Statements from Arizona Senator, Representatives on strikes against Syria

Updated: Apr. 13, 2018 at 8:07 PM MST
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TUCSON, AZ (Tucson News Now) - The United States launched strikes against against multiple sites in Syria on Friday night, April 13.

The strikes are in response to a suspected gas attack on the rebel-held city of Douma last weekend. They were launched just before 9 p.m. ET in coordination with Britain and France, according to General Joseph Dunford.

President Donald Trump announced the strikes in a televised address to the nation, saying the attack on Douma was "the crime of a monster" in his address.

Senator John McCain, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee released the following on Syria strikes:

"I applaud the President for taking military action against the Assad regime for its latest use of chemical weapons, and for signaling his resolve to do so again if these heinous attacks continue. I am grateful to our British and French allies for joining us in this action. I hope these strikes impose meaningful costs on Assad. The message to Assad must be that the cost of using chemical weapons is worse than any perceived benefit, that the United States and our allies have the will and capability to continue imposing those costs, and that Iran and Russia will ultimately be unsuccessful in protecting Assad from our punative response. To succeed in the long run, we need a comprehensive strategy for Syria and the entire region. The President needs to lay out our goals, not just with regard to ISIS, but also the ongoing conflict in Syria and malign Russian and Iranian influence in the region. Airstrikes disconnected from a broader strategy may be necessary, but they alone will not achieve U.S. objectives in the Middle East."

U.S. Congresswoman Kyrsten Sinema (AZ-09) released the following statement on military strikes on Syria:

"The use of chemical weapons against innocent civilians is despicable and must be condemned by every nation. Striking at Assad's capacity to deploy chemical weapons sends a powerful signal that the use of these heinous weapons will not be tolerated. The administration must work with Congress to develop a clear, unified, and effective strategy to end the conflict in Syria, remove Assad from power, address the humanitarian crisis, and defeat ISIS. I recently passed bipartisan legislation requiring a plan to achieve these goals, and I will continue working across the aisle to ensure we address this crisis."

U.S. Representative Martha McSally released the following statement on Friday:

"I commend President Trump for his bold and decisive action against the murderous Assad regime in response to Assad's use of chemical weapons against his own people. What we are seeing from our president and our allies is a targeted, proportional, and necessary global response to this violation of international law. These strikes will send Assad—and his puppet master, Putin and enabler Iran—a clear message: the world will not stand by idly while they commit these atrocities. We stand firm with our coalition partners, Britain and France, and with the brave men and women who are leading these attacks."

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