the president decides to take mill action. he decides to give congress a chance to vote first. >> while i believe i have the authority to carry out this military action without specific congressional authorization, i know that the country will be stronger if we take this course and our actions will be even more effective. >> his decision made late yesterday and only today presented to his national

security team. what made the president change his mind? and after he and joe biden call house speaker boehner today, what if they don't get the votes? our special coverage right now with david gregory, chuck todd, richard engel and reaction from congress. good evening. i'm andrea mitchell in washington on this special report tonight, we are covering an extraordinary reversal by the white house. after sending the secretary of state out friday, at 1:00 p.m. to make an impassioned case for military action, we are will the president had second thoughts about acting without a mandate from congress late yesterday. today he notified his team. the president said he had the legal right to act on his own but what precedent is he now setting by delaying? and how will the rest of the world react? plus, what is the effect on our military? our allies and our adversaries. with us to start this off, the host "meet the press," david gregory, and chief white house

correspondent chuck todd. chuck, first to you. i know you had a back ground briefing on how the president decided to change course after the impassioned plea by the secretary of state yesterday. >> first of all, nobody in his national security team even thought remotely that they needed to go to congress. nothing about what they were talking about. it was in fact a week ago saturday that everything was set into mowing. when the president convened that special saturday, he made the decision he wanted tad a military strike. nothing had been final but it was clear. the pentagon was to go get on war fatting. kerry was to start making phone call. everything was being set into place. we all saw it. it was a pr campaign for three and four days. the thing that had the biggest impact on him was watching cameron and what happened in the u.k. it was one of several factors but this was the win mentioned. he saw cameron.

they saw the cameron did not have support. could not get parliament behind him in getting the british government involved with any u.s.-led air strike. and at the same time, remember what was going on. more and more voices from both sides of the aisle in the senate and the house asking the president. they wanted to be involved. they wanted to be asked to vote. calling them back. all sorts of ways that different members were asking the president to basically tap the brakes and get us involved. then the president started thinking about this. apparently according to aides, after watching what cameron went through. went on a walk with his chief of staff, denis mcdonough. they do that that, particularly on 48s. about three hours after john kerry did his remarks about why the u.s. was about to embark using mill force, that's when they decided, you know what?

maybe we should go to congress. so the president voted it friday night. last night to his national security team. the national security team all essentially argued against him. talked about the various precedents, that it wasn't necessary. this fell well within the war powers act. he had executive authority to do this. they slept on it. this morning, again, the president didn't waiver. he believes this is the right course of action. the national security team all fell in line. and then from there on out he made the phone call to the leaders, the four leaders saying this is what he would propose and this is what he is going to do. it was extraordinary and it is clear. the one thing that apparently had the biggest impact was what happened to john cameron over in parliament -- david cameron, excuse me. >> david gregory, what happened to david cameron in parliament was that after eight hours of debate he lost. now the president said he will take military action.

chuck has been told at the white house that they will take action if they lose. but having reversed this time, without the legal mandate to do this. to go congress. without requests from the congressional leaders. doesn't this project weakness? >> the i think that's a concern. a concern in washington. it is a concern if you're aer is ian rebel group or others evaluating u.s. prestige around the world. and i think it is something the president has to contend with. he said he wants this debate. we are watching the legacy, the painful legacy of iraq. the impact that it has had on our politics, our policy making in washington. play out now. over the past several days where you had a president three sear ago today, announce the end of active combat in iraq. three years later he is going to congress asking for authority to bomb syria. and to do it in the name of

countering the proliferation of chemical weapons and other weapons of mass destruction. so yeah, i think it puts him in a very tough spot and he won't get an immediate vote. congress is, september 9th. unclear what happens if he doesn't get the vote. programbly co-still, mate still go ahead with the strike. a lot of questions now about how we look, especially to syria and the rest region. >> and secretary kerry, was chuck on the phone had a wanted it. trying to reassure them now. we'll talk to richard engel in a bit but clearly this does not project strength to the rest of the world. >> reporter: it is amazing that the extraordinary precedent, if you just watch, if you watch the history of the power of the presidency, for the last 30 years, the modern era, starting with reagan, there had been this slow shift away from the legislative branch and the

