Paul Giorgio: Syria Redux
Wednesday, September 11, 2013
According to Paul Giorgio, there is only one more option available to Obama: file war crime charges against Assad at The Hague.
Let’s recap what has happened in President Obama’s quest to punish Syrian President Besha al Assad during this past week.
Although the American people are war weary after a decade of Bush Wars, President Obama has moved forward with his plan to take action against Syria for gassing civilians. He has done what any smart President would do. He has consulted with the loyal opposition, in this case Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham. He was able this past week to get approval for limited action out of the Democrat-controlled Senate Foreign Relations Committee, with our new Senator Ed Markey present. He has met with world leaders during the G20 Summit in St. Petersburg, Russia and has even made some headway with Russian leader and Super Bowl ring stealer Vladimir Putin.
This would be considered a good week by the standards we have judged past presidents. However, in this case, we have Republicans calling President Obama weak and his fellow Democrats calling him out for his efforts.
It is clear to most that unless Barack Obama is very, very persuasive in his talks with members of Congress on both sides of the aisle, his options are being closed out.
The New Isolationists
Most Americans and therefore most members of Congress are war weary. We have a new Isolationism sweeping the country, similar to that which swept America after World War I and prior to WWII. Today, like then, many Americans are questioning why we became entangled in Iraq and Afghanistan. Then, like today, this movement was led by a combination of Progressives and Republicans. Senators such as Gerald Nye of North Dakota, William Borah of Idaho, and Robert Lafollette of Wisconsin joined by appeaser Charles Lindberg all fought to keep America out of the brewing European conflict.
You have deficit Hawks such as Rand Paul from Kentucky becoming Peace Doves. It even appears that no one in the most Democratic Delegations, our own Massachusetts one, has any stomach for any type of action.
Present America’s and the civilized worlds case at The Hague
President Obama has gone to the United Nations only to have Russia threaten to veto any action. The President has gone to NATO, where even our staunchest ally, Great Britain, has said no.
As I see it, the President has one option.
President Obama and the United States and its Allies must go to the International Court at The Hague in the Netherlands and file war crimes charges against Assad.
This will brand Assad for what he really is: a war criminal. Only two people in history have gassed their own people: Adolph Hitler and Saddam Hussein.
The Hague can immediately issue war crime charges against Assad, issue an arrest warrant, and freeze his assets around the world. It’s a funny thing about dictators and mass murders... they all seem to have international bank accounts. They always plan for the inevitable–when they get caught–because you see, it’s about their comfort and lifestyle, not that of their people that matters.
This will effectively emasculate Bashar al Assad and brand him a war criminal to his people. Without money and resources he will not be able to continue the war against his fellow countrymen. This can be accomplished without a shot being fired, with no American troops put in harm’s way, and without the United States getting involved in the Syrian Civil War.
The fight–America’s fight–has always been about protecting the innocents of war, women and children.
Bashar al Assad’s fight has always been about continuing his family’s domination over the Syrian nation.
President Obama and America will be judged as being on the right side of history and Assad will join Hitler and Hussein.
Bring the issue to The Hague.
Paul Giorgio is a longtime Democratic Party Activist who has worked on numerous campaigns. He was a Lead Advance Person for President Clinton & Vice President Gore. He was Deputy Director of Special Events for President Clinton’s first Inauguration. He has been elected a delegate to numerous Democratic National Conventions and recently served as one of President Obama’s representatives on the Platform Committee. In 2013 he was chosen as a Presidential Elector. He is the President of Pagio, Inc., publishers of Pulse Magazine, Vitality Magazine and Worcester Medicine.
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