Senator Chris Murphy: US Allies Confused Over Syria Policy | Morning Joe

>>> JOINING US NOW IS A MEMBER OF THE FOREIGN RELATIONS
COMMITTEE, DEMOCRATIC SENATOR CHRIS MURPHY OF CONNECTICUT.
GOOD TO HAVE YOU ON BOARD THIS MORNING.
>> HEY, CHRIS, ALWAYS GREAT TO HAVE YOU ON.
WE'VE BEEN ASKING EVERYBODY, FOREIGN POLICY EXPERTS THIS
MORNING, WHAT THEY THOUGHT -- WHAT THEY'RE THINKING ABOUT THE
PAST 24, 48 HOURS OF POLICY SHIFTS FROM THE TRUMP
ADMINISTRATION. WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS?
>> IT'S DIZZYING, AND I THINK THE ONLY THING THAT'S CONSISTENT
ABOUT TRUMP'S FOREIGN POLICY SO FAR IS ITS INCONSISTENCY.
JUST WAIT A FEW DAYS, AND IT'S GOING TO CHANGE.
I WAS HEARTENED TO HEAR PRESIDENT TRUMP SAY THIS WEEK,
JUST IN THE LAST 24 HOURS, THAT HE'S NOT PLANNING ON MAJOR
MILITARY ACTION INSIDE SYRIA, BUT I DON'T THINK WE CAN TAKE
FOR GRANTED THE FACT THAT THIS STRIKE LAST WEEK WAS THE
BEGINNING AND THE END. WE'VE GOT 500 TO A THOUSAND
TROOPS INSIDE SYRIA RIGHT NOW WITH A REALLY UNDEFINED MISSION.
I THINK A LOT OF US WORRY ABOUT WHAT THE FUTURE OF OUR POLICY IS
IN SYRIA BECAUSE IT HAS SHIFTED SO RAPIDLY AND SO CONSISTENTLY
OVER THE PAST WEEK OR SO. SO OUR ALLIES ARE HYPERCONFUSED
RIGHT NOW. MEMBERS OF CONGRESS AREN'T SURE
WHAT WE SHOULD BE AUTHORIZING AND WHAT WE SHOULDN'T BE
AUTHORIZING, AND I'M NOT SURE THAT IT'S GOING TO SETTLE DOWN
ANY TIME SOON. >> SENATOR MURPHY, IT'S WILLIE
GEIST. YOU SAID THAT THE AIR STRIKES
ADD TO THE CHAOS, AS YOU PUT IT. IT ADDS TO THE CARNAGE.
IT WON'T TIP THE BALANCE ONE WAY OR THE OTHER.
DO YOU THINK PRESIDENT TRUMP'S STRIKE, HIS RESPONSE TO THE
CHEMICAL WEAPONS ATTACK FROM THE ASSAD REGIME IS NOT PREFERABLE
TO THE PRECEDENT UNDER PRESIDENT OBAMA WHERE THE RED LINE WAS
DRAWN AND NOTHING HAPPENED WHEN THE LINE WAS CROSSED?
>> I'VE BEEN PRETTY CLEAR THAT I THINK THAT THE PRESIDENT HAS TO
COME TO CONGRESS TO GET AUTHORIZATION FIRST, AND SO I
THINK THAT MAKES IT DIFFICULT FOR A U.S. PRESIDENT TO DRAW RED
LINES TO THE EXTENT THAT YOU HAVE TO GET AUTHORIZATION FROM
CONGRESS, PROBABLY SHOULD HAVE CHILLED PRESIDENT OBAMA'S
ENTHUSIASM FOR MAKING THAT SO CLEAR RHETORICALLY.
BUT THE FACT OF THE MATTER IS THIS STRIKE WAS ILLEGAL.
IT HAS TO BE AUTHORIZED BY CONGRESS.
TO THE EXTENT THAT THERE'S A BROADER COHERENCE ABOUT OUR
SYRIA POLICY THAT'S WHY CONGRESS NEEDS TO COME TO THE TABLE TO
STRAIGHTEN THIS OUT. ARE WE AT WAR WITH ASSAD?
WHAT IS OUR MISSION IN AND AROUND RAH KA.
ARE WE HELPING THEM RETAKE THAT TOWN OR HOLD AND FIGHT OFF A
VARIETY OF FACTIONS THAT TRY TO GET IN.
THAT WHY CONGRESS HAS TO WEIGH IN HERE.
THAT'S IN PART WHY I -- >> DO YOU THINK IT WAS THE RIGHT
THING TO DO SO STRIKE ASSAD IN A RESPONSE TO THE EMKICCAL WEAPONS
ATTACK? >> I DON'T THINK IT WAS, IN PART
BECAUSE YOU CANNOT BE ADDING TO THE CHAOS INSIDE SYRIA WHEN YOU
HAVE A POLICY OF LOCKING THOSE SAME CHILDREN INSIDE.
IF YOU GOING TO LAUNCH MILITARY STRIKES IN AND AROUND THE
SENSITIVE AREAS, THEN YOU HAVE TO HAVE HUMANITARIAN POLICY TO
HELP RESCUE THEM. SO SIMPLY DUE TO THE INHUMANE
REFUGEE POLICY THAT THIS PRESIDENT HAS, I DON'T THINK IT
