House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, backs President Obama’s request for authorization to intervene militarily in Syria, as does House Democratic Minority Nancy Pelosi, D-California.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nevada, is similarly “in,” while Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky, in mum.
The president has done a pretty good job of selling his plan to congressional leaders.
He has not, however, sold it to the American people.
Thus, when members of Congress decide which side they’re on in the Syrian intervention votes that are expected to take place next week, they will have to consider whether they want to respond to pro-war pressure from inside-the-Beltway—as so many did when they authorized action against Iraq—or to the anti-war sentiments of their constituents.
Reflecting on the proposed intervention, Congressman Alan Grayson, D-Florida, allowed as how “nobody wants this except the military-industrial complex.”
Continue reading: http://www.thenation.com/blog/176017/nobody-wants-except-military-industrial-complex#
Commentary by The Secular Jurist: Alan Grayson’s provocative statement could use some nuanced clarification. Our perspective maintains that the U.S. political establishment is pushing for military intervention in Syria because:
1) The geopolitics of the world is changing, and American hegemony feels compelled to reassert itself.
2) The Arab Spring undermined the old secular/military power structure which has allowed the Middle East to devolve into a regional sectarian war between Sunni and Shiite (Shi’a) Muslims. Western nations, who are aligned with the interests of global capitalists, have sided with the more business-friendly Sunnis (Saudi Arabia, Turkey, etc.) despite the terrorist activities of its extremist factions such as al-Qaeda. America, in particular, is diametrically opposed to the Iran/Hezbollah-led Shiites because of its radical stance against Israel.
3) The Middle East turmoil has drawn in other players from the world stage, like Russia and China, who have economic and other interests on the Iranian side. In effect, this has escalated into a proxy war with the U.S.
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