This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/14/world/middleeast/white-house-pushes-back-on-bill-clintons-syria-remarks.html
The article has changed 5 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Bill Clinton’s Dissent on Syria Puts White House on the Spot | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| WASHINGTON — A day after former President Bill Clinton endorsed a more robust American intervention in Syria, the White House pushed back on Thursday on an issue that has Mr. Clinton aligning himself with Senator John McCain, who has faulted President Obama for his reluctance to get entangled in the bloody civil war there. | WASHINGTON — A day after former President Bill Clinton endorsed a more robust American intervention in Syria, the White House pushed back on Thursday on an issue that has Mr. Clinton aligning himself with Senator John McCain, who has faulted President Obama for his reluctance to get entangled in the bloody civil war there. |
| Jay Carney, the White House press secretary, said at a briefing that while Mr. Obama welcomed the perspective of outside experts like Mr. Clinton, “The president makes a decision about the implementation of national security options based on our national security interests, not on what might satisfy critics at any given moment about a policy.” | Jay Carney, the White House press secretary, said at a briefing that while Mr. Obama welcomed the perspective of outside experts like Mr. Clinton, “The president makes a decision about the implementation of national security options based on our national security interests, not on what might satisfy critics at any given moment about a policy.” |
| Mr. Carney declined to say whether Mr. Obama disagreed with Mr. Clinton’s views, noting that the president himself was considering more robust options, including arming the rebels. | Mr. Carney declined to say whether Mr. Obama disagreed with Mr. Clinton’s views, noting that the president himself was considering more robust options, including arming the rebels. |
| Speaking on Tuesday at a private session in New York with Mr. McCain, Mr. Clinton, drawing on his own experience as president in dealing with conflicts in Rwanda and the Balkans, said, “Sometimes it’s best to get caught trying, as long as you don’t overcommit.” | Speaking on Tuesday at a private session in New York with Mr. McCain, Mr. Clinton, drawing on his own experience as president in dealing with conflicts in Rwanda and the Balkans, said, “Sometimes it’s best to get caught trying, as long as you don’t overcommit.” |
| “Some people say, ‘O.K., see what a big mess this is? Stay out!'” Mr. Clinton said. “I think that’s a big mistake. I agree with you about this,” he added, gesturing to Mr. McCain, who has called for supplying the rebels with weapons and conducting airstrikes. | “Some people say, ‘O.K., see what a big mess this is? Stay out!'” Mr. Clinton said. “I think that’s a big mistake. I agree with you about this,” he added, gesturing to Mr. McCain, who has called for supplying the rebels with weapons and conducting airstrikes. |
| Mr. Clinton’s remarks, which were first reported Wednesday by Politico, came near the end of a wide-ranging conversation with Mr. McCain. He did not recommend a specific course of action on Syria or explicitly criticize the Obama administration’s policy. | Mr. Clinton’s remarks, which were first reported Wednesday by Politico, came near the end of a wide-ranging conversation with Mr. McCain. He did not recommend a specific course of action on Syria or explicitly criticize the Obama administration’s policy. |
| The former president, a person close to the Clinton family said, was “talking broadly about a hypothetical situation,” and did not intend his remarks to be a “broadside” against Mr. Obama’s policy. | The former president, a person close to the Clinton family said, was “talking broadly about a hypothetical situation,” and did not intend his remarks to be a “broadside” against Mr. Obama’s policy. |
| Last summer, Hillary Rodham Clinton, who departed as secretary of state in February, joined the director of the Central Intelligence Agency at the time, David H. Petraeus, in arguing in favor of funneling arms to the rebels. But they were rebuffed by Mr. Obama. | Last summer, Hillary Rodham Clinton, who departed as secretary of state in February, joined the director of the Central Intelligence Agency at the time, David H. Petraeus, in arguing in favor of funneling arms to the rebels. But they were rebuffed by Mr. Obama. |
| Recent advances made by the forces of President Bashar al-Assad, and the deepening involvement of outside players like Russia, Iran and Hezbollah, have prompted the White House to again consider arming the rebels and even conducting airstrikes against the Syrian Air Force. Mr. Clinton’s comments came in the context of those gains. | Recent advances made by the forces of President Bashar al-Assad, and the deepening involvement of outside players like Russia, Iran and Hezbollah, have prompted the White House to again consider arming the rebels and even conducting airstrikes against the Syrian Air Force. Mr. Clinton’s comments came in the context of those gains. |
