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US rips Assad's speech but can't do much about it


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WestVirginiaRebel
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Breitbart:

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Obama administration sharply criticized Syrian President Bashar al-Assad for failing Wednesday to address any of the reforms demanded by anti-government protesters, saying his widely anticipated address to the Syrian parliament lacked substance and would not satisfy calls for change or ease unrest.

However, the administration's displeasure is unlikely to progress beyond verbal reprimands as the U.S. doesn't see the Syrian government's two-week crackdown on dissent as requiring the same response as the large-scale violence launched against protesters by Libya's Moammar Gadhafi.

And after years of isolating Assad's regime because of its ties to Iran, opposition to Israel and support for the militant groups Hamas and Hezbollah, the United States has little in the way of financial or political leverage to steer the Arab country into beginning a peaceful dialogue with dissidents seeking an end to the Assad family's 40-year grip on power..

"Ultimately, it's going to be the Syrian people who judge what they heard today, and whether or not President Assad demonstrated positive movement forward in meeting their aspirations and hearing their call for political and economic and social reform," State Department spokesman Mark Toner told reporters.

"We expect they are going to be disappointed," he said. "We feel the speech fell short with respect to the kinds of reforms that the Syrian people demanded, and what President Assad's own advisers suggested was coming."

In his speech, Assad blamed "conspirators" for an extraordinary wave of dissent against his authoritarian rule and did not offer any concessions to the protesters. And, despite hints from some Syrian officials, he did not announce the lifting of the country's despised emergency law that is used to crack down on political opponents.
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Obama can only start one war at a time...
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