Leid Stories - 09/03/13

Debating Obama’s Itchy Trigger Finger

He’s following Britain’s David Cameron lead, seeking Congress’s approval to unleash the fury of “the world’s oldest constitutional democracy” against Syria’s Bashar al-Assad for allegedly killing hundreds of civilians in rebel strongholds with chemical weapons. But President Obama is pushing for a different result. (The Parliament's 285-to-272 vote last week sank Cameron's impassioned plea that Britain join a U.S.-led military strike against Syria.)

Team Obama is in overdrive, working feverishly to get a bipartisan go-ahead-and-bomb-Syria vote when legislators return from summer break on Sept. 9 (haven't they been on break for four and a half years?) to debate the issue. There are signs -- and reasons -- that Obama's surprise strategy of seeking congressional approval may not survive debate.

Leid Stories isn’t waiting. We debate the president’s position, as stated in his Aug. 31 news briefing, and offer thoughtful analyses of related issues.