Thread: Rebuffing Obama, McCain a No-Vote on Syria

Rebuffing Obama, McCain a No-Vote on Syria

Courtship by the president comes up short
By Noah Rayman Sept. 04, 2013

U.S. Senator John McCain waits for the start of a Senate Foreign Relations Committee on the authorization of use of force in Syria in the Hart Senate Office Building in Washington, D.C. on Sept. 3, 2013." title="U.S. Senator John McCain waits for the start of a Senate Foreign Relations Committee on the authorization of use of force in Syria in the Hart Senate Office Building in Washington, D.C. on Sept. 3, 2013.
Jim Lo Scalzo / EPAU.S. Senator John McCain waits for the start of a Senate Foreign Relations Committee on the authorization of use of force in Syria in the Hart Senate Office Building in Washington, D.C. on Sept. 3, 2013.

Sen. John McCain pulled his support Wednesday for the Senate resolution authorizing limited strikes in Syria, a blow to President Barack Obama’s campaign to get congressional approval for military action in the war-torn country.

McCain, the Arizona Republican and Obama’s 2008 White House rival, has long been a strong advocate for intervention in Syria’s civil war, and Obama doggedly courted McCain’s support for the measure authorizing military force, including during a meeting at the White House on Monday. But McCain said the limited actions that would be authorized by the resolution don’t go far enough in responding to Syrian leader Bashar Assad’s alleged use of chemical weapons last month.
“In its current form, I do not,” McCain said Wednesday when asked if he supports the measure, the Associated Press reports.
McCain had previously said it would be “catastrophic” for Congress to turn down Obama’s request. While Obama won the support of House GOP leaders on Tuesday, McCain’s opposition could make it harder to bring other Republican foreign policy hawks aboard. On the flip side, it may make it easier for Obama to win support from war-weary Democrats.
The resolution, fleshed out Tuesday by Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez and Republican Sen. Bob Corker, who together head the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, puts a 90-day limit on action and forbids American boots on the ground. The resolution could be put to a vote as early as Monday when the House returns from summer recess.
“If the Congress were to reject a resolution like this, after the president of the United States has already committed to action, the consequences would be catastrophic, in that the credibility of this country with friends and adversaries alike would be shredded,” McCain said earlier this week.


http://swampland.time.com/2013/09/04...#ixzz2dwNkeZod

McCain opposes Syria strike resolution

Fox News

- ‎4 minutes ago‎

Sept. 2, 2013: Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., left, accompanied by Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., speaks with reporters outside the White House in Washington. . .

McCain Pulls Support for Syria Plan

• AP
• Sen. McCain, the president's strongest ally for a strike in Syria, deals administration a setback by opposing a Senate proposal for use of force, as he pushes for a more aggressive plan.
• WATCH LIVE: House Committee Hearing on Use of Military Force in Syria
• WATCH LIVE: Senate Committee Takes Up Authorization of Military Force in Syria/a>
• READ: Draft Senate Resolution on Syria
• Obama to Engage Putin Despite Syria Strike Opposition
• FOX NEWS FIRST: Taking War Pitch International
• KURTZ: McCain's Media Moment: Beltway's Top Syria Crusader | LIVE CHAT WITH KURTZ

Obama Asserts Right to Strike Syria Without Congress

Wall Street Journal

- ‎34 minutes ago‎

President Barack Obama speaks during a joint press conference with Sweden's prime minister after their bilateral meeting in Stockholm on Wednesday. . .

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee, 10-7, approves resolution authorizing a U.S. military response to chemical weapons use in Syria.