Today, President Obama called upon Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad “to step aside.”
Well, I will say it’s preferable to telling the world the United States should not be seen as “meddling” as he had done with Iran during their “election” in 2009. But now that Obama has called upon Assad to resign, I’m sure Assad would reply with something along the lines of, “Yeah, you and what army?”
After all, let’s not forget that less than six months ago, President Obama called upon Libyan dictator Colonel Muammar Gaddafi to step down. Although the Libyan rebels have advanced in recent weeks with help from NATO air support, Gaddafi is still large and in charge.
Let us also remember the only reason the United States has any military involvement whatsover is because the Arab League (which suspended Libya from its ranks) and the UN Security Council gave their blessing. At this point, there is no indication the Arab League much less the UN Security Council is going to authorize a no fly zone over Syria. Certainly, the Obama Administration isn’t going to initiate military action on its own in Syria (although, in fairness, there is little public appetite for such an endeavor.) While I am pleased that Obama has called upon Assad to step aside; his words, unfortunately, carry very little weight.