Pro-Syrian-opposition lobbyists say the Obama Administration has warned Syrian rebel factions as well as other pro-war allies that they will not intervene in a serious way against the Assad regime until after the November US election.

“Basically the message is very clear; nothing is going to happen until after the election, in fact nothing will happen until after inauguration,” one unnamed lobbyist for Syrian rebels is quoted as saying.

The Obama Administration has repeatedly called for regime change in Syria, but seems to be stopping short of the calls by nations like France and Britain for a Libyan-style war to impose the fractured opposition as the new government. National Security Adviser Tom Donilon even made a visit to London to reaffirm the position and make it “abundantly clear” that there is no room for increased US involvement in Syria.

Its not hard to see why this would be. Another Libya-style war will be another chance to remind the voters just what a disaster Libya has been, and even if his opponent is unlikely to take a different stance than he is, such wars of choice seem to be preferred in non-election years, if only to make sure that the public’s opinion doesn’t really matter.