A Reluctant Warrior Tiptoes to War
Barack Obama has just taken his first baby steps into a war in Syria that may define and destroy his presidency.
Thursday, while he was ringing in Gay Pride Month with LGBT revelers, a staffer, Ben Rhodes, informed the White House press that U.S. weapons will be going to the Syrian rebels.
For two years Obama has stayed out of this sectarian-civil war that has consumed 90,000 lives. Why is he going in now?
The White House claims it now has proof Bashar Assad used sarin gas to kill 100-150 people, thus crossing a “red line” Obama had set down as a “game changer.” Defied, his credibility challenged, he had to do something.
Yet Assad’s alleged use of sarin to justify U.S. intervention seems less like our reason for getting into this war than our excuse.
For the White House decided to intervene weeks ago, before the use of sarin was confirmed. And why would Assad have used only tiny traces? Where is the photographic evidence of the disfigured dead?
What proof have we the rebels did not fabricate the use of sarin or use it themselves to get the gullible Americans to fight their war?
Yet, why would President Obama, whose proud boast is that he will have extricated us from the Afghan and Iraq wars, as Dwight Eisenhower did from the Korean War, plunge us into a new war?
He has been under severe political and foreign pressure to do something after Assad and Hezbollah recaptured the strategic town of Qusair and began preparing to recapture Aleppo, the largest city.
Should Assad succeed, it would mean a decisive defeat for the rebels and their backers: the Turks, Saudis and Qataris. And it would mean a geostrategic victory for Iran, Hezbollah and Russia, who have proven themselves reliable allies.
To prevent this defeat and humiliation, we are now going to ship arms and ammunition to keep the rebels going and in control of enough territory to negotiate a peace that will remove Assad.
We are going to make this a fair fight.
What is wrong with this strategy? It is the policy of an amateur. It treats war like a game. It ignores the lessons of history. And, as it continues a bloodbath with no prospect of an end to it, it is immoral.
In every great civil war of modernity – the Russian civil war of 1919-1921, the Spanish civil war of 1936-1939, the Chinese civil war of 1945-49, one side triumphs and takes power. The other loses and lives with the consequences – defeat, death, exile.
What is the likely reaction to our escalation from humanitarian aid to military aid? Counter-escalation. Russia, Iran and Hezbollah are likely to rush in more weapons and troops to accelerate the progress of Assad’s army before the American weapons arrive.
And if they raise and call, what does Obama do?
Already, a clamor is being heard from our clients in the Middle East and Congress to crater Syria’s runways with cruise missiles, to send heavy weapons to the rebels, to destroy Assad’s air force on the ground, to bomb his antiaircraft sites.
All of these are acts of war. Yet under the Constitution, Congress alone authorizes war.
When did Congress authorize Obama to take us to war in Syria? Where does our imperial president get his authority to draw red lines and attack countries that cross them?
Have we ceased to be a republic? Has Congress become a mere spectator to presidential decisions on war and peace?
As Vladimir Putin seems less the reluctant warrior, what do we do if Moscow answers the U.S. escalation by delivering on its contract to provide S-300 antiaircraft missiles to Damascus, which can cover half of Israel?
Obama has put us on the escalator to a war already spilling over Syria’s borders into Turkey, Lebanon, Iraq and Jordan, a war that is now sundering the entire Middle East along Sunni and Shia lines.
He is making us de facto allies of the Al-Qaida-like al-Nusra Front, of Hamas and jihadists from all across the region, and of the Muslim Brotherhood. Egypt’s President Mohammed Morsi just severed ties to Syria and is demanding a “no-fly zone,” which one imagines the United States, not the Egyptian air force, would have to enforce.
Our elites shed tears over the 90,000 dead in Syria. But what we are about to do will not stop the killing, but simply lengthen the duration of the war and increase the numbers of dead and wounded.
At the top of this escalator our country has begun to ascend is not just a proxy war with Iran in Syria, but a real war that would entail a disaster for the world economy.
If the ouster of Assad is what the Sunni powers of Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Egypt demand, why not let them do it?
Anti-interventionists should demand a roll-call vote in Congress on whether Obama has the authority to take us into this Syrian war.
Copyright 2013 Creators Syndicate
Read more by Patrick J. Buchanan
- Let Allah Sort It Out – June 20th, 2013
- Outside Agitators – June 6th, 2013
- The Unraveling of Sykes-Picot – May 27th, 2013
- What Should Americans Die For? – May 16th, 2013
- Who Are the War Criminals in Syria? – May 6th, 2013
A Reluctant Warrior Tiptoes to War
June 17th, 2013 at 9:38 pm
[...] This article originally appeared on: Antiwar [...]
