Shea-Porter Statement on McKeon Amendment on Syria "Train and Equip"

Statement

Today, Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter, a member of the House Armed Services Committee, released the following statement after voting against the McKeon Amendment to train and equip the Free Syrian Army.

"I despise the group, ISIL, and I support air strikes and arming some, such as the competent and reliable Kurds, but I joined 71 Republicans and 85 Democrats to vote against arming and training the so-called Syrian "moderates' because, after attending many briefings, I don't believe that we have the necessary level of support we need from allies in the region who should be standing up to this threat, I don't believe that we can properly identify the recruits to determine if they are trustworthy and won't turn on us and our allies using our own weapons, and I don't believe that we should step into the Shia-Sunni and other battles and into a civil war where allegiances shift and groups unite and divide constantly.

"I believe we need a more comprehensive plan that requires a real commitment of resources from those countries in the region. Zbigniew Brzezinski, Director of the Middle East Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, has written, "There must be a large ideological component, a large law enforcement component, and an even larger political component….over time, they present the only path to victory: crippling the organization's networks, denying the group safe haven, and undermining the conditions that make it attractive to potential recruits.'

"I believe that this strategy is our best chance for success in the region, and I will carefully consider any proposal that offers any of this formula."

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