President Donald Trump ordered a missile strike at a Syrian air base because he believes the United States couldn't sit back after a horrific chemical bombing believed to have been carried out by the Assad regime, his press secretary said Saturday.
In an interview on Fox News' "Watters World," Sean Spicer said "We can't put up with the actions that [Bashar al-] Assad has taken against his own people."
"The idea that you can inflict this kind of suffering and trauma and tragedy upon any human being is something that can't happen," he said.
"I think there's a degree of reality that we have to understand, in terms of the political reality on the ground," he added about the prospects of a regime change.
Spicer said most people realize the United States had to take action after the chemical bombing that left scores deal – and sent shock waves around the world.
"There's no outcome that we want to see American lives shed," he said. "But at the same time, every human being has to look at the images that occurred in Syria the other day, and understand that we cannot stand by to allow that kind of suffering and carnage to continue."
Spicer said the U.S. response to the chemical bombing belies arguments that Trump has close ties to Russia and its president, Vladimir Putin, calling it a "made-up, political narrative."
"This is a very clear signal, both to our country and around the world, that this president's going to do what it takes to act on our national security interests," he said.
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