executive branch assuming more and more power. you can name plenty of air strikes that were conducted, whether by reagan, bush, clinton, that was done without congressional authorization. chfk was among target i'ms that members of the national security staff were making to the president. but you know, one other interesting phrase caught may ear when one of the senior aides said in the briefing, it was just where the president was more comfortable philosophically. the idea of going to congress. remember, senator obama would be one of the -- senator obama, and he was, was a big advocate of saying, no, you have to come to congress. >> i think the legal point matters a lot. don't forget, the president come out and says we're a constitutional republic. a constitutional scholar. from the get-go, he and his legal team have been worried about the legal basis for taking action. >> because humanitarian protection of these populations

might work for the brits. it didn't in practice but it is a legal argument. it has never been used by the united states. >> without the security council taking action work britain suffering a setback, even with the french. and you had 50 plus democrats in the house. one of them saying you have to come to congress. senator tim cain doing the same. his own words from 2007. >> in fact you've had a lot of negative reaction. some have said from congress, yes, this is a good thing. ted cruz among them which doesn't mean he will vote for the eventual authorization that they send up. but you had statements from john mccain and lindsay graham saying we need to be more robust. and they said we cannot in good conscience support isolated military strikes in syria that are not part of an overall strategy that can change the momentum on the battlefield, achieve the president's state goal of assad's removal of

conflict and bring an end to the conflict. anything short of this would be an inadequate response to the crimes against humanity that assad and his forces are committing. >> i think the president is in effect saying, okay, guys, you want in on this action? put up or shut up. cast a vote. you want to have a debate about whether we should remove assad from power? let's do it. let congress speak and speak its mind. rather than the president order a strike. it sounds like graham and mccain want to have that debate. i think there are a lot of republicans who don't want to go anywhere near as far as they want to. >> and i don't think the president wants to go that far. they are concerned about the vacuum if assad leaves and a replay of what we're seeing in egypt and what we're seeing in libya. >> they are afraid of trying to engineer the internal dynamics of another middle eastern country after a decade when the united states did that with so much trouble or largely unsuccessful. >> when they met in the sit room

today, they were discussing all of this. by then, the national security team which did not want to go to congress. you can see them sitting around. i can't even imagine john kerry's feeling, sitting there and listening to the president saying this is the way we're going to go, ladies and gentlemen. because kerry had been sent out from the same kind of national security meeting yesterday. walked directly from that meeting. was driven to the state department and came in front of the cameras and made this plea for what was supposed to be action within 24 to 48 hours. >> and it was all about trying to show the u.s. was not wavering due to what happened at the british parliament. that was the entire point of why they felt the need that they had to put kerry out to say, and of course it turned into something even larger. and clearly, the closing argument, almost like a trial lawyer the way he was going about it. when i read that mccain

statement, i was saying could they vote no but do so from the right if you will? from a more hawkish standpoint? there were people that did that. i remember bob graham was one of the people who voted against the iraq war resolution. he said, you know what? it wasn't going after the right groups. that he was more concerned about hezbollah. more concerned frankly about what was going on in syria at the time. so this is where you are throwing, you know, you are really risking a lot by going to congress. it will be very unpredictable. >> isn't it interesting the historical parallel here? when president george w. bush goes to get authority, wmd are mentioned in that authorization. and then you have others, whether it was biden or hillary clinton saying, no, i didn't vote for war. i voted to strengthen his hand at the united nations and that whole debate played out. you have the prospect of

debating whether limited air strikes or not. you know, there are a lot of people who said, we're going to fair the shot across the bow. >> what does that accomplish? >> it suggests you missed the target so that was strange language. if it is a limited strike, is that enough to roll him back conventionally as well as the potential use of chemical weapons? what is the goal? this will be the debate about how far to go. >> chuck, before i let you go. let me ask but the resolution that they are sending, drafting now to send to congress. it will be for that limited no boots on the ground, very precise role. no regime change. but this can be amended on the senate floor and it can be dmangd house rules before it gets to the floor. so once they start down that road, they don't know how it will end. >> they don't. you can just look at how the house vote went on the nsa. i go back to that nsa funding measure. that just sgrin conyers.

