republics. The only existing pipeline goes through Russia and they reap huge profits. We can't have that, thus we need our own pipeline. Why do we sponsor Islamists in general? Because they created havoc and civil war in Southern Russia. There is no war on terror. Terrorists are sponsored by us. It is a tool to hurt our enemies, an excuse to invade countries, and a boogeyman to scare our citizens.
The Middle East is the Land of da Devil. The U S should just stay out of there. They will never have Peace.
Why do all the Middle Eastern women have to dress up like “Cousin It”?
Hopefully there will come a day when we can tell them to “Drink their Oil and Eat their Sand”.
Remember Republicans, when these Foreign Countries ask for Aid and Funding….just say No.
Cut off all Funding to Foreign Countries, especially Pakistan. Why are we giving them Billions of $$$$$$ just to be our “Little Friend”? Did they Apologize for Hiding Out Bin Laden?
You Bet Cha….Fer Sure
How come every time the Moderator asked the Republican and TeaBilly Candidates their Ideas for the Economy and Jobs …all ya heard was Crickets Chirping? You Bet Cha…Fer Sure.
Then all of a sudden they say, “Let’ Spend Billions on da Middle East”?
Every time Dick Cheney hears da word “Invasion”…..he gets a “Boehner”. You Bet Cha…Fer Sure.
Folks,……A Great way to jump start this Economy and Solve a lot of these Problems. Quit giving away 100's of Billions of $$$$$$$$$ to Foreign Countries ...and in most cases just to be "Our Little Friend" and Invest in America. We could use that money putting millions of people back to work rebuilding our Infrastructure. Our Entire Infrastructure is Crumbling and Decaying all around our Feet.
However………it’s da Republican TeaBilly Conservatives that keep wanting to spend 100’s of Billions of Dollars on da “Middle East”…………Hmmmmmm…..I wonder why that is?
You BetCha....Fer Sure.
because many republicans have interest (stocks) in army companies IN WALL STREET, every war they made PROFITS, the dead soilders from home or outsiders THEY DON'T CARE !
We need to Pass a New Law: Lets call it “Da Dick Cheney” Law.
For Any Future Wars or Invasions: All Politicians have to send a Son or Daughter to the Front Line. If it is Truly something that we have to do, they should have no problem with that.
Do ya know what is Really Irresponsible? Invading Countries, Policing da World at the U.S. Taxpayer Expense, and giving away Billions of $$$$$$$$ to Foreign Countries like Pakistan …just to be “Our Little Friend”.
You Bet Cha…….Fer Sure.
jetdafacts why their sons or daughters , why not not them , let them go and lead the charge , Hey did you know that the house just passed $9 billions in aide to Israel last week on the top of the 70 million for the missiles defence , the 9 billion loan the one we usually pay ( the American tax payers ) passed by all the DEM'S. AND ALL THE REP. EXCEPT Congressman Ron Paul and Congressman Dingle . It took the vote a minute , Senator Boxer from Cal. introduced it . It usually take 2 years to pass a bill to help the American people and they usually pass it half ass where nobody benefit from it . 9billion dollars to Israel . check on it and see why we send the country that keep getting us in all kind of wars and we send them billions of dollars every year . and that's why our honorable senators want to send troops to Syria , so they can get rid of Syria , the only friend to Iran , and then Israel can attack Iran without worring about Syria helping the Iranians , so you can hide the truth all you want , but this all all what 's this problem is all about . the future will show you what I am talking about .
My turn-5304605, be careful speaking the truth like you did in post18. The government just cannot stand truth tellers like you
Well,what a suprise ,two republican and an" Independent" want to spill american blood the protect Syria. So if the POTUS does not send troops he is allowing innocent Syrians to die. If the POTUS does send troops he is a warmonger acting without the approval of congress.Politics,anyone.
We have no business in another war, uprising.etc. in the Middle East.period let them duke it out amongst themselves. Take care of America far awhile.
Well woodpecker NBC just reported that the Obama government working on a plan for Syria after Assad , Great . I wish they work on a plan for our unemployment while their at it , and maybe they will solve other problems for the AMERICAN PEOPLE the ones that they should really worry about , and then NBC followed that by report from the Alqaida and the rebels embedded reporter Richard Engle and his story about how poor the rebels are , and how popular they are , he usually shows you a tank with about 10 thugs on it and screaming ALLAH WA AKBAR and he said that these are the civilians that support the upraising , where did this guy get his credentials , I thought reporters suppose to report both sides and the truth , let him show us the foreign thugs that he is embedded with , most of them speak fluent English and fluent Turkish and fluent french , oh sorry I meant to say they are British , Turks and french and the rest speak Arabic with Gulf accents .
The Politicians who has been always willing to send other people’s children to die they should for once commit their own children into phantasmagoric warfare! We have covert operations going on in Syria and that is all we can do and should do for now.
If we drop bombs and kill civilians our Soldiers would pay the cost from the outrage that will follow, but “we should never again place our Soldiers in the midst of other people’s civil warfare.”
If the Syrian people want to change from Dictatorship to some form of normal governance; then they would have to fight for it like we did in expelling the British.
But the French were a big help in getting us the victory...
Lieberman is a chief lobby type for the Israelis, McCain and Graham are known right wing war mongers. but having said that, i would still recommend stinger missiles and laws rockets in MODEST numbers. but, no US troops ever.
We should be very cautious regarding deploying stinger missles to Syria; there is a great potential to be used against civilian airplanes after the conflict ends and transport to Hamas to be used against Israeli airlines. The actions of the Obama administration are coordinated with Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Israel, and it would be better if the Senate armchair warriors (and I'm sorry that Senator McCain has substituted political pandering for his experience in Vietnam) would support President Obama during this period. Their only interest is to agitate the situation for political gain in the election. I have every confidence that President Obama is considering all options and opportunities to insure that Syria does not degrade into a sectarian civil war or become hostage to radical Islamist elements. Our involvement is support for Turkey and Israel, and for the other moderate states in the region. A major consideration will be the a despirate last effort of Assad to use chemical weapons to defeat the Syrian insurgency that could have casualties in Turkey, Israel and Lebannon. Keeping the Syrian army intact with their cooperation to secure these chemical weapons must be a major goal for a post Assad Syria.
Conservatives want to bankrupt America to over build a WWII millitary, and yet have us go unprepared for the kinds of internal regime changes that can widen into a broader conflict with humanitarian problems. President Obama and Secretary of State Clinton have proven very capable and competent to assess and handle foreign affairs, not withstanding the criticism of the Republican opposition whose interest is only in winning an election.
dls, you are right about the missiles and equipment, doing that (as i suggested in an above thread) has risks, i'm just saying hopefully the risks are manageable.
Maybe Russia should just move in and take control of Syria.
Who are the rebels? Do they want peace in the country? Or do they want war with their neighbors?
Go on home, John. Take the short cut. Take those other clowns with you.