Zephyr Global Report
June 17th, 2013 at 10:49 pm
[...] A Reluctant Warrior Tiptoes to War by Patrick J. Buchanan [...]
Mark Thomason
June 17th, 2013 at 11:36 pm
I agree with Buchanan, except for one thing. Obama is even weaker than he credits.
Obama is being backed into this war by a baying mob of crazies. Obama is afraid of them. He is backing away, but only as much as he "must" out of his fear of them.
Obama has made no choice. He is not tiptoeing in or compromising. He is just shying away, again.
tom mauel
June 18th, 2013 at 12:43 am
Great article. Hopefully major media will allow Buchanan to give them hell on the talk circuit.
A Reluctant Warrior Tiptoes to War | IndyInAsia-Pacific
June 18th, 2013 at 4:03 am
[...] Patrick J. Buchanan Barack Obama has just taken his first baby steps into a war in Syria that may define and destroy [...]
George A
June 18th, 2013 at 4:09 am
Re: Ben Rhodes, informed the White House press that U.S. weapons will be going to the Syrian…..
Must read on this guy and his brother at today's Prison Planet
Davejoe
June 18th, 2013 at 4:12 am
The myth of US President Barack Obama as "reluctant warrior" in Syria is pure nonsense. http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/MID-01-1…
He and his coterie of humanitarian bombers have never seen a war they did not like
outsider
June 18th, 2013 at 4:56 am
Obama was elected president in '08 over McCain, in large part because he was the 'peace' candidate. It's quite ironic, and also infuriating, that the very unpopular and demented views of McCain are now winning.
John V. Walsh
June 18th, 2013 at 5:08 am
Great column.
But the sending of any arms, light or heavy, constitutes an act of war.
Obama has already taken the US to war, without Congressional vote, as in Libya.
At least in the case of Iraq, Bush paused to lie to Congress and get a vote.
Obama has committed an impeachable offense in Syria, Libya and, if truth be told, in many other places.
Impeachment is the solution but it will not happen because Congress is even more eager for these wars than Obama while 70% of Amercians oppose war on Syria. Our democracy is a fraud.
omop
June 18th, 2013 at 5:33 am
Empires end due to what seems to be the belief that the " good times never end ".
It also should be quite obvious too to any thinking American to ask the question " what the f*ck " have the $ 4 trillion of U.S. tax payers spent on regime change in Iraq and the decade long war in Afghanistan to benefit security of USA?
Whether the American policies and actions continue to follow the recommendations of Richard Perle's and others made at the request of Bibi Nethanyahu in the so-called "Clean Break Plan" the only future in the ME will be wars. The one decision left to any administration " do we participate or not " and what the he** will we gain from participating.
outsider
June 18th, 2013 at 5:41 am
MSNBC already fired Pat for writing the truth in "Death of a Superpower." FOX is owned and controlled by the Neocons (FBN fired the Judge for also telling the truth on his 'Freedom Watch' show). The msm has pretty much blackballed Buchanan as well as any truth teller.
Bruce Richardson
June 18th, 2013 at 6:15 am
Classic Buchanan, brilliant analysis and articulation. There never seems a respite from those in government who willfully break the law when it comes to their interets. Were we to mobilize Russia with our empirical conquests were in deep do-do! The phony allegations of the use of sarin reminds one of the WMD present in Iraq and a Afghan connection to 9/11. As we have learned, Iraq did not possess WMD and not a single Afghan played a role in 9/11. In fact, we have learned that during July 2001 at a conference in Berlin, US officials informed Pakistan Secretary Niaz Naik that "we will attack Afghanistan before the snow flies in October, months prior to 9/11.
There seems no end to the phony allegations and resultant excuses from which to march to endless war.
ML3
June 18th, 2013 at 7:39 am
I voted for this disappointing shill and warmonger. Unlike most Obamabots and disciples of GW Bush, I can admit the horse I backed is a loser. If people still have notions of any difference between the Dems and Repubs other than cosmetic differences on wedge issues (maybe some young political neophytes – not long ago I was one) they can be laid to rest. The War Party Rules. Plans for war on all of Israel's enemies was booked years ago. Any US politician deviating from those plans risks blackmail or worse.
He works for his paymasters in Israel. None of these pols care about public opinion any longer.
