One of the few clear voices opposed to the US engaging even "surgically" in the Syrian civil war is Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, who calls the president's proposal an effort to "save face and add bad policy to bad policy." Paul also said:
"I would ask, 'How do you ask a man to be the first to die for a mistake?' I'm not sending my son, your son or anybody else's son to fight for a stalemate."
With as mealy a mouth as anyone, Paul stands with the apparently overwhelming majority of our elected leaders, bravely telling reporters he was "proud" of the president for coming to Congress for war-making support. Translation: "Oh thank you Mr. President for not acting like a dictator and embarrassing us with our complete lack of spine to oppose your imperial enterprise (which is, after all, our imperial enterprise, too, but we really don't like having to say so and some of us even blush)."
Conventional wisdom on September 2 predicted that the Senate would endorse whatever the president wants to do, just not as long as he might want to do it. The prediction for the House is generally iffy, but House Minority Leader Democrat Nancy Pelosi of California is cheerleading from the front of the war bandwagon.
Such actual Congressional opposition to the whole idea of putting the US any deeper into Syria for ay reason comes from a few representatives in the House:
" Republican Chris Gibson of New York, an Army veteran with multiple foreign deployments: "I hope my colleagues will fully think through the weightiness of this decision and reject military action. The situation on the ground in Syria is tragic and deeply saddening, but escalating the conflict and Americanizing the Syrian civil war will not resolve the matter."
" Democrat Betty McCollum of Minnesota: "Unilateral U.S. military action against the Syrian regime at this time would do nothing to advance American interests, but would certainly fuel extremist groups on both sides of the conflict that are determined to expand the bloodshed beyond Syria's borders."
" Republican Devin Nunes of California: "The apparent chemical weapons attack by the Assad regime is an appalling, unconscionable act by a bloodthirsty tyrant. The 'limited' military response supported by President Obama, however, shows no clear goal, strategy, or any coherence whatsoever, and is supported neither by myself nor the American people."
The blank check comes
with no due date, late fees, or penalties
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