that splinter in the house, that bipartisan splint order both sides of the aisle. i think it is, it may get amended to be more hawkish in the senate. that can't get through the house. the very narrow, what they're working on. they won't say it but i guarantee you, they are writing a resolution that is designed to get through the house. they know they can get pretty much whatever they can get through the house. they can get through the senate. they have to design something very, very narrow here. you know what? you talk about this last resolution. every drone strike in yemen is somehow legally connected to that resolution passed by the u.s. congress. and remember, yemen was never mention in the any part of the debate. >> post 9/11. right. here it is about preventing the use of chemical weapons. that's what they're after. deterrence. deterring and preventing the use

of these chemical weapons. >> you have a big guest on "meet the press." >> we do. what changed is the question? we'll ask secretary of state john kerry. also, senator rand paul from kentucky on his views of what the president is now seeking from congress. >> a big day. a big "meet the press." john kerry -- you're david gregory and chuck todd. thank you both very much. with me on the phone now, senator tim kane. >> i think it was a very positive move by the president. i have been urging it publicly and privately that the white house team had with senator on the aermd services committee. i think it is a strengthening move. we'll have to see how the debate goes. here is my concern. the decision about initiating military action is the most solemn decision that congress or

the president makes. we cannot afford to send american men and women into military action unless they are confident that the political leadership of the country is behind them. so if we had sent into this very challenging situation, all agree that the stakes are high. if we had sent our young men and women into even a limited action that could have had follow-on consequences at a presidential directive without being clear whether they had congressional support. or with congress trying to do what they often do. evading accountability. casting a vote on sensitive matters like. this we would have been doing harmful significant harm to people that we want to defend us. it is also critically important that they go into these military actions with knowing that they have the support of the american public. and one thing i can guarantee, if we have this debate and we get a resolution passed interesting president presents and it congress passes it, an agreement upon a resolution i believe will generate support from the american public. if it is ambiguous or equivocal

about whether congress and the president are on the same page, we are really failing the men and women who are asking to fight the battle. >> should the president go ahead with military action which the white house tells us he will do? if he loses the vote in congress? >> that's a hypothetical now and we'll get to that if we need to. i do believe that the president, secretary kerry yesterday, made good case that there has to be a consequence for violating the longstanding international norm. no use of chemical weapons. especially against civilians. it came out of a horrific use of chemical weapons in world war i. it has been in place for 90 years. there has to be a consequence to that. hopefully the consequence would be an international one. not just the u.s. but the u.s. has to make sure that people know they can't do that with impunity or we'll see it in more countries in ways that will harm the united states and our allies. my shown in congress, we can

articulate that principle. that the president can lay out a plan for the detemprrence of chemical women'eapons. we'll be working on that. i think the president has done the right thing. when we are united in military action, we are very strong. when we're divided, we're not strong. >> let me ask you a political question. you were democratic chair. is it the right thing to do for the president and the vice president to go out right now and be playing golf while we've got all of our forces who have been on alert, out there in the persian gulf? >> we have a lot of virginians in harm's way. look, serve entitled, especially knowing what we are going to be doing over the course of the next few weeks. people to have grab some r & r and relaxation from stress where

they can find it. but i know what they've been up to the last few months. i've talked to the president and his team about syria. i know how seriously they've been taking this. this decision which you have reported was the subject of a great deal of thought. while there was precedent that presidents could act with impunity. as you pointed out in recent years, it seems to have gotten to be more the case that presidents would act and bypass congress. and congress has been implicit in this. i think the president made the right call to get congress engaged. we'll be working very hard over the weeks to come and i think we'll come oup with a decision the american people can support. >> thank you very much. joining us now on the phone, republican congressman from indiana, freshman luke messer. this is the toughest vote that any of are you ever going to be asked to make. to send men and women into harm's way.

it is supposed to be cruise missiles but once you start, you next know where it will go. how do you feel about taking military action and the last-minute decision to come to congress? >> absolutely the most important votes we make to decide to send our men and women into war. i joined a bipartisan coalition that asked the froze seek congressional approval before taking military action in syria. it is what the american people wanted. i certainly respect that he is seeking this decision now. i believe that we ought not wait nine days to have this de bait. i frankly have already issued a statement saying we should be called back next week and get a decision made. >> you got no reaction from the speaker had a could have called you back last week. >> yeah. the president's announcement came today. we're in the first couple hours of this. i think it is important to remember, this is not a video game. this is real lives at stake. and syria, obviously, the lives

of the men and women in the military. i think nine days is an awful long time before we make a decision here. >> thank you very much. congressman luke messer, republican from indiana. coming up next, reaction from the region from richard engel live in turkey. >> i have decided the united states should take military action against syrian regime targets. this would not be an open ended intervention. we would not put boots on the ground. instead our action would be designed to be limited in duration and scope.

