Until the next vote, expected Wednesday, senators will continue being briefed on Syria. Reid predicts Syria vote win

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) predicted Friday that his chamber would ultimately vote in favor of authorizing military action in Syria.

“I think we are going to have 60 votes,” Reid told reporters. “It’s a work in progress.”


“We have another important briefing today. Members have been coming back. I talked to one member just now — he said ‘I’ve been to three briefings.’ Have you learned anything? He said, ‘I’ve learned something new on every occasion.’”

Reid said he has spoken “many times” to President Barack Obama, but declined to answer what fellow Senate Democrats would need in order to be able to support the resolution.

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The top Senate leader’s comments came as the Senate on Friday formally filed a resolution that would authorize Obama to launch military strikes in Syria, a move that sets up a series of votes on the high-stakes measure next week.

The move is part of a series of steps that will set up a procedural vote on the resolution next Wednesday. