Members of Congress met today to discuss the possibility of the United States using military force against Syria. Congressman Albio Sires (D-8), a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told NJ Today Managing Editor Mike Schneider that as long as the resolution includes a clause that there will be no troops on the ground, he will support the strike.
Sires also said he supports limiting the action to a 90-day period. “We want to make sure that we don’t wind up like in Iraq,” he said.
Some have expressed concern that limiting the type and length of action could hurt the U.S. in the future, but Sires pointed out that Gen. Martin Dempsey, who testified in front of lawmakers, said he believes he can get the job done with the resolution as it is.
During today’s hearing, Sires asked Secretary of State John Kerry, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel and Dempsey about the possibility of destabilization in the region. Sires said there is the possibility of having 3 million refugees by the end of the year which is a destabilizing factor for countries like Jordan and Turkey.
“So I asked the secretary about the impact of the strike on Syria. Are they making plans? Are they putting in policies? Because I have a feeling with this strike, you’re gonna have an increase in refugees. And the secretary says yes and the secretary says that the impact will be worse if we don’t have a strike on Syria,” Sires explained.
Other lawmakers have said their constituents have spoken out against military action. Sires said he’s hearing the same thing, but will likely support a military strike anyway.
“I am more concerned with the fact that you have a situation here where if you don’t do anything, this man is going to destabilize the entire region. And then it’ll be worse down the line for us,” he said. “I take all the constituents’ concerns but I’m concerned about an explosion that’s gonna happen in this region if we don’t do anything with this guy Assad.”
Sires said it’s not an easy job Congress has right now to make the decision to strike and explain it to the public. “The American people are weary, especially after what happened with Iraq when they told them there was weapons of mass destruction and it turned out to be a lie,” he said.