September 10, 2013

If Obama Loses Syria Vote, So What?

September 10, 2013 Buck Banks

Presidents suffer defeats all the time. Obama lost on cap-and-trade. He’s lost on plenty of judicial and executive branch nominations. He couldn’t get agreement for a grand bargain. He lost on gun control. What’s more, Republicans have been opposing him on virtually everything from the day he took office. In what concrete way would a defeat on Syria change this dynamic in even the slightest way?

— Kevin Drum, writing in Mother Jones.

If Obama Loses Syria Vote, There Goes His Credibility

September 10, 2013 Buck Banks

It is to President Obama’s great discredit that he has staked this credibility on a vote whose outcome he failed to game out in advance. But if he loses that vote, the national interest as well as his political interests will take a tangible hit: for the next three years, American foreign policy will be in the hands of a president whose promises will ring consistently hollow, and whose ability to make good on his strategic commitments will be very much in doubt.

— Ross Douthat, writing in the New York Times.

Marco the Scribe

September 10, 2013 Buck Banks

Marco Rubio’s expanding his literary fame
With a tome on the GOP’s future, writ plain.
While his authorial aspirations
Won’t exceed literary expectations,
A book’s still a fine tool in a presidential campaign.

Poll: Only One-Third of Americans Support Syria Strikes

September 10, 2013 Buck Banks

33%

Of those polled in a new Wall Street Journal/NBC News survey said Congress should approve President Obama’s request to attack Syria, while less than a quarter thinks military action is in the national interest.

Day: September 10, 2013

If Obama Loses Syria Vote, So What?

— Kevin Drum, writing in Mother Jones.

If Obama Loses Syria Vote, There Goes His Credibility

— Ross Douthat, writing in the New York Times.

Marco the Scribe

Poll: Only One-Third of Americans Support Syria Strikes

33%

Of those polled in a new Wall Street Journal/NBC News survey said Congress should approve President Obama’s request to attack Syria, while less than a quarter thinks military action is in the national interest.

Poetic Justice

Verbatim

“They’ve invested heavily in AI labs. They’ve invested heavily in data centers. So, the first family has a financial stake in this industry, and as a result, the president of the United States is compromised.”

— “Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-GA) on Monday said President Trump will likely not heed calls from technology leaders to implement guardrails on the development of artificial intelligence because of his family’s investments in the industry,” NewsNation reports.

— Jane Haman

“We’re working through some political issues in Israel. I think we agree with them on the end state. They just have a crazy election, and that makes them a little irrational in certain regards.”

— Jared Kushner, quoted by CBS News, on the lack of progress in Gaza.

Numerati

470

Reuters has documented at least 470 targets of retribution under Trump’s leadership – from federal employees and prosecutors to universities and media outlets. The list illuminates the sweeping effort by the president and his administration to punish dissent and reshape the government.

$184 million

50%

38%

31%