March 6, 2013

Last week in Rome, Secretary of State John Kerry announced a change in the government’s stance in the Syrian civil war.

The Heritage Foundation’s Helle Dale explains:

Kerry announced that the U.S. will be supplying $60 million in food and medical supplies to the rebels fighting the brutal civil war against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

The problem is, this change satisfies nobody. The rebels want arms, not food. And Congress, which faces challenges from the Obama administration over the sequester spending cuts, may balk at this new direction—which members of Congress were unaware of until its announcement.

“The Obama Administration,” Dale explains, “is dealing with Syria much the way it deals with domestic issues such as Head Start: by throwing money at it. It will not work.”

On top of that, this $60 million commitment “is a half-measure,” she adds. After two years of fighting and tens of thousands of deaths, just giving “non-military aid” is unlikely to help.

Do you think we should supply the Syrian rebels with $60 million in food and medical aid?