Senate panel takes administration to task over Syria
Senators of both parties aggressively confronted State Department officials who hinted at an expanded military role in Syria.
Democrats and Republicans alike tore into State Department officials over the Obama administration's Syria policy during a confrontational Senate hearing on Wednesday.
Members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee took offense to the suggestion that the administration is considering stepped up military options in the country but could not discuss them publicly.
The comment from Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Anne Patterson that the administration favors "support of all sorts" for the rebels sparked an outraged response from the usually mild-mannered top Republican on the panel, Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., who called the answer "major baloney."
"I can't imagine you saying that in this setting," Corker said. "That would indicate to people that we have a military strategy relative to Syria. And that could not be further from the truth."