MAKES SENSE. AND ULTIMATELY I JUST WORRY THEY
DON'T HAVE A PLAN TO DEAL WITH THE INEVITABLE ESCALATION THAT
WILL COME. IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT STEPS
TWO, THREE AND FOUR ARE, WHEN THE RUSSIANS AND THE IRANIANS
STEP UP THEIR ATTACKS IN RESPONSE TO YOUR MISSILE STRIKE,
THEN THE STRIKE ITSELF CAN'T BE EFFECTIVE.
>> DO YOU HAVE CONFIDENCE, SENATOR, IN THIS FOREIGN POLICY
TEAM, THOUGH, TO DEAL WITH THE INEVITABLE?
>> I HAVE MORE CONFIDENCE TODAY THAN I DID A FEW MONTHS AGO.
I THINK THE MOST IMPORTANT THING THAT'S HAPPENED FOR U.S.
NATIONAL SECURITY IS THE REPLACEMENT OF MICHAEL FLYNN
WITH GENERAL McMASTER. I THINK IT LOOKS AS IF SOME OF
OUR FOREIGN POLICY'S REVERTING A LITTLE BIT TO THE NORM BECAUSE
OF HIS EXPERIENCE. PRESIDENT OBAMA DID NOT HAVE A
WORKABLE POLICY INSIDE SYRIA AND PRESIDENT TRUMP DOESN'T HAVE A
WORKABLE POLICY. THAT'S ALL IN PART BECAUSE OF A
GENERAL HUBRIS THAT BOTH ADMINISTRATIONS HAVE HAD ABOUT
OUR ABILITY AS AMERICANS TO AFFECT THE BALANCE OF POWER ON
THE GROUND. I THINK WE ARE GOING TO HAVE TO
STEP BACK AND EXERCISE SOME RESTRAINT MILITARILY
UNDERSTANDING THE LIMITS OF THE BLUNT FORCE OF MILITARY POWER
THERE, SO I HAVE MORE FAITH THAN I USED TO, BUT YEAH, THE WAY IN
WHICH WE'RE PITCHING BACK AND FORTH BETWEEN WANTING ASSAD TO
GO, NOT WANTING ASSAD TO GO, SIGNALING DEEPER MILITARY
INVOLVEMENT, DRAWING LINES IN THE SAND AS TO WHAT WE'LL DO, IT
SHOULD BE WORRYING TO EVERYBODY WATCHING THIS.
>> SENATOR, ONE OF THE REASONS PEOPLE LIKE ME ARE SKEPTIC ALE
TO GO TO CONGRESS FOR AN AUTHORIZATION TO USE MILITARY
FORCE IN SYRIA WE THINK THE ODDS ARE GETTING CONSENSUS ARE CLOSE
TO ZERO AND PEOPLE WOULD BE SAYING ALL THE THINGS WE CAN'T
DO. SO RATHER THAN SENDING A SIGNAL
OF AMERICAN RESOLUTENESS, IT WOULD SEND A SIGNAL OF AMERICAN
WEAKNESS AND DIVISION. WHAT CONFIDENCE DO YOU HAVE THAT
YOU AND YOUR COLLEAGUES COULD REACH ANY SORT OF MEANINGFUL
CONSENSUS? >> WELL, I THINK WE COULD.
WE DID ON THE FOREIGN RELATIONS COMMITTEE WHEN PRESIDENT OBAMA
ASKED FOR AUTHORIZATION. WE PASSED AUTHORIZATION FOR
MILITARY FORCE THAT DIDN'T ULTIMATELY GET TO THE SENATE
BECAUSE THE DEAL WITH THE RUSSIANS CAME IN AND TOOK
PRECEDENT, BUT IF WE DIDN'T, RICHARD, YOU KNOW, THAT'S FOR
GOOD REASON. THAT'S BECAUSE OUR CONSTITUENTS
ARE VERY WARY OF MILITARY ACTION IN THE MIDDLE EAST.
THE PRESIDENT DOESN'T HAVE THE POWER TO MAKE WAR WITHOUT US,
JUST LIKE HE DOESN'T HAVE POWER TO CHANGE THE TAX RATES OF THE
NATION IF CONGRESS DOESN'T GIVE HIM THE AUTHORIZATION TO DO IT.
JUST BECAUSE IT'S HARD TO GET A MEASURE PASSED THROUGH CONGRESS
DOESN'T MEAN THAT YOU CAN GO AROUND US.
MY CONSTITUENTS ARE VERY WARY OF U.S. MILITARY INTERVENTION IN
THE MIDDLE EAST AGAIN. THEY SUPPORT THIS LIMITED
STRIKE, BUT THEY DON'T SUPPORT AN AUTHORIZATION THAT PERHAPS
GIVES THE PRESIDENT OPEN-ENDED COMMITMENT WHICH IS WHY IT WOULD
BE HARD TO PASS. JUST BECAUSE IT'S DIFFICULT TO
GET SOMETHING DONE IN CONGRESS DOESN'T MEAN YOU CAN

Senator Chris Murphy: US Allies Confused Over Syria Policy | Morning Joe | MSNBC

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