Rep. Linda Sanchez asks constituents to weigh in on Syria ‘options’

Syria’s Assad. Photo via the internet.

By Brian Hews

Rep. Linda T. Sanchez (D-Lakewood) has embarked on a campaign to hear directly from her constituents regarding how America should respond to the ongoing crisis in Syria.

On Tuesday just hours before President Barack Obama was scheduled to address the nation from the White House about his plan to deal with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Sanchez sent out an email to thousands of local voters asking them to weigh in the tense situation.

Hews Media Group-Community Newspaper was given a copy of the survey from Sanchez’s office on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC.  Sanchez Press Secretary said that the Congresswoman is “truly undecided on what action Congress should take.”

In the email survey, Sanchez states: “In late August, the Syrian government used chemical weapons in an attack outside of Damascus, killing large numbers of civilians, including more than 400 children as they slept. More than 1,400 people were killed in this brutal attack.”

“On August 31, President Obama announced that the United States should take military action against Syria to enforce the international ban on the use of chemical weapons. To take this action, the President has asked Congress for authorization for the use of force,” she continued.

“It is crucial that Congress be fully informed before we take any action. I recently attended a classified briefing on the Syrian government’s horrific use of chemical weapons, and I am now reviewing all the facts and evidence,” said Sanchez.

“As constituents, you deserve to know what the size, scope, and potential effect of any U.S. engagement in Syria would be if authorization is granted,” she stressed.

“The decision to authorize force in Syria deserves careful consideration, which is why I want to hear from you,” the Democratic lawmaker stressed in her message.

Sanchez poised three different questions to voters about what action US officials should take against Syria.

Included in the questions were: “If the US should limit military strikes to deter the use of chemical weapons. Ground troops must not be used.”

Another question poised was: “Increase supply of weapons to rebels fighting Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad.” A third option Sanchez asks is if America should “send military support, including ground troops, to intervene in the Syrian civil war.”

Sanchez also asks two additional questions in her survey, including “provide humanitarian relief for Syrian civil war victims,” or to, “Take no action. Our national security interests are not at stake in Syria.”

Sanchez spokesman Adam Hudson said in an interview late Tuesday afternoon that “we are talking to our constituents.  The opinions of our residents that we represent is the biggest thing on the Congresswoman’s mind.”

Sanchez issued the following statement to HMG-CN via email regarding Syria:

“The decision to authorize force in Syria is a very solemn responsibility, and Congresswoman Sánchez believes that Congress must be fully informed before taking any action. The Congresswoman recently attended a classified briefing on the Syrian government’s horrific use of chemical weapons, and she is currently reviewing all the facts and evidence. Congresswoman Sanchez looks forward to the debate in Congress, and most importantly, providing to her constituents the answers they deserve regarding the size, scope, and potential effect of any U.S. engagement in Syria.”

To see the survey, click here: http://lindasanchez.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=829&Itemid=3

Sanchez represents Cerritos, Norwalk, Pico Rivera, Montebello, Downey, La Mirada area in the House of Representatives.