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joining us now from turkey, nbc news foreign correspondent richard engel.

>> reporter: they are incredibly disappointed. we've been speaking to many people in the on that significant and hearing words like betrayal, cowardice, they don't understand what's going on. some of this is human nature. when you speck something and you feel that you've been promised something and you think it is about to happen and it doesn't happen, it perhaps is even more disappointing. and there is a pattern in this. the united states after there was yet another chemical attack, that one on a much smaller scale, promised to arm the syrian rebels. they thought that could be a turning point. then the weapons didn't really arrive. now they thought the military tonight was going to be bombing targets in syria and weakening bashar al assad and the rebels wereoring battle plans so they could start storming damascus. or start trying to storm damascus and then it didn't materialize. they are very upset. they also say that the united

states is cutting them off. this is a dynamic i don't think a lot of our viewers understand. from the rebels perspective, it is the united states that is not allowing them to have advanced weapons. they say they are trying to buy on the black mark or to import from libya, anti-tank rockets and more sophisticated anti-aircraft weapons. the united states has blocked those shipments because it doesn't want the rebels to have weapons that could end up in the hands of terrorists. when you combine all of these. a delayed action tonight and a general belief that the united states is preventing them from becoming armed. they start to lose faith, to put it lightly, andrea. >> isn't there always the chance that assad will do something else, perceiving weakness from the united states? that he will feel emboldened,

even worst case, to use chemicals again. >> what happens if chemical are used again? while we wait, that will be a refrain that we could hear from the rebels. what will happen while there are regular conventional attacks? the basic premise was, we can wait on this. we need more debate. this needs to become a domestic issue about president did he know authority. and the use of power. and that is a very legitimate american debate to have. but from the syrian perspective, it is not their debate. they are dying daily. they are being shell daily. if you were sitting in your house tonight and you thought the cavalry was coming and it is not and outside your door are explosions and you are running out of savings because all the prices in the town you live have gone through the roof because your town is cut off for the last two and a half years by this war, you don't necessarily

see how this is a u.s. domestic political issue. you see it is a matter of urgent survival. >> if you didn't know whether or not gas attack in the next couple of hours would ahead to horrific death of you and your own children. richard engel, thank you very much. thanks for being with us. coming up next, inside syria for the reaction of the regime in damascus. stay with us. [ male announcer ] research suggests cell health

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joining me now, david, foreign affairs columnist. let's talk about what happened in the region. >> i think people in the region will be disappointed. richard engel was talking about the syrian opposition. one summary i've seen online, it was good domestic politics by, oh it will be good constitutionally but very bad for the people of syria. i think a lot depends on what happens with this vote. if this leads to a more gref military action, you won't hear though complaints.

this is really obama himself. you know, john kerry made these dramatic speeches twice this week and there was a message that these strikes were going to happen. and everything i've seen, and everyone else had been reporting. friday night the president change his mind. which he is aptitude. you mentioned earlier, that he then go golfing after he make the public announcement so it is a good long term decision. in term of the optic back and for, it is the president himself creating that. >> and everyone was on board from the national security council as well as the vice president's speech. that speech he gave to the merge legion echoing the passion and the speech and the resolve that we hear from kerry, first on monday and then again on 48. with those book ends to the week, it was clear they were going until that walk in the woods with dennis mcdonough, we're told. about the president's concerns about congress. and the impact of the debate in

