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Democratic Representative Tulsi Gabbard from Hawaii and Representative Austin Scott, a Republican from Georgia, both of the House Armed Services Committee, introduced a bipartisan bill on 19 November intended to cease US efforts to overthrow the Syrian Arab Republic of President Bashar al-Assad.

Gabbard said the bill is meant to “Bring an immediate end to the illegal, counter-productive war to overthrow the Syrian government of Assad.”

In September 2014 the US has been engaging in surveillance missions on the ISIS terrorists embedded within Syria, beginning shortly thereafter a massive airstrike campaign in coalition with Bahrain, Qatar, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

Russian began an airstrike campaign in September 2015, focusing primarily on ISIS targets, but the US State Department has challenged this assertion, saying Russia has been striking rebel targets in defense of Assad. The so called rebels that continuously proved to be joining and helping ISIS terrorists.

Gabbard went on to say “The U.S. is waging two wars in Syria. The first is the war against ISIS ..., which Congress authorized after the terrorist attack on 9/11. The second war is the illegal war to overthrow the Syrian government of Assad."

“The war to overthrow Assad is counter-productive because it actually helps ISIS ... achieve their goal of overthrowing the Syrian government of Assad and taking control of all of Syria—which will simply increase human suffering in the region, exacerbate the refugee crisis, and pose a greater threat to the world. Also, the war to overthrow Assad is illegal because Congress never authorized it.”

A Daily Beast article in January 2015 makes the same claim as the Congresswoman, stating “despite nearly 800 airstrikes,” the American-led airstrike intervention is having the opposite effect of defeating ISIS.

In October 2015, the US also abandoned a $500 million program to train Syrian rebels that resulted in only dozens of trained fighters and the turnover of caches of US made weapons and gear to ISIS operatives.

The United Nations released a report in January 2015 showing that some 200,000 Syrians have died since fighting began.

Speaking in tandem with Congresswoman Gabbard, Congressman Austin Scott said, “Our primary mission should be the war against ISIS, al Qaeda, and radical extremists that have operations both inside and outside of Syria and Iraq. Those groups have carried out attacks on American allies, and are currently threatening attacks on our homeland. This represents a clear and present danger to our citizens, and I support eliminating these radical terrorists through any means necessary. Working to remove Assad at this stage is counter-productive to what I believe our primary mission should be.”

Gabbard concluded that defeating ISIS will take an international coalition. “If we are serious about defeating ISIS and solving the refugee problem, we’ll work in partnership with Russia, France, and anyone else who is serious about destroying ISIS and affiliated ... organizations worldwide.

“The problem is, because the U.S. is trying to overthrow the Syrian government of Assad and Russia is supporting the government of Assad, it is impossible for us to have an effective, cooperative relationship with Russia in our mutual fight against ISIS. Our focus on overthrowing Assad is interfering with our ability to destroy ISIS.”

“We must immediately end the illegal, counter-productive war to overthrow the Syrian government of Assad.”