September 27, 2014
Saturday PM

When it comes to President Obama’s flawed plan to arm unknown Syrian rebels, the significant risks outweigh the potential rewards. It is not a coherent or successful strategy to keep our country safe, which is why I voted against the proposal.

Without question, the world is a dangerous place and ISIS is one of many serious threats facing the U.S. and our allies. We have seen evidence of this with the recent brutal beheadings of two American journalists and a British aid worker, as well as countless other atrocities in the region.

However, the President is wrong when it comes to arming unknown rebels in Syria. So I opposed the legislation eventually signed into law to fund President Obama’s plan to train and arm Syrian rebels. And I believe Harry Reid was wrong to attach a government funding resolution to this legislation.

I support keeping the government running and am opposed to cynical political ploys that try to shut it down, but I could not support funding weapons for unknown Syrian rebels, without greater assurance the administration has the ability to adequately identify those we can trust. We must keep U.S. weapons out of the hands of our enemies.

Do not confuse my opposition to the President’s plan, however, with the fact that I believe we need to act now. ISIS is a serious threat to the Middle East and to the United States, which is why I support aggressive airstrikes and building an international coalition to combat ISIS.

In addition to aggressive U.S. airstrikes, our known partners in the region need to step up to the plate and do their part. If combat troops are necessary, they must come from the countries of the region rightly opposed to the brutal extremism of ISIS. It is time for other countries to step up to plate.

I also believe we should be taking steps to undermine the economic vitality of these terrorist organizations by dismantling their oil fields and other resources which they exploit to fund and support their radical, violent agenda.

It appears Secretary of State John Kerry is making some inroads through outreach to neighboring countries in the region, but we must continue to build a robust and engaged international coalition of nations to lead the charge.

I am disappointed President Obama and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid refused to the do the right thing and separate these two vital issues so the Senate could address them individually on their merits.

Both funding our government and keeping our country safe are critically important. So with nearly two weeks until current funding expires, I believe Congress should have stayed in session to debate these issues separately.

We know from past experience in that region of the world that alliances are often unpredictable. There is a problematic history of our friends of today becoming our enemies tomorrow. We owe it to our service men and women to make sure we aren’t providing arms that will only be used against U.S. soldiers in the future.

I object to more American boots on the ground and I see arming the rebels as a troubling potential step in that direction. Little over a month ago, President Obama himself said creating a credible force out of the Syrian rebels was a “fantasy.”

Once we commit to arming and training forces on the ground, it will be become necessary to increase the American presence in attempt to manage a highly disorganized and unreliable effort.

Though some are quick to support President Obama’s plan, I have always said we cannot afford another long ground war that drains our financial resources, especially at a time when we need to take care of our veterans, build critical infrastructure at home and invest in our economy.

As we rightfully proceed with airstrikes and forming a coalition, we owe it to the soldiers who have deployed over the past decade to Iraq and Afghanistan—many of them from Alaska, and many multiple times—to more closely examine this strategy to arm the Syrian rebels. Let us also not forget ISIS is one of many serious threats facing us, and we must remain vigilant on the overall war against terrorism.

Alaska has more veterans per capita than any other state and I cannot make any decision without considering them and their families. In the coming weeks, I look forward to a continued debate in Congress and to my conversations with Alaskans about how to keep America safe.

U.S. Senator Mark Begich
Anchorage , Alaska

Received September 22, 2014 - Published September 27, 2014

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