The Patriot Post® · Syria May Miss Final Deadline

Victor Davis Hanson recently observed, “An administration that ignores almost all of its own Obamacare deadlines surely cannot expect others to abide by any timetables it sets abroad.” There is perhaps no better example of this than the ongoing situation in Syria. Bashar al-Assad’s regime predictably missed the first deadline in early January to destroy a percentage of its chemical weapons. Because Assad was supposedly acting with intent, not even a slap on the wrist was handed down; in other words, “for the umpteenth time, move that red line!” As State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf said at the time, “As long as we see forward progress that’s what’s most important here, and we have.” Fast forward a few months, and officials are worried that meeting the final June 30 deadline is looking increasingly doubtful. This should hardly come as a surprise: What’s to stop a thug from defying an administration that sets imaginary red lines?