The war Congress

John Kerry and Chuck Hagel had it right on Syria yesterday.

During televised testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Secretary of State Kerry asserted that Congress' decision on a strike will let the world know if we are willing to "follow through on the things that we say matter to us." Likewise, Defense Secretary Hagel said "the word of the United States . . . is vital currency in foreign relations."

There wasn't much to disagree with in yesterday's testimony, save for the way Kerry tried to pass the buck by insisting this wasn't really Obama's red line. But the real question is the one lurking just beneath the surface: whether anyone has confidence in President Obama's ability to carry out a meaningful strike. Unfortunately, a last-minute, Labor Day weekend decision to go to Congress only adds to the view that Obama's move here owes less to the Constitution than to a calculation about domestic politics.

AP

John Kerry yesterday

That much was supported by former adviser David Axelrod's gleeful tweet: "Congress is now the dog that caught the car." The idea seems to be that the president has put himself in a no-lose political position. If Congress authorizes his action, it is stuck with what he does; if members refuse, he can blame them for the consequences.

Our view is this: President Obama did not need this approval before acting. If he wanted congressional support, he should have been working with legislators in the two years since he asserted Bashar al-Assad must go. And if he does go ahead with a strike, the most important thing is to do it in a way that does not leave a defiant Assad able to declare victory over America.

In their appearance yesterday, Secretaries Kerry and Hagel each stated that the stakes are high and the consequences of inaction will be worse for the United States than the consequences of action. We agree entirely. Pity the two were apparently unable to convince the commander-in-chief.

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