Politics vs. security

According to discussions over the weekend, a number of congressmen are poised today to vote in favor of military action in Syria not because of the use of chemical weapons but rather to support the president.

Members of the Black Congressional Caucus were warned in a letter last week from their chairman not to discuss any opposition to the military action because of the damage it could do to the president.

Others on the left who are staunch anti-war have voiced the same plan not to undermine the president.

When raw partisan politics trumps the security of this nation, we're in trouble.

Yet the left is quick to point an accusing finger at conservative Republicans who will perhaps today vote against the military move. The left says that opposition is a political vote against the president for purely partisan reasons.

The president obviously weighed the political calculations when he tried to deflect his "red line" statement as nothing more than an assessment made by the nations of the world.

That back peddling did little to advance his decision for military actions. And it made him look weak.

Writing this before the president's national address Tuesday night, I can only hope the president either changes his mind or provides much more compelling evidence why we should enter yet another conflict so far from our shores.

For those who constantly complain that my sole goal in life is to bash this president, let me burst your obsessive bubble.

Given the right set of circumstances, I would gladly support the president's pushback in Syria and the associated signal that action would send to Iran.

But other nations seem convinced that our position is wrong and, thus, the president must be not just compelling -- he must be right.

Perhaps his address and the resulting evidence will support his position.

The Democrats are quick to remind us of the mistakes in Iraq by a Republican president. And we need to be reminded of the price paid.

But the hypocrisy of the left is repulsive in the overriding political connotation to protect this president and to remain in a majority in the Senate.

Presidential legacies result from bold decisive actions that end well.

Legacies are not born from indecisive actions taken with highly questionable outcomes.

Michael Jensen is the publisher of the Sikeston Standard Democrat.