parliament and watching a really democratic small d process. which we weren't having in this country. >> that's very extra. so, and you asked the first question was about how it would be perceived in the region. they won't understand this. it will be seen as weakness. then obama himself isn't decisive. he might prove to be more decisive in the end. he could have a stronger mandate to take action but he might not. one thing to watch this week is how hard is the administration going to sell this to the american people? secretary kerry is on "meet the press" tomorrow. will the president himself make an aggressive case to win this vote? or is he going to hang back? if he hangs back, that would be disastrous for the credibility of the united states. >> joining us now from damascus is correspondent bill neely. bill, let's talk about first of all, the preparations for what they thought would be an

american strike. now reaction to the reversal. >> reporter: yes. just a few hours ago that the syrian government said, we are expecting an attack at any moment. we are ready to retaliate at any moment. then came president obama's speech and quite frankly, i think it stunned people on both sides here. just as much as it did perhaps people in america and the u.k. and the wider world. syrian official, government officials were watching this speech and quite frankly, after it they must have been smiling. because from their perspective, this will look like obama looking weak. they will see major doubts in western public opinion. they'll see skepticism with military action and they'll see cracks in america's seeming demation to take mill action against syria. within the last hour, there has

been official reaction from the syrian government. it is deputy prime minister has just said, a u.s. decision that is a postponement. this is laughable. our military readiness has averted this aggression. we're confident and this confidence is not going to shake. so that's pretty clear. the syrian government here, quite happy that a military strike has been postponed. >> bill, can you only imagine the reaction in riyadh right now. the secretary of state called his counter part, prince faisal, the foreign minister. the bottom line is the saudis wanted it, turkey wanted reaction. there is a weakness projected to our allies as well as our adversaries. >> i think this is the second thing that will have shaken the saudis and the qataris in recent

days. the stunning british decision tonight join in at any military action. now a decision that is a postponement. of an action that may not take place at all. i think rebels will be equally 'tis pointed and stunned. they felt betrayed by the west so much already. and i think this will just seem like yet another betrayal. in his palace, president assad, i think, will probably be smiling, too. and his army commanders. because it will give them another 10, 11, 12 days, who know? to move more equipment around and to reposition. that of course in turn will may not that america's military commanders will need to find new targets in ten days time. you could say it is a mess. i think whale there will be a lot of relief, of course, here, from many million of people who

clearly don't want their capital to be bombarded. i think in the gov corridors, there will be joy. >> stay safe. thanks for being with us. next, congressman adam smith from the house armed services committee will join us and we'll talk about the military reaction as well. ♪ ♪ (vo) purina cat chow. 50 years of feeding great relationships. accomplishing even little things can become major victories. i'm phil mickelson, pro golfer. when i was diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis, my rheumatologist prescribed enbrel

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joining me by phone, congressman, what is your reaction to the president's decision to delay the strike after telegraphing it? >> i think asking for congressional approval certainly make sense. that has always been the difficulty. these military national security matters happen quickly. decisions need to come one way or the other and it takes time to get congressional approval. so i see what the president is trying to do. it is important that we have a national consensus but it does create some short term challenges.

and i'm that sure it is the best option for to us choose but we'll see how the debate plays out. >> have you voiced those concerns during the conference calls where you've been briefed by a national security team? >> i voiced those concerns directly to people in the white house that i've talked. to not during the conference calls, no, but i have expressed those concerns to the white house. >> is it a good move to go to congress now after initially not, after ramping up the momentum with speech after speech, kerry, bide yearning then another kerry speech. making it very apparent to the world that he was going to take these steps. >> i don't know if you can say initially not. the president all along has said that no decision has been made. they've been considering options and putting them on the table. i don't think this is a course

reversal. >> we were told that it was not with the advice of his national security team, that it was made solely in a conversation late yesterday with the chief of staff. so he did reverse what was said by his whole team at the state department and the white house. >> yeah. i don't know. that's inside stuff that i'm not sure about. that i know the president 97 said, we're going to strike. he always said he was working through the process but it presents a challenge whether it is a change of position or not because of the delay that you mentioned. it is difficult. >> you know very well that the speaker has not shown an ability to whip count his own caucus and the senate has its own challenge with rand paul and other individual players. ted cruz who has different positions and may not agree. we already know that mccain and graham don't think what's

planned was robust enough. >> yeah. it is a challenging situation. i think the big thing we need to understand from a foreign policy standpoint, the united states cannot simply swoop in and fix every problem. i think we need to be realistic about what we can accomplish. i was in jordan for two or three days and there is considerable anxious about assad and syria. and understandably so. the u.s. isn't necessarily in a position to come in militarily and fix that problem. we want to protect our neighbors and our allies. our allies in the neighborhood like jordan and israel. i'm not sure weighing in militarily into the situation does that effectively. so i think the biggest challenge is this expectation that somehow the u.s. can show up and automatically fix the problem. that's just not the case. >> might you vote no? with so much at stake, might you vote against the president?

