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.
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.
This history is clear. It is undeniable. But many of my fellow conservatives, when faced with the choice of acknowledging reality or deriding a Democratic president as weak and feckless, will always and infallibly choose the latter.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
This isn't a new tactic. But it still has a disastrous effect on the Republican Party. It means that when Obama does some stupidly hawkish thing, like trying to manipulate the Syrian war through training programs, or knocking over a government in Libya, the Republicans' only response is to try and outbid him on stupidity or hawkishness. Usually both.
A jeremiad by Walter Russell Mead provides an almost perfect specimen of the genre. He says that the Syrian refugee crisis is "the direct consequence of President Obama's decision to stand aside and watch Syria burn." Mead claims that many who oppose resettling Syrian refugees in the states "were willing to sign up for the U.S. military and go to fight ISIS in Syria to protect the refugees." He castigates the administration because its "extreme caution about engagement in Syria led it to insist on such a thorough process of vetting potential Syrian allies that years of effort and tens of millions of dollars resulted in only a paltry handful of people being found acceptable to receive American weapons and training." Mead works himself up:
There is a lot to criticize about Obama's Syria policy. But Mead's charge is bunk from end to end. The president recognized the legitimacy of certain rebel groups to rule Syria as far back as December 2012, essentially wish-casting the end of the Assad regime. The administration, though it never quite admitted it openly, also began arming the rebels. This covert arming was not exactly cautious, and far from effective. Islamist rebels simply began to steal the weapons from America's preferred rebels. The Islamists also stole American materiel from Iraq. Thus we now have an exquisite testimony to American foreign policy, where a "moderate" rebel uses an American-provided TOW missile system to destroy an American humvee used by an Islamist.
Yes, it's true that in 2013 Obama stumbled into drawing a "red line" on Bashar al-Assad's use of chemical weapons. And then, when it seemed to be crossed, he took an opportunity to back away from the line, accepting a Russian offer to take chemical weapons from Assad. But Republicans are responsible for drawing him back from that red line. Obama demanded a vote on action in Syria, properly, given that war powers are supposed to rest with the representatives of the people. Republicans balked.
Obama made the case for war with Syria. He gave a primetime speech about his red line. He pitched an interventionist policy to the G20 summit in Russia. He sent his Cabinet out, including Secretary of State John Kerry, and Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, to testify before Congress, along with his chairman of the Joint Chiefs. The GOP came out against it. Even some of the most hawkish among them. Although for most of 2013, Marco Rubio had criticized Obama, saying that the "time for passive engagement has come to an end," he bowed to public opinion — even among conservatives — and voted against authorizing strikes.
"I have never supported the use of U.S. military force in the conflict. And I still don't," Rubio explained, quite inaccurately. Rubio was not alone. Many GOP senators and congressmen who took free shots at Obama for not engaging in Syria during the summer of 2013, suddenly, when asked to support such an action themselves, folded entirely.
One reason why they suddenly stood against plunging into Syria: Public opinion was overwhelmingly against the war.
At the time, Americans were (understandably) exhausted of war in the Middle East and (rightly) skeptical of America's ability to shape events and new regimes there. And they still are. The only thing that polls well about Syria is the empty promise to destroy ISIS with air power.
Republicans are so obsessed with blaming Obama for being cowardly and feckless in the Middle East, they cannot see that instead he has been reckless and too full of bravado. They castigate him for not halting a refugee crisis by means of war actions that surely would have exacerbated that refugee crisis. And it was a war they passed on when it was offered to them.
Obama's foreign policy in Syria has been stupid. But the Republican response to it has descended into gibbering insanity.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
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.
-
Why more and more adults are reaching for soft toys
Under The Radar Does the popularity of the Squishmallow show Gen Z are 'scared to grow up'?
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
Magazine solutions - December 27, 2024 / January 3, 2025
Puzzles and Quizzes Issue - December 27, 2024 / January 3, 2025
By The Week US Published
-
Magazine printables - December 27, 2024 / January 3, 2025
Puzzles and Quizzes Issue - December 27, 2024 / January 3, 2025
By The Week US Published
-
US election: who the billionaires are backing
The Explainer More have endorsed Kamala Harris than Donald Trump, but among the 'ultra-rich' the split is more even
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
US election: where things stand with one week to go
The Explainer Harris' lead in the polls has been narrowing in Trump's favour, but her campaign remains 'cautiously optimistic'
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Is Trump okay?
Today's Big Question Former president's mental fitness and alleged cognitive decline firmly back in the spotlight after 'bizarre' town hall event
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
The life and times of Kamala Harris
The Explainer The vice-president is narrowly leading the race to become the next US president. How did she get to where she is now?
By The Week UK Published
-
Will 'weirdly civil' VP debate move dial in US election?
Today's Big Question 'Diametrically opposed' candidates showed 'a lot of commonality' on some issues, but offered competing visions for America's future and democracy
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
1 of 6 'Trump Train' drivers liable in Biden bus blockade
Speed Read Only one of the accused was found liable in the case concerning the deliberate slowing of a 2020 Biden campaign bus
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
How could J.D. Vance impact the special relationship?
Today's Big Question Trump's hawkish pick for VP said UK is the first 'truly Islamist country' with a nuclear weapon
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Biden, Trump urge calm after assassination attempt
Speed Reads A 20-year-old gunman grazed Trump's ear and fatally shot a rally attendee on Saturday
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published