Instead of doing some good in his last term as Pres, he is going down an extremely negative and dangerous path, one which we the people do not approve of.
This whole thing makes me sick and someone definitely needs to smack the Israelis down before the start WW3 to ensure their illegitimate state's survival at the expense of the rest of us.
FLgeezer
June 18th, 2013 at 9:08 am
>There seems no end to the phony allegations and resultant excuses from which to march to endless war.
By way of confirmation, did anyone notice the almost immediate assertion that Iran intends to send 4000 soldiers to aid Assad's military? America's neocon press moguls will promote any falsehood and/or rumors necessary to start their long-desired war with Iran. Massive civil disobedience on the part of we America-Firsters should be the order of the day.
charles caruso
June 18th, 2013 at 9:29 am
First of all, the 90,000 figure is probably as phony as the 'tens of thousands' reportedly killed by Qadoofi in Libya. (It was in the hundreds).The 'media' makes it sound as if all of the 90,000 were on one side (and women and children too) Dont both sides have guns? Must be some govt casualties that media doesn't mention.
Second of all, the tide has turned and Assad is winning. Why back a bunch of losing raggedyass 'rebels' who love to pose for the TV cameras, like in Libya.
Only one 'country' would benefit from U.S. intervention, and we all know who that is, dont we?
And they couldnt beat Hezbollah a couple of years ago. Helen Thomas, where are you now that we need you?
Moe7
June 18th, 2013 at 9:39 am
Obama is delusional. He believes that he will go down in history as a great president who protected democracy. Won't he be shocked when in his old age, lying in his death bed he finds the opposite to be true.
Joe
June 18th, 2013 at 10:46 am
Brilliant article. But one thing that I would like to be mentioned whenever the figure of 90-97000 dead in Syria is mentioned is to put it in context. According to London Based human rights watch, half of these 97000 people are actually the Assad soldiers and Syrian military forces. About a third of them are the civilians (most of them killed by terrorists rebels when they take over their homes and use these homes as shooting grounds against the government). Only about one seventh of the 97000 dead people are the cannibal rapist rebels with a sizable number of foreign non-syrian jihadis among them.
Augustbrhm
June 18th, 2013 at 4:33 pm
america is broke obama knows this and will not get involved to placate the he will send token weapons but no boots on the ground or fly zone america comes first the chinese will not finance another american wa“““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““`r
outsider
June 18th, 2013 at 5:19 pm
Jack Kennedy, who many historians think was ready to end the Cold War with the USSR, was the last US president to tell the truth. Look where it got him.
anndoc
June 18th, 2013 at 5:48 pm
How many more times can the blank check that came with the AUMF be updated, initialed by the current POTUS and presented to US taxpayers to shell out (or borrow) more money to throw down military rat-holes all over the globe before Congress decides to reconcile the country's bank statement?
Lorraine
June 18th, 2013 at 7:09 pm
STAY OUT OF SYRIA. Please….
Parbes
June 18th, 2013 at 7:49 pm
Something seems wrong to me wih this tabulation, also. If true, this would mean that three-and-a-half times as many Syrian military forces have died, as jihadis. Are the ragtag jihadi terrorists that good at fighting – or the Syrian army that bad? I kind of doubt it – especially considering the fact that, until now at least, the Syrian government forces have enjoyed general superiority in weaponry! Or is there some missing information, some details missing, that we don't know about?
Joe
June 18th, 2013 at 8:47 pm
There is nothing wrong with the numbers. The figures are official from Syrian human rights watch based in London (actually an anti-Assad entity).
I really hope your doubt is not artificial to promote war mongering and neo-con ideas.
At any rate, the suicide bombers and IED placers kill many more than themselves. This is not US military we are talking about, so superiority argument is basically crap. It is a third world country army fighting western trained and armed terrorists, much like the Soviet and Afghan forces fighting Mujahedeen, only at this time, there are no Soviets.
ATM
June 19th, 2013 at 5:19 am
What ever he is he should be more reluctant. The Israeli have been fighting with their closely related brothers in the region for thousands of years and the Sunnis have been fighting with their brothers for thousands of years and the Shia have been fighting with their family for 1000s of years. This is one big intra family fight and everyone knows that interceding in family matters does not work well for those that intercede.
This has just been going on too long we could not fix Palestine vs Israel and that is relatively simple compared to the other fights going on.
It does not matter who is in controls on the ground in the Middle East we control the air and the sea and oil cannot move except with our permission. Who is going to stop selling oil?