| “Nobody is asking for American soldiers in Syria,” Mr. Clinton said. “The only question is now that the Russians, the Iranians and Hezbollah are in there, head over heels, 90 miles to nothing, should we try to do something to try to slow their gains and rebalance the power so that the rebel groups have a decent chance, if they’re supported by a majority of the people, to prevail?” | “Nobody is asking for American soldiers in Syria,” Mr. Clinton said. “The only question is now that the Russians, the Iranians and Hezbollah are in there, head over heels, 90 miles to nothing, should we try to do something to try to slow their gains and rebalance the power so that the rebel groups have a decent chance, if they’re supported by a majority of the people, to prevail?” |
| Mr. Clinton likened Syria less to Iraq or Afghanistan in the last decade than to Afghanistan in the 1980s. The Reagan administration initially helped the mujahedeen in their fight against the Soviets, he said, but lost the credit for that help by abandoning the country later. | Mr. Clinton likened Syria less to Iraq or Afghanistan in the last decade than to Afghanistan in the 1980s. The Reagan administration initially helped the mujahedeen in their fight against the Soviets, he said, but lost the credit for that help by abandoning the country later. |
| More broadly, Mr. Clinton said the United States should expect a litany of setbacks in the Arab world, since popular uprisings do not automatically result in democratic governments. | More broadly, Mr. Clinton said the United States should expect a litany of setbacks in the Arab world, since popular uprisings do not automatically result in democratic governments. |
| “It is important that we be a little humble here,” Mr. Clinton said. “It is not easy to get rid of an autocracy or the rule of a distant king and then build a free government.” | “It is important that we be a little humble here,” Mr. Clinton said. “It is not easy to get rid of an autocracy or the rule of a distant king and then build a free government.” |
| Mr. Clinton was a guest of Mr. McCain at the meeting, sponsored by the McCain Institute for International Leadership, which was not open to reporters. | Mr. Clinton was a guest of Mr. McCain at the meeting, sponsored by the McCain Institute for International Leadership, which was not open to reporters. |
| Mr. McCain shared views from his own recent trip to Syria, where he met with leaders of the armed resistance. | Mr. McCain shared views from his own recent trip to Syria, where he met with leaders of the armed resistance. |
| Mr. Clinton has studiously avoided criticizing Mr. Obama on foreign policy. For that reason alone, his comments on Syria have drawn a lot of attention. Mr. Clinton also has firsthand experience in deciding when the United States should intervene in foreign conflicts — an option he rejected in Rwanda but embraced, after a long delay, in Bosnia. | Mr. Clinton has studiously avoided criticizing Mr. Obama on foreign policy. For that reason alone, his comments on Syria have drawn a lot of attention. Mr. Clinton also has firsthand experience in deciding when the United States should intervene in foreign conflicts — an option he rejected in Rwanda but embraced, after a long delay, in Bosnia. |
| Still, analysts predicted that his comments would do little to alter the White House’s calculus in the short run. Mr. McCain remains a lonely voice for greater action, joined by a small cadre of interventionists like Senator Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina. | Still, analysts predicted that his comments would do little to alter the White House’s calculus in the short run. Mr. McCain remains a lonely voice for greater action, joined by a small cadre of interventionists like Senator Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina. |
| “It’s the public lack of interest on this issue and the bad options that inform the president’s view,” said Aaron David Miller, a vice president and distinguished scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, who worked for Mr. Clinton as a peace negotiator. | “It’s the public lack of interest on this issue and the bad options that inform the president’s view,” said Aaron David Miller, a vice president and distinguished scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, who worked for Mr. Clinton as a peace negotiator. |
| But Mr. Miller added, “Should Clinton get energized if the Syrian crisis, and the killing, escalates, he could by talking about Rwanda, a U.S. failure, and Bosnia, a U.S. success, influence the debate on intervention and bring greater pressure to bear.” | But Mr. Miller added, “Should Clinton get energized if the Syrian crisis, and the killing, escalates, he could by talking about Rwanda, a U.S. failure, and Bosnia, a U.S. success, influence the debate on intervention and bring greater pressure to bear.” |