Iran: Managing U.S. Military Action in Syria

STRATFOR

 

Summary

"Conventional wisdom says that a weakened Syria would undermine Iran's regional influence, but a U.S. military intervention in the country could actually benefit Tehran. The government there has devised a sophisticated strategy for responding to a U.S. attack. Of course, Tehran would activate its militant proxies in the region, including Hezbollah, in the event that the United States launches an attack, but it would also exploit Washington's visceral opposition to Sunni jihadist and Islamist groups to gain concessions elsewhere."

Analysis ....

...An unfriendly Syria could cut Tehran off from Hezbollah, its pre-eminent non-state Arab ally, and jeopardize the position of its Iraqi allies.

Obama struggles to convince Congress Syria isn’t about him  " The idea that Obama’s motives are political is taking hold on both the left and right, underscoring the challenge he faces in securing support for a risky military venture abroad."

....

"But some Republicans say the vote is about Obama and his foreign policy stand, whether he likes it or not.

"Asked about Obama’s remark that the “red line” wasn’t his creation, Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.) said the president was mistaken.

" 'He needs to go back and read his quote," Chambliss said."

On Barack Obama, Democrats, and their foreign policy

USA Today; Obama's inept foreign policy    "Our friends are avoiding us, our foes aren't afraid of us, and it's looking more and more like nobody in charge knows what they're doing. It's enough to make you look back fondly on the smooth, capable diplomacy of the Jimmy Carter era. Alas, we have over three years of this left. One can only hope that we, and the world, will not pay too high a price for the ineptitude at the top."

Boston Herald;  Crown O Clown in Chief...  "Who are the two happiest people in the world this week?
"Bashar Assad and Jimmy Carter.
"One week ago, Assad was a war criminal awaiting certain retaliation from the most powerful military force the world has ever known; and Jimmy Carter still owned the title “Worst President Ever."
"Not anymore."

Doug Patton; Obama may want a Middle East mess "I have come to the conclusion that ideology trumps inexperience. His ego is so massive, and his leftist beliefs so strong, that he is willing to throw our country under the big international bus."

Jonah Goldberg; Obama bumbles as Syria burns  ...."The headline in the Times of Israel says it well, "Obama Shows Netanyahu Israel is Truly Alone."....

American Thinker; Postponing World War III  "How much of a mess has Obama made of the Middle East? The following two maps tell the story, five years ago versus today."....

 

However, in his extreme cowardice it's possible that Obama, inadvertently and unintentionally, has made the right decision for a change.

Obama passes the buck, this time to the world

Obama blames 'the world' for his foolish red line ultimatum  "The dog didn't eat his homework, but Barack Obama's latest attempt in Sweden to blame somebody else for the mess he has gotten himself into is scarcely more plausible."

WSJ: Blurred Red Lines / Harry Truman, please call Obama.   "If a President wants to lose a vote in Congress, this is what he would say. Minimize his personal leadership responsibility, and tell the Members of Congress that they are responsible for whatever happens if they fail to pass his resolution, as well as for the results of any military action that Mr. Obama would conduct."

 

Ed Henry Challenges Obama On Syrian 'Red Line' And Blocking Testimony of Benghazi survivors  Obama talks it to death. But he is right about needing to know who the party is that used gas.

Legal Insurrection 

My credibility is not on the line — the international community’s credibility is on the line…The world set a red line when governments representing 98 percent of the world’s population said the use of chemical weapons are abhorrent and passed a treaty forbidding their use even when countries are engaged in war.

 Pelosi has Obama's back, saying the red line was not drawn by Obama:
 

Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

President Obama Sends Support Message To Radical Muslim Brotherhood Front Group

JoshuaPundit 

 

"ISNA was an unindicted co-conspirator in the Holy Land Foundation trial. Like CAIR, they had been raising money for Hamas, some of which was used to murder American citizens. Many of their top executives were scheduled to be convicted and sent to prison in what would have been an open and shut second trial which might even have resulted in the groups being outlawed - until Eric Holder and the Obama Department of Justice filed 'decline To prosecute' motions on all of the players back in 2011."

Steyn and Coulter on the irony of this community organizer going to war

Ann Coulter

"Oh, how I long for the days when liberals wailed that “the rest of the world” hated America, rather than now, when the rest of the world laughs at us.

"With the vast majority of Americans opposing a strike against Syria, President Obama has requested that Congress vote on his powers as commander in chief under the Constitution. The president doesn’t need congressional approval to shoot a few missiles into Syria, nor — amazingly — has he said he’ll abide by such a vote, anyway.

"Why is Congress even having a vote? This is nothing but a fig leaf to cover Obama’s own idiotic “red line” ultimatum to President Bashar al-Assad of Syria on chemical weapons. The Nobel Peace Prize winner needs to get Congress on the record so that whatever happens, the media can blame Republicans."....

Mark Steyn; Perfunctory and ineffectual war-making in Syria is worse than nothing.   ...." The administration’s ingenious plan is to lose this war in far less time than we usually take. In the unimprovable formulation of an unnamed official speaking to the Los Angeles Times, the White House is carefully calibrating a military action “just muscular enough not to get mocked' .”

Barry at the Bat

http://terrellaftermath.com/

For you cat lovers

Youtube

Did the White House Help Plan the Syrian Chemical Attack?

Yossef Bodansky  "There is a growing volume of new evidence from numerous sources in the Middle East — mostly affiliated with the Syrian opposition and its sponsors and supporters — which makes a very strong case, based on solid circumstantial evidence, that the August 21, 2013, chemical strike in the Damascus suburbs was indeed a pre-meditated provocation by the Syrian opposition.
"The extent of US foreknowledge of this provocation needs further investigation because available data puts the “horror” of the Barack Obama White House in a different and disturbing light."
Yossef Bodansky, Senior Editor, GIS/Defense & Foreign Affairs

Hat tip to Rush Limbaugh who posted this today: Bodansky: What If Bashar Didn't Do It?   "Yes, Kerry dining with Bashar back in 2009 and talking about what a great guy Bashar was. The bottom line is this administration is as incompetent as Jimmy Carter.  There's only one difference.  If there were anybody else running this administration right now, this would be reported as incompetent and as buffoonish and as frightening at Jimmy Carter's." 

America no longer dependent on Middle Eastern oil - YAHOOIE!

Not because of this Democrat administration; in spite of it! And thanks to fracking, among other things
Freedom Fighters Journal

 

"No thanks to Obama, as this was all done by private industry on private land."

US energy changes Mideast   "That’s because this month America will produce more oil than it imports, thanks to the unprecedented energy boom of recent years."And the International Energy Agency estimates that the US is on track to surpass Saudi Arabia in oil production by the time our next president is sworn into office in 2017."

Hat tip to Ronbo at the Freedom Fighters Journal

UPDATED: This war hawk pushing Obama to bomb Syria

WND   – "U.N. Ambassador Samantha Power is a driving force urging President Obama to strike in Syria, according to informed Middle Eastern diplomats."
....
"Yet behind the scenes, Power is a central player at pushing Obama to launch a military campaign in Syria, the diplomats told WND.
"The diplomats said Power has been working with Syrian foes Turkey and Saudi Arabia as well as with key Syrian opposition figures in trying to convince the White House to act sooner in Syria."

http://terrellaftermath.com/

Andrew Klavan; Miley Hits Bottom

PJMedia

"Some people saw Miley’s twerking buttocks as signs of the death of our culture, but I suspect the fact that people are looking to pop music for signs of the death of our culture is a sign of the death of our culture."

 

From The Onion: Let Me Explain Why Miley Cyrus’ VMA Performance Was Our Top Story This Morning   "But boy oh boy did it get us some web traffic. Which is why I, Meredith Artley, managing editor of CNN.com, put the story in our top spot. Those of us watching on Google Analytics saw the number of homepage visits skyrocket the second we put up that salacious image of Miley Cyrus dancing half nude on the VMA stage."

But Miley has given inspiration in so many areas:

Obama’s climb-down on Syria attack spells “military nightmare” for allies Israel, Turkey, Jordan

http://terrellaftermath.com/

DEBKAfile  ...."Syria, Iran and Hizballah are let off the hook by the lifting of the imminent US military threat against Bashar Assad over his use of chemical weapons on Aug. 21. Not only that, but the threesome have won an unforeseen tactical advantage: President Obama’s turn to Congress to authorize that attack gives them at least a fortnight for launching a pre-emptive strike against US forces and its allies."