>> i might. absolutely. we'll have to see what the plan is. we'll have to see how the discussion goes. if i don't think military action is the right thing to do, that's a vote i will have to take. it is a difficult decision obviously and i want to support the president if possible. i also have to make decisions that rith in the best interests of my constituents in the country. >> and finally, if you decide to vote against it, if it loses, should the president then do it without congressional approval, which white house official have told us tonight, he would do? >> that's possible. that would make it a very, very difficult decision. we can remember that a kosovo, president clinton initiated that action and the house of representatives voted against it and he continued any way. it is not unprecedented but that would make it much more difficult for the president going forward.

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we are prepared to strike whenever we choose. moreover, the chairman has indicated to me that our capacity to execute this mission is not time sensitive. it will be effective tomorrow or next week or one month from now. and i'm prepared to give that order. >> joining us now, nbc news pentagon correspondent jim miklaszewski. and nbc analyst, recipient of the medal of honor, jack jacobs. first to you, he not the want to

go and is probably relieved. you have all of our forces, five warships and the rest of what is arrayed put on hold. at what cost and what burden on our front lawn? >> a couple of thing, first, there are mixed reactions from military officials here at the pentagon. some are afraid in the short term, it will make the u.s. and the u.s. military in turn look weak, like they couldn't carry out such a mission. but there is some little bit of relief. only in the fact that the current mission, which many officials were skeptical of, was a nonstarter to begin with. and had a low level of confidence among many military officials. because the idea you were going to launch limited strikes without a long term strategy about what you would do next, they thought would, could end in disaster in some cases. but also, again, it made the

u.s. military look weak and intea ice issive. in term of the number of forces now in the eastern med, clearly, if this stretch out more than a week or so, they're going to have to start looking at rotating and relieving some of these ships already in there for some maintenance issues. so it is likely that we could see a temporary decrease in the number of five guided missile destroyers in the eastern med. now down to what had been a long term two destroyer patrol for some time there. in the vicinity of syria. and as far as general dempsey go, he was unaware of the president's decision until he showed up at the white house today. and as you mentioned, he is probably very relieved. because you know, he has all sorts of reservations about military action in syria. and now military official feel they have a little decision space to come up with a more thoughtful and thorough plan,

andrea. >> and i wanted to play a little of john kerry yesterday where he talks about the credibility of the u.s. being on the line. let's watch. >> it is directly related to credibility and whether countries still believe the united states when it says something. they are watching to see if syria can get away with it, because then maybe they too can put the world at greater risk. >> colonel jack, was the red line that the president laid out more than a year ago a mistake? was it a mistake to dial this up and now dial it back down? >> yeah. it was a terrible mistake. it reduced the options that were available to us by saying that once they used chemical weapons again that we would attack them. and it came very, very late. he has used chemical weapons a long time ago, and we should have been working up to this point, getting the support of our allies and working through the united nations two years

ago, and we wouldn't be in a position that we are today. but one other thing that's really interesting, was what happened to john kerry. here is a guy who gave probably the most impassioned and effective speech of his entire career. it was convincing. i think it even convinced people who were otherwise unconvinced that we should do something. and yet the very next day, this guy gets his legs cut out from under him. think about what happens to him now for the rest of his term, john kerry's, i mean. he is out there talking to foreign ministers, to defense ministers, to heads of state, and he clearly does not have the support of the president of the united states. let's put it this way. whatever he says is not necessarily going to be believed as coming directly from the united states of america. and other people, other foreign ministers, other heads of state,

are going to believe that it's just a matter of time before he'll be overturned. >> well, that does create a problem if that is the way this evolves, because we've seen, mik, and we only have a minute or so left, but in recent years, recent administrations, you and i, what happens when the secretary of state doesn't have the ear of the president or is not part of the final decision-making process. >> that's right, andrea. and as a matter of fact, not only secretary of state kerry, but there's some question too among some quarters about secretary of defense hagel and his strength. so if other nations perceive both the secretary of defense and the secretary of state as being somewhat weak in the obama administration, that could create all sorts of problems down the road. >> and colonel jacobs, when we look at this national security team, we're showing this meeting

that took place this morning, they didn't voice objections because they had been told, presumably, by the chief of staff this is what the boss wants. but they can't be happy, because none of them felt there was a need to go to congress. >> purely a political decision. at the top of the food chain, it's extremely difficult and painful for people who express their opinion and it gets overruled. you have only one option under those circumstances, and i would be willing to bet after a decent interval you will see it. some of them, one or more of them, may resign. you either put up with that situation, or you quit. >> mik, let me ask you about the burden on the troops in terms of just the rotation. some of those warships had been kept longer. you had carrier groups just looking at the persian gulf and protecting the persian gulf in case something went awry. the nimitz was held on and

turned back. how long can they keep them there if this is dragged on in congress and the decision is not forthcoming? >> those kind of decisions, they'll make them as early as tomorrow, to figure out what ships need to be relieved immediately or what ships will be rotated in or out to take over. but it's clear that the current presence, five destroyers, will probably go down in the short-term. but earlier today, we heard the former commander general anthony zinni talking about how when these decisions are made, and when there's confusion at the top levels of not only an administration, but oftentimes the military, it's the troops down the line, the sailors, the airmen, soldiers, the marines, that get whipped around by all this, and it -- you end up with a serious morale problem. now, in this case, it's only been a really 10 days or so. and so if those relief -- if the relief can be made, and those

ships pulled out and either be sent home or go into maintenance and crew rest as they're supposed to, it shouldn't have much of an impact. but there is a little bit of concern about the kind of confusion that surrounded these -- this most recent buildup and plan to go and strike syria. >> colonel jack, finally, what about the president, going to congress for authorization for a limited -- what we were told limited, targeted, no boots on the ground cruise missiles, standoff kind of military strike? plenty of precedent for not going to congress. does this create a new expectation for the balance of power between the executive -- between the white house and congress? >> yes. it's going to make it extremely difficult for this president then to operate effectively. and this is -- the real irony is that at the other end of pennsylvania avenue is a congress that hasn't done very much, has a reputation for doing very little. and indeed in a situation like this where there's a crisis,

isn't even in town, is not called back into special session to deal with this, and is it going to take it at leisure. nevertheless, it's going to exert its influence and make it much more difficult for this president to operate not just in the realm of national security, but perhaps in lots of other things that he's trying to get accomplished with the congress. it's going to be more difficult for him. >> and in fact what we were told tonight was that no -- none of the congressional leaders, none of the big four, had asked for this vote. it's pretty clear that members of congress, they didn't want to come back. boehner didn't call them back. they really didn't want to be put on the spot. they wanted to be consulted, but that kind of buy-in did not require a vote as far as they were concerned. mik, just looking forward, what would you expect? that within a month, the president will in fact be using military force? >> you know, it's impossible to tell at this point. by that time, whatever congress

decides, and i believe there are some who think congress will, others who think they won't. but you have to wonder when they come up with a plan, are people going to say, well, are you really serious this time? >> good point. colonel jack jacobs, jim miklaszewski, thank you so much. that does it for this hour. coming up next, more on the president's statement today regarding the decision on syria. thank you very much. [ male anno] ...office space. yes, we're loving this communal seating. it's great. [ male announcer ] the best thing to share? a data plan. at&t mobile share for business. one bucket of data for everyone on the plan, unlimited talk and text on smart phones. now, everyone's in the spirit of sharing. hey, can i borrow your boat this weekend? no. [ male announcer ] share more. save more. at&t mobile share for business. ♪

good saturday to you. i'm craig melvin. thank you for staying with us as we continue our breaking news coverage. president obama saying just hours ago that the united states should take military action against syria, but he is leaving the final decision to congress. we want to play those comments for you now in their entirety. >> 10 days ago, the world watched in horror as men, women, and cld