Obama meets resistance as he presses case for Syria strike

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Obama meets resistance as he presses case for Syria strike

(Xinhua) 11:09, September 08, 2013

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BEIJING, Sept. 8 -- U.S. President Barack Obama ran into resistance from war-weary American republic and lawmakers as he continued to press his case for a military strike on Syria over its alleged use of chemical weapons.

The White House said Saturday that for that purpose, Obama, who just returned Friday night from a Group of 20 (G20) summit in Russia, will tape his interviews with anchors of ABC, CBS, NBC, PBS, CNN and Fox News.

The networks will air the interviews Monday night ahead of a planned televised speech to the nation that the president will make from the White House on Tuesday, in another push to win support for his military plan on Syria.

Obama announced on Aug. 31 that he decided to launch a limited military strike on Syria, but will first seek congressional authorization.

He argues that the planned attack is aimed at punishing Syrian President Bashar al-Assad for perpetrating a chemical weapons attack on Aug. 21 outside Damascus, which says have killed 1,429 people, including 426 children.

However, Obama is facing an uphill battle in both chambers of Congress as public opinion polls have repeatedly shown that most Americans are against military intervention in Syria and many traditional allies, such as Britain, have refused to join the United States in the action.

In the Democrat-controlled Senate, the president looks likely to get enough support after the Foreign Relations Committee passed Wednesday a resolution on authorizing limited U.S. action against Syria, thanks to the support of several hawks from the Republican Party.

The full Senate house will debate and vote on the resolution in the week of Sept. 9 after it returns from the summer break.

The real test for Obama, however, will be in the Republican-dominated House of Representatives, where many Republican lawmakers have expressed opposition to the military strike against Syria despite the rare calls for support to Obama from Republican Speaker John Boehner and majority leader Eric Cantor.

On Saturday, anti-war protesters took to the streets in Washington DC, asking Congress to reject President Barack Obama's plan of military action against Syria.

The protesters gathered around noon at the White House, loudly chanting slogans such as "You say more war, we say no war" and " Obama, hands off Syria, Congress, hands off Syria." They walked in circles on the pavement in front of the White House, holding placards reading "Bombing Syria doesn't protect people, it kills them."