Americans don’t want U.S. military strike against Syria, poll finds

"Two new polls out Tuesday have found strong opposition to US military intervention in Syria among a war-weary American public despite increasing support in Washington for punitive strikes. A survey carried out by the Pew Research Center over the weekend found that 48 percent of Americans oppose 'conducting military airstrikes' against Syria over its alleged use of chemical weapons compared to 29 percent who support such action. A Washington Post-ABC news poll found a similar margin, with nearly six in 10 Americans opposed to missile strikes against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime. The polls found opposition across the political spectrum." Continue reading

Continue ReadingAmericans don’t want U.S. military strike against Syria, poll finds

Kerry After Syria Hearing Protest: ‘I Once Had Very Similar Feelings’

"'The first time I testified before this committee when I was 27 years old, I had feelings very similar to that protester,' Kerry said after order was restored. 'I would just say that is exactly why it is so important that we are all here having this debate, talking about these things before the country and that the Congress itself will act representing the American people. And I think we can all respect those who have a different point of view. And we do.' Kerry said a Syria strike would 'unequivocally' make the U.S. more secure, and Hagel said there are U.S. allies in the region ready to support any U.S. action." Continue reading

Continue ReadingKerry After Syria Hearing Protest: ‘I Once Had Very Similar Feelings’

Angry anti-war protesters besiege John Kerry’s home, banging on doors, windows

"On Sunday, anti-war protestors protested the anti-war protestor, and with that, as Shakespeare once said, 'the wheel is come full circle.' In the aftermath of Secretary of State John Kerry making a forceful case on Friday for U.S. military intervention in Syria, protesters assembled outside his townhouse on Beacon Hill. Yes, the Vietnam veteran who became a leading anti-war activist after serving is now advocating for war. According to Twitter users, as Twitchy reported, protesters pounded on Kerry’s front door and windows, but he wasn’t home. Of course, past precedent tells us if there is a crisis at hand, Kerry’s likely to be found aboard his 76-foot yacht, the 'Isabel.'" Continue reading

Continue ReadingAngry anti-war protesters besiege John Kerry’s home, banging on doors, windows

John Kerry: Syria war no time for ‘armchair isolationism’

"U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Tuesday the debate about military strikes is not about President Barack Obama's 'red line,' but the world's. The UN refugee agency reported Tuesday the number of refugees fleeing Syria's violence has surpassed the two million mark. Kerry told Congress that it is 'a red line that anyone with a conscience ought to draw.' Some lawmakers have expressed reluctance about being drawn into a larger conflict. But Kerry stressed that what Obama is seeking would be military action limited in scope and duration that would send a message to the Assad regime that it can't get away with using chemical weapons." Continue reading

Continue ReadingJohn Kerry: Syria war no time for ‘armchair isolationism’

Top U.S. Republicans back Syria strike as refugee crisis mounts

"John Boehner, the Republican speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, and House Majority Leader Eric Cantor both pledged their support for military action after the meeting. The chairman of the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee said on Tuesday he was confident after talking with Obama that the United States would step up its support for 'vetted' elements of the Syrian opposition. Senator Carl Levin said he urged the president, a fellow Democrat, to arm the Syrian rebels a day after two influential Republican senators, John McCain and Lindsey Graham, sought similar assurances from Obama." Continue reading

Continue ReadingTop U.S. Republicans back Syria strike as refugee crisis mounts

A Century of Lies: The Rationales for Engaging in Foreign Wars

"If President Barack Obama and his administration are not lying in the lead-up to a probable bombing campaign of Syria it will be a rare exception among US Presidents, particularly since their public duplicity concerning war dates to at least the early twentieth century. Indeed, being forthrightly dishonest to the American people concerning the rationales for engaging in foreign wars has become a century-old White House tradition. The historical record of past presidents’ prewar and wartime hucksterism is unambiguous, greatly contributing to the immense bloodshed and destruction that continues under the country’s reckless international leadership to this day." Continue reading

Continue ReadingA Century of Lies: The Rationales for Engaging in Foreign Wars

Hagel and Kerry make case to Congress for attacking Syria

"In what will be one of the most high-profile political set pieces in Washington in weeks, John Kerry and Chuck Hagel will testify to the Senate Foreign Relations committee, on Tuesday. America’s top military officer, General Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, will also go before the panel. Kerry will argue that failing to act in Syria 'unravels the deterrent impact of the international norm against chemical weapons use,' a senior State Department official said on condition of anonymity. Inaction also 'endangers our friends and our partners along Syria’s borders… and risks emboldening Assad and his key allies – Hezbollah and Iran,' the official warned." Continue reading

Continue ReadingHagel and Kerry make case to Congress for attacking Syria

Obama Has Decided That It Is Safer To Buy Congress Than To Go It Alone

"The White House will bribe, cajole, and intimidate the Congress. The regime’s argument will be that with America’s prestige and credibility on the line, Congress must support the President. The President and Secretary of State have made unequivocal statements of Assad’s guilt and their determination to punish Assad. Given Washington’s insanity, the way Washington punishes Assad for (allegedly) killing Syrians with chemical weapons is for Washington to kill more Syrians with cruise missiles. If this doesn’t make sense to you, you don’t belong in Obama’s government or in the American media, and you could never be a neoconservative." Continue reading

Continue ReadingObama Has Decided That It Is Safer To Buy Congress Than To Go It Alone

Drudge Poll: 91% Say “Stay Out of Syria.”

"This is not a scientific poll, but Obama’s spinmeisters had better pay attention to it. Obama drew a macho-man line in the sand with his vow to take action if Syria used chemical weapons. What’s a would-be macho guy to do? Go to Congress? Yes, say the voters. What will Congress do? It will put its collective finger in the wind. The general public seems split. As long as American missiles kill innocent Syrian women and children from on high, half of the voters are content. After all, Assad’s weapons killed innocent women and children. Half the voters think the proper response is an eye for an eye: more dead women and children. That will show Assad who is in charge." Continue reading

Continue ReadingDrudge Poll: 91% Say “Stay Out of Syria.”

McCain blames Obama for U.S. losing credibility in the Middle East

"President Barack Obama’s failure to act amid spiralling violence in Egypt has led the US to lose all credibility in the Middle East, senator John McCain said Sunday. McCain compared US inaction to Obama’s policy on Syria. 'There is no policy. And there is no strategy. And therefore we react and we react poorly. One of the best examples is Syria where the president said Bashar al-Assad uses chemical weapons, that’s a red line. He’s used them and we have done virtually nothing in response to that. The centrifuges in Tehran continue to spin, Iraq unravels,' he said." Continue reading

Continue ReadingMcCain blames Obama for U.S. losing credibility in the Middle East