This morning’s Attack on the Syrian government controlled Shayrat airbase was the American response to the Al-Assad regime’s gas attack on the rebel held town of Khan Sheikhoun in Iblid province that killed 70 civilians including many children earlier this week which was launched from the base.
Reactions
As can be expected from such an action by President Donald Trump, the reaction from the Capitol was swift and support for a response to an attack by Dictator Bashar Al-Assad that shocked and outraged the world.
In a show of support for the Oval Office the reaction of Republican House Leader Paul Ryan was to label the military action as “appropriate and just.” While this was an expected for a Republican President not all members so the GOP reacted in the same way.
Other Republicans such as Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham, recognized hawks of the GOP also supported the White House in its decision to punish the Al-Assad regime for its gas attack this week, but not all the Republicans are wholeheartedly behind the military action by the United States.
In what is swiftly becoming the favoured means of making announcements Republican Senator Paul Rand used Twitter to state that “Our prior interventions in this region have done nothing to make us safer and Syria will be no different.” This comment makes us remember the results of American interventions in Iraq and Libya that led to the growth of ISIS in the region.
Naturally the reaction of the Democrats, while not totally condemning the actions of the military have expressed doubts about the aim of this morning’s missile launches against Syria.
Congressman Ruben Gallego tweeted “What is our strategy here? What is our end goal? Why did we have to strike today? That is not how to conduct a military strike”. In the same vein Democrat Ro Khanna reflected Paul Rand’s comments in tweeting “Have we still not learned from Iraq and Libya? Now #Syria? Every time we have attacked since 2001, terrorism has spread.”
In a reminder of the reason for the missile launch Democrat Congressman Seth Moulton said on Twitter, “So POTUS cares enough about the Syrian people to launch 50 Tomahawks but not enough to let the victims of Assad find refuge and freedom here.
A sentiment shared by fellow Democrat Beth Watson Coleman who tweeted “There’s real hypocrisy in how you (President Donald Trump) will condemn Assad’s crimes but won’t allow his victims to seek asylum in our country.”
These words explain well the reason for the protests against Donald Trump’s attempts at banning Moslem immigration from seven “at risk” countries in the Middle East, including Syria.
Authorization
One common theme amongst Republicans and Democrats was that of authorization for the launch. This theme has some importance as it must be remembered, as did Huffington Post overnight that previously Congress had denied permission for the Barack Obama Administration to launch military actions on Syria.
In a tweet Democrat Barbara Lee said “This is an act of war. Congress needs to come back into session and hold a debate. Anything less is an abdication of our responsibility.”
This sentiment was shared by Republican Joaquin Castro who quoted himself in a tweet which said in part “...but Congress plays an important role in authorizing military force. I continue to believe that Congress must authorize any additional use of force against the Syrian government.”
No doubt the next few days will be ones of intense debate amongst and between Republicans and Democrats in regards to this morning’s missile attack on Syria.
This is natural and necessary for a Democracy but this selection also shows that President Donald Trump cannot assume unconditional support for his actions.
In any case, Republicans and Democrats both have shown that in the future the Oval Office must not only act, but must do so within the bounds that had been set in the past for previous Administrations.
The next step is now once more in the hands of the Oval Office.
