The United States should intervene militarily in Syria, given evidence that the government attacked its people with chemical weapons Wednesday, Sen. John McCain said Thursday.
And, in an
interview with CNN, he criticized President Barack Obama for not reacting strongly enough.
The United States doesn't have to take risks in Syria, McCain said. "There would be no boots on the ground. We would use standoff weapons just as the Israelis have four times as they’ve taken out targets inside Syria," he said. "We would not put a single life at risk."
The U.S. could neutralize Syrian runways and battle planes in a "matter of a couple of days," McCain said. "We can supply the right kind of weapons to rebels and to establish a no-fly zone by moving patriot missiles up to the border. This can be done very easily," he said.
"When does the United States, with very little cost stand up for these people and stop this horrific — you can’t look at the pictures without being deeply moved. Are we just going to let that go on?"
Shocking pictures emerged from Damascus suburbs on Wednesday of dozens of people said to have been
killed by poison gas attacks.
McCain criticized Obama for taking no action to back up his year-old threat that the use of chemical weapons by President Bashir al-Assad's regime would be seen as a red line that would spur action. Instead, he said Assad "now sees that as a green light."
"The word of the president of the United States can no longer be taken seriously — as it isn’t throughout the entire region," McCain said.
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