John Kerry and Sergei Lavrov came up with a four-page agreement that brings peace in our time removes the threat of U. S. missile strikes against Syria.
The agreement gives Syria until the middle of next year to get rid of its chemical weapons. You know, until just before our mid-term elections.
They side-stepped the issue of the threat of force if Syria fails to live up to the agreement. The agreement says that the non-compliance would go to the Security Council, where we know Russia would just veto any use of force. Obama could still use force unilaterally, but we all know that ain’t gonna happen. If he didn’t do it two weeks ago, before he got his enemies, foreign and domestic all enmeshed in the decision, he’s not doing it.
Syria is supposed to provide a list of its chemical weapons in a week, then outside inspectors are supposed to finish checking out Syria’s sites — in the middle of the civil war! — by November.
One of the Syrian rebel commanders reacted, “Let the Kerry-Lavrov plan go to hell.” This is how you get to hell, on a road paved with good intentions.
Embattled Farmers 
The agreement does not remove the threat of U. S. missile strikes against Syria. It removes a “UN sanctioned” threat of U. S. missile strikes against Syria. We are in the exact same position that we were last week with respect to a U.S. strike, we will have to go it alone if Assad doesn’t live up to the agreement to put his chemical weapons under international control.
Obama still has his big stick. Now he has Putin in a position where his reputation to deliver is on the line. If Putin and Assad fail, other counties and the Congress will fall in-line behind Obama if he choose to strike.
I know he CAN do it, but he won’t.