By Dan Calabrese ——Bio and Archives--September 3, 2013
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Now trapped by his own declaration, Mr. Obama is reverting to the same strategy he has used in countless domestic brawls—that is, to lay responsibility for any action, or failure of action, on Congress. The decision was made easier by the fact that Congress itself was demanding a say. That proved too tempting for a president whose crude calculus is that Congress can now rescue him however it votes. Should Congress oppose authorizing action against Syria, he can lay America's failure to honor his promises on the legislative branch. Obama aides insist that even if Congress votes no, the president may still act—though they would say that. The idea that Mr. Obama, having lacked the will to act on his own, would proceed in the face of congressional opposition is near-fantasy. President Barack Obama delivers a statement on Syria in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, D.C. on August 31, 2013. Mr. Obama must figure that if he gets authorization, he nets two political wins. He provides himself cover for taking action, while simultaneously presenting Congress's vote as affirmation of his flawed plan to lob a few missiles and call it a day. When that pinprick bombing has no discernible effect on Assad's murderous campaign, Mr. Obama will note that this was Congress's will. As he said in his Saturday speech, "all of us should be accountable" for Mr. Obama's actions. A congressional vote is all the more tantalizing to a president who lives and breathes rough politics, and who knows that this Syria debate will be particularly punishing for Republicans. The coming weeks will highlight the growing rift in the GOP between the traditional defenders of national security and the party's libertarian-isolationist wing. While the latter does not yet occupy a large space in the GOP, its members are loud and wield much influence among the cranky conservative grass roots.This makes a lot more sense than it does to believe Obama is really invested in the situation in Syria. He only established his chemical-weapons "red line" in the first place because someone demanded to know if he had a red line and he had to say something. That's why Strassel rightly points out that Obama is in a box and needs a way out of it. Nothing he has said or done since his remarks on Saturday are consistent with a serious approach to protecting America's strategic national interests or those of our allies, but it is all consistent with the cynical maneuverings of a president who hopes to hang a problem on his political opposition. One cheer for McCain for figuring out that Obama's proposed action is designed to serve Obama's interests, not to make anything different in Syria. I know a lot of folks around here don't want any action - whether it's limited and symbolic or big and designed to make a difference - but if McCain at least insists on something that will matter in order to get his support, I think he deserves some credit for that.
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Dan Calabrese’s column is distributed by HermanCain.com, which can be found at HermanCain
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