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Ten days ago, the world
watched in horror
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as men, women and children
were massacred in Syria
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in the worst chemical weapons
attack of the 21st century.
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Yesterday the United States
presented a powerful case
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that the Syrian government
was responsible
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for this attack
on its own people.
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Our intelligence shows
the Assad regime and its forces
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preparing to use
chemical weapons,
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launching rockets in the highly
populated suburbs of Damascus,
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and acknowledging
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that a chemical weapons
attack took place.
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And all of this corroborates
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what the world
can plainly see --
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hospitals overflowing
with victims;
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terrible images of the dead.
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All told, well over 1,000
people were murdered.
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Several hundred of
them were children --
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young girls and boys
gassed to death
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by their own government.
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This attack is an assault
on human dignity.
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It also presents a serious
danger to our national security.
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It risks making a mockery
of the global prohibition
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on the use of chemical weapons.
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It endangers our friends and our
partners along Syria's borders,
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including Israel, Jordan,
Turkey, Lebanon and Iraq.
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It could lead to escalating
use of chemical weapons,
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or their proliferation
to terrorist groups
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who would do our people harm.
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In a world with many dangers,
this menace must be confronted.
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Now, after careful deliberation,
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I have decided that
the United States
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should take military action
against Syrian regime targets.
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This would not be an
open-ended intervention.
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We would not put
boots on the ground.
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Instead, our action
would be designed
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to be limited in
duration and scope.
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But I'm confident we can hold
the Assad regime accountable
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for their use of
chemical weapons,
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deter this kind of behavior,
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and degrade their
capacity to carry it out.
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Our military has positioned
assets in the region.
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The Chairman of the Joint
Chiefs has informed me
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that we are prepared to
strike whenever we choose.
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Moreover, the Chairman
has indicated to me
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that our capacity to
execute this mission
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is not time-sensitive;
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it will be effective
tomorrow, or next week,
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or one month from now.
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And I'm prepared
to give that order.
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But having made my decision
as Commander-in-Chief based
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on what I am convinced is our
national security interests,
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I'm also mindful that
I'm the President
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of the world's oldest
constitutional democracy.
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I've long believed that our
power is rooted not just in our
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military might, but in our
example as a government
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of the people, by the people,
and for the people.
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And that's why I've made a
second decision: I will seek
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authorization for the use of
force from the American people's
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representatives in Congress.
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Over the last several days,
we've heard from members
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of Congress who want their
voices to be heard.
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I absolutely agree.
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So this morning, I spoke with
all four congressional leaders,
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and they've agreed to schedule
a debate and then a vote
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as soon as Congress
comes back into session.
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In the coming days, my
administration stands ready
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to provide every member with
the information they need
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to understand what happened
in Syria and why it has such
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profound implications for
America's national security.
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And all of us should be
accountable as we move forward,
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and that can only be
accomplished with a vote.
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I'm confident in the case
our government has made
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without waiting for
U.N. inspectors.
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I'm comfortable going
forward without the approval
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of a United Nations Security
Council that, so far,
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has been completely paralyzed
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and unwilling to hold
Assad accountable.
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As a consequence,
many people have advised
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against taking this decision
to Congress, and undoubtedly,
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they were impacted by what we
saw happen in the United Kingdom
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this week when the Parliament
of our closest ally
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failed to pass a resolution
with a similar goal,
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even as the Prime Minister
supported taking action.
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Yet, while I believe I have
the authority to carry out this
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military action without specific
congressional authorization,
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I know that the country will be
stronger if we take this course,
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and our actions will
be even more effective.
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We should have this debate,
because the issues
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are too big
for business as usual.
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And this morning,
John Boehner, Harry Reid,
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Nancy Pelosi and
Mitch McConnell agreed
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that this is the right thing
to do for our democracy.
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A country faces few decisions as
grave as using military force,
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even when that force is limited.
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I respect the views of
those who call for caution,
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particularly as our country
emerges from a time of war
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that I was elected
in part to end.
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But if we really do want to turn
away from taking appropriate
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action in the face of such
an unspeakable outrage,
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then we must acknowledge
the costs of doing nothing.
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Here's my question for every
member of Congress and every
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member of the global community:
What message will we send
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if a dictator can gas
hundreds of children to death
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in plain sight and pay no price?
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What's the purpose of the
international system that we've
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built if a prohibition on
the use of chemical weapons
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that has been agreed to by
the governments of 98 percent
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of the world's people
and approved overwhelmingly
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by the Congress of the
United States is not enforced?
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Make no mistake --
this has implications
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beyond chemical warfare.
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If we won't enforce
accountability in the face
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of this heinous act, what
does it say about our resolve
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to stand up to others who flout
fundamental international rules?
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To governments who would
choose to build nuclear arms?
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To terrorist who would
spread biological weapons?
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To armies who
carry out genocide?
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We cannot raise
our children in a world
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where we will
not follow through
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on the things we say,
the accords we sign,
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the values that define us.
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So just as I will take
this case to Congress,
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I will also deliver this
message to the world.
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While the U.N. investigation
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has some time to
report on its findings,
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we will insist that an atrocity
committed with chemical weapons
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is not simply investigated,
it must be confronted.
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I don't expect
every nation to agree
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with the decision we have made.
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Privately we've heard many
expressions of support
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from our friends.
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But I will ask
those who care
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about the writ of
the international community
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to stand publicly
behind our action.
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And finally, let me say
this to the American people:
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I know well that
we are weary of war.
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We've ended one war in Iraq.
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We're ending another
in Afghanistan.
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And the American people have
the good sense to know we cannot
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resolve the underlying conflict
in Syria with our military.
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In that part of the world,
there are ancient sectarian
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differences, and the hopes of
the Arab Spring have unleashed
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forces of change that are going
to take many years to resolve.
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And that's why we're not
contemplating putting our troops
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in the middle of
someone else's war.
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Instead, we'll continue to
support the Syrian people
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through our pressure
on the Assad regime,
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our commitment to
the opposition,
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our care for the displaced,
and our pursuit
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of a political resolution
that achieves a government
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that respects the
dignity of its people.
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But we are the United
States of America,
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and we cannot and
must not turn a blind eye
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to what happened in Damascus.
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Out of the ashes of world war,
we built an international order
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and enforced the rules
that gave it meaning.
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And we did so because we believe
that the rights of individuals
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to live in peace
and dignity depends
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on the responsibilities
of nations.
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We aren't perfect, but this
nation more than any other
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has been willing to meet
those responsibilities.
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So to all members of
Congress of both parties,
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I ask you to take this vote
for our national security.
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I am looking forward
to the debate.
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And in doing so, I ask
you, members of Congress,
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to consider that some
things are more important
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than partisan differences
or the politics of the moment.
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Ultimately, this is not about
who occupies this office
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at any given time; it's about
who we are as a country.
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I believe that the people's
representatives must be invested
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in what America does abroad,
and now is the time
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to show the world that
America keeps our commitments.
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We do what we say.
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And we lead with the belief
that right makes might --
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not the other way around.
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We all know there
are no easy options.
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But I wasn't elected to
avoid hard decisions.
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And neither were the members
of the House and the Senate.
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I've told you what I believe,
that our security and our values
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demand that we cannot
turn away from the massacre
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of countless civilians
with chemical weapons.
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And our democracy is
stronger when the President
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and the people's
representatives stand together.
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I'm ready to act in the
face of this outrage.
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Today I'm asking Congress to
send a message to the world
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that we are ready to move
forward together as one nation.
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Thanks very much.
