Senator John McCain appeared on Piers Morgan’s CNN program Thursday night discussing the Syrian conflict. Near the end of the video above this exchange occurs:
Morgan: If, as reports suggest, the CIA has been giving arms to the rebels …
[interrupted by McCain]
McCain: By the way that’s not true!
Morgan: Why?
McCain: and second, what they are giving them isn’t the kind of weapons they need.
In just a few breaths McCain, contradicting his own argument, inadvertently exposes deceit. The following credible sources indicate what McCain said is a complete fabrication, as if his contradicting statement wasn’t enough:
CBS News/ September 12, 2013, 9:58 AM
Report: CIA delivering arms to Syria rebels
Washington Post/September 11, 2013
CIA begins weapons delivery to Syrian rebels
CNN/September 12, 2013 6:21 AM
CIA-funded weapons begin to reach Syrian rebels – CNN.com
The Independent/September 12, 2013
CIA steps up delivery of arms to Syrian rebels
And today’s reports of weapons reaching the Syrian opposition forces is really not newsworthy because it’s nothing new. The United States has had nearly 1,000 troops on the ground in Jordan since June of this year for the purpose of providing communications and weapons training to Syrian opposition forces:
Reuters /Fri June 21, 2013 6:14pm EDT
U.S. leaves about 700 combat-ready troops in Jordan after exercise
From the header of the above Reuters article, quote: “The United States, keeping a wary eye on Syria’s civil war, has left about 700 combat-equipped troops in Jordan after a training exercise, President Barack Obama said on Friday, after previously deciding to leave Patriot missiles and warplanes there.”
Patriot missiles? Yes, an entire battery of patriot missiles. Warplanes? Yes, 16 jet fighters. Troops? Yes, totaling nearly 1,000. Since June? Yes, since operation Eager Lion which was nothing more than a ruse – an excuse for the Obama administration to send the heavy iron to Jordan to benefit the Syrian rebels. To get very particular about the exact armaments, this credible source provides much information:
World Tribune/Monday, June 24th, 2013
Obama deploys 700 troops, missile defense systems and F-16s in Jordan
From the above mentioned source, regarding what is actually there in detail, quote: “For the last six months, [doing the math that puts troops in Jordan since February]Jordan has been hosting more than 200 U.S. troops. Officials said these troops were training the Jordanian military in such areas as command and control, intelligence and counter-insurgency.
Officials said the Defense Department also ordered the deployment of a squadron of F-16 multi-role aircraft, or more than 12 platforms, in wake of Eager Lion. During the two-week exercise[which has now turned into a permanent exercise to benefit Syrian rebels], the U.S. military also operated the F/A-18 Hornet, AV-B Harrier-2 and V-22 Osprey tilt rotor aircraft.
Let’s continue, because it gets better(worse).
Associated Press/ Jun. 21 5:25 PM EDT
FIGHTER JETS TO PROVIDE TRAINING IN JORDAN
From the above AP article(emphasis in bold is mine), quote: “The CIA has led U.S. outreach to the rebels from outside Syria, meeting them at refugee camps and towns along the Turkish and Jordanian borders. CIA paramilitary officers, as well as special operations trainers, have trained select groups of rebels in Jordan on the use of encrypted communications equipment — the nonlethal aid provided by the Obama administration — and they have helped the rebels learn how to fire anti-aircraft weapons and small arms provided by Gulf states.”
Reports have been circulating for the past 5 days with reputable sources that the Obama administration is considering training Syrian opposition forces in Jordan. Other reports are worded to read the Obama administration is considering escalating the training of Syrian opposition forces in Jordan. And a few, such as the one below, actually puts John McCain inside the oval office being debriefed by President Obama on the developments surrounding a 50 man brigade of Syrian rebels who U.S. troops have already trained and sent back into the field in Syria – quote beneath this final link:
The Middle East Monitor
Obama confirms the US trained Syrian opposition troops in Jordan
Quote from above reference link: “The New York Times and The Telegraph newspapers reported a joint meeting between President Obama and members of Congress, including Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham, during which the US President debriefed the Congressmen on the US’s involvement in the Syrian conflict saying, “The outcome of the United States’ efforts to support the Syrian moderate opposition are showing.”
The newspapers quoted officials who attended the meeting claiming that Obama had told McCain that a cell of 50 Syrian fighters was trained by US forces in Jordan and has recently entered into Syria.”
End all quotes and end all speculation as to whether John McCain is aware that U.S. taxpayer funded military hardware and troops is and has been positioned in Jordan for the benefit of training Syrian opposition forces. If pressed McCain would say it’s not enough and it’s not ‘lethal’ weaponry. But if a battery of Patriot missiles and an entire squadron of jet fighters isn’t lethal I don’t know what would be. Additionally, the first reference links in this article indicate that officially documented shipments of lethal arms from the U.S. have begun to arrive to the rebels and those reports were published en mass prior to McCain’s interview with Morgan in which he adamantly denies lethal arms being afforded the rebels.
End all speculation, now, finally – as to exactly what these jokers are up to. They’re sending our young men and women right back out into some desert conflict, handcuffed by political correctness, with a pocket full of our money and technology in order to train terrorists who will wait til our troops backs are turned and shoot them dead no different than in Afghanistan with the green on blue attacks.
John McCain and his nitwit protege Lindsey Graham have become nothing more than stooge-tools for the Obama administrations reckless policies. Sure, they offer the obligatory criticisms of the President, but we must judge politicians solely on their actions, not on their words because their words are constantly laced with the adjectives of deceit, as is evidenced here by McCain’s insistence that the United States is not doing enough to support the Syrian rebels.
Backing away and looking at the big picture, this Syrian conflict is becoming less and less about Assad’s regime vs the rebels and more and more about the U.S. vs Russia. When the focus is tightened ever further on the situation, one can almost get a glimpse of some sort of pissing match between Barack Obama and Vladimir Putin.
Citizens of both nations should begin policing their representatives to a much higher degree and insist that instead of becoming more involved in the Syrian conflict, shipping armaments – providing training and most likely cold hard cash – we become less involved until we are eventually no longer associated with the entire affair. The United States has a bad habit of funding, training and propping up terror cells that eventually find a way to inflict damage back here at home and these leaders know it. Their actions are irresponsible, dangerous and conflict with what the American people truly desire – which is distance between our country and the chessboard which the Middle East has become.
