President Obama Seems to (Begin to) Back Away from Decision to Intervene in Syria
Last Saturday President Obama said he had “decided that the United States should take military action against Syrian regime targets,” and that he had made that decision “as Commander-in-Chief based on what I am convinced is our national security interests.” (My emphasis.)
After a week in which he has failed to garner much support for that action, at home or abroad, the President today said he is “no
Published by The Lawfare Institute
in Cooperation With
Last Saturday President Obama said he had “decided that the United States should take military action against Syrian regime targets,” and that he had made that decision “as Commander-in-Chief based on what I am convinced is our national security interests.” (My emphasis.)
After a week in which he has failed to garner much support for that action, at home or abroad, the President today said he is “not itching for military action” and added that he is “consult[ing] with our international partners” and “listening to Congress” and “if there are good ideas that are worth pursuing, then I'm going to be open to them.”
Jack Goldsmith is the Learned Hand Professor at Harvard Law School, co-founder of Lawfare, and a Non-Resident Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. Before coming to Harvard, Professor Goldsmith served as Assistant Attorney General, Office of Legal Counsel from 2003-2004, and Special Counsel to the Department of Defense from 2002-2003.
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