Since the president opted not to do what Hillary Clinton and the rest of the national security team wanted to do and arm someone we actually wanted to see win in Syria, I find it reassuring that behind the scenes, we’re at least doing something:
The Central Intelligence Agency is expanding its role in the campaign against the Syrian regime by feeding intelligence to select rebel fighters to use against government forces, current and former U.S. officials said.
The move is part of a U.S. effort to stem the rise of Islamist extremists in Syria by aiding secular forces, U.S. officials said, amid fears that the fall of President Bashar al-Assad would enable al Qaeda to flourish in Syria.
The expanded CIA role bolsters an effort by Western intelligence agencies to support the Syrian opposition with training in areas including weapons use, urban combat and countering spying by the regime.
The move comes as the al Nusra Front, the main al Qaeda-linked group operating in Syria, is deepening its ties to the terrorist organization’s central leadership in Pakistan, according to U.S. counterterrorism officials. ..
Maybe we can’t prevent a bad outcome there. The al Qaeda types could win out in the end. But we should be doing something to put our thumb on the scales and try to tip them toward a better outcome.
And this seems like a better role, to me, for the CIA than running our drone program. We haven’t really had a discussion about the proposal to move that to the Pentagon, but I think it’s probably the right thing to do. Y’all?
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Are we sending them our solution… printing presses?
Maybe we can help their economy by building a $750 million dollar embassy like we are doing in Iraq.
http://www.businessinsider.com/750-million-united-states-embassy-iraq-baghdad-2013-3#heres-the-chancellery-building–located-at-the-intersection-of-broadway-and-main-street-within-the-compound-1
…and we wonder why we’re having financial problems.
The Dept. of Defense is the right place to control and supervise the drone strikes. The Pentagon can analyze threats and develop responses better than the CIA, and the Pentagon has better (marginally) oversight.
I’m still not sure about Syria. Seems like muslim extremists fighting a brutal dictator. Lots of bad guys who all hate America are killing each other for control of their country. What exactly is the problem here?
Given our track record in ousting bad guys only to have it thrown back in our face we probably should just stay out of the whole mess. Bryan actually makes a good point, pretty much everyone that has skin in the game hates us so why help pick a winner? I would be in favor of humanitarian aid though.