Congress moving toward sending Syria sanctions bill to the president

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/news/archive/2003/11/20/national1750EST0770.DTL



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Legislation imposing economic penalties against Syria neared approval in Congress on Thursday, reflecting broad agreement among lawmakers that Syria has been a detriment to the fight against terrorism in the Middle East and Iraq.

President Bush is expected to sign the bill even though he is not enthusiastic about such restraints on his foreign policy. The measure requires the president to act if Syria does not make significant steps to reverse its tolerance and support of anti-American forces.

The House on Thursday debated a Senate-amended version of the legislation that, at the urging of the White House, gives the president greater leeway to waive the punishment on the basis of national security.

"The Syrian regime has the blood of Americans on their hands," said Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla. Administration officials agree, she said, that "Syria is on the wrong side of history and now it is time for it to suffer the consequences."

Laos and Cambodia were punished for aiding the Viet Cong. The more this war is not like Vietnam the more it is. Only it's taking less time now.

Mark my words, in the very near future we will have troops on Syrian soil.

and when the result is devastation, we can blame it on Syria itself!

Worked in Iraq...

We have no one to blame, including this corrupt administration, for the lousy image we have across the globe. When we vote to impose devastating sanctions on a country, no matter how "symbolic" (as some on another thread regarding this topic were arguing) we enforce the impression of the "ugly, war-mongering Americans" that have become so hated internationally. Sanctions serve no purpose and harm no one more than the most vulnerable in that society. Shame on us.

And if people don't think this isn't laying the groundwork for yet another adventure for this trigger-happy administration, I have a bridge in Brooklyn......