N.J. congressional delegation is split, or silent, on Syria strike
Thursday September 5, 2013, 8:25 PM
BY HERB JACKSON
WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT
The Record
Reps. Scott Garrett and Rodney Frelinghuysen said Thursday that they oppose attacking Syria, while Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr. said he is still making up his mind.
The views expressed by the three North Jersey congressmen show the challenges facing President Obama as he works to marshal congressional support for a strike against Syria, particularly as members of the same party disagreed on several elements.
House members will not likely get to vote unless the Senate approves a resolution authorizing force sponsored by Sen. Bob Menendez, a Democrat from North Bergen, that the Senate Foreign Relations Committee approved Wednesday. Menendez is the panel’s chairman.
While Menendez was optimistic that the Senate would approve that resolution, possibly on Monday or Tuesday, the outcome is far from certain and Obama was calling senators Thursday from Russia, where he was meeting with world leaders. He was also rearranging his schedule for the next few days, and could make a national address.
One senator who has not said how he will vote is New Jersey’s Jeffrey Chiesa, a Republican from Branchburg whom Governor Christie appointed to temporarily fill the vacancy caused by the death in June of Sen. Frank Lautenberg, a Democrat. Chiesa said in a statement last week that the United States “must respond” to Syria’s use of chemical weapons, but he is still weighing Obama’s request.
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