Tuesday, September 03, 2013

Downfall XI: Will Obama Attack Syria Without Congress?



I should start by saying the above is not a stale headline.  Yes, Obama has said he will seek Congressional authorization for an attack on Syria. 

But what most are not noticing is that he has not said (and in a press conference just now seemed to take pains not to say) is that if Congress says “No” then he will not attack.  Moreover, both NBC and Fox are reporting that Obama intends to attack Syria whether Congress approves it or not.  Donald Sensing concludes that this is, therefore, not speculation but comes from that White House itself.  And he wonders “how members of Congress of either party feel now that they've learned their votes on the matter are not actually relevant to the President.”

Sensing is on top of this as few are.  And I agree with him that there is the possibility of a serious Constitutional crisis over Syria if Obama goes full dictator and bombs Syria even if Congress refuses authorization.

And polls indicate strong majorities of the public oppose an attack on Syria, especially if it is not authorized by Congress.  This could be one act of tyranny he won’t get away with.

Such an event would wake up more that Obama likes to play the dictator with utter contempt of Congress and of Consent of the Governed.  It would greatly lessen tolerance of his tyrannical tendencies in Congress and even in the snooze media.  It would even weaken his base, much of which is profoundly anti-war and opposes strikes on Syria.  I think there would be the very real possibility that national anger would be such that impeachment in the House might be hard to stop and conviction in the Senate a possibility if still a remote one.

In short, if you think anger over Obama is bad now . . .

But note that I did put a question mark in the headline.  I doubt he is foolish enough to defy Congress by attacking Syria without authorization.

But then I have overestimated Obama before.  And, frankly, I’ve overestimated America as well.

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