Washington D.C.House Armed Services Committee Ranking Member Adam Smith released the following statement after the President’s speech on Syria:

“Last night, the President made it clear that the Assad regime murdered more than 1,400 people, including more than 400 children, with chemical weapons. This was a despicable act and I agree that the world must respond.    

“I am encouraged to see that the President has postponed a vote to authorize the use of force in Syria to pursue a potential diplomatic solution. While we have not seen specifics of the proposal, which will be put forward by Russia, it could require that Syria’s chemical weapons be put under the control of the international community and destroyed. 

“The proposal could potentially prevent and deter Assad from using chemical weapons again while avoiding military action. This would be the ideal outcome, but we should not rush to judgment. The proposal is still in its infancy and it must be fully vetted.

“This is a difficult situation, and ideally a diplomatic solution is achieved, but I still remain undecided that a military strike is the appropriate course of action should diplomacy fail.”

 

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