Rapid Fire Sept. 11, 2013: US Hoping A Policy – Any Policy – Will Stick on Syria

This syrial box comes with a free policy!

President Obama’s speech on Syria last night opened with continued threats of strikes yet remained open to a diplomatic solution. The President then mixed concerns of regional spillover with reassurances that Assad is not a serious threat to its neighbors or the US. This nicely summarized the confusing, self-contradicting, everything-and-the-kitchen-sink handling that led even reliably leftist publications such as Slate or the New Republic to break ranks. If President Obama eventually asks for Congressional support for strikes, he’s looking less likely to get it by the day.

• As wobbly and improvised as the Administration’s handling of Syria may be, US pressure did at least get out of the Assad regime the admission that it has chemical weapons. Getting them to acknowledge the obvious seems to count as progress.