The GOP's insane, inaccurate, bizarro history of Obama's Syria failure

Obama's foreign policy in Syria has been stupid. But the Republican response to it has descended into gibbering insanity.

President Obama
(Image credit: SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images)

Conservatives today are incensed that President Obama didn't plunge America deeply into a needless war in Syria two years ago. They see a refugee crisis expanding to destabilize the region, the emergence of Russia as a key regional player in the Middle East, and the threat of terror in Europe and think, "If only Obama had sunk us deeper into this mess!"

But two years ago, it was conservative opposition to a needless war in Syria that stopped Obama from plunging in.

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Michael Brendan Dougherty

Michael Brendan Dougherty is senior correspondent at TheWeek.com. He is the founder and editor of The Slurve, a newsletter about baseball. His work has appeared in The New York Times Magazine, ESPN Magazine, Slate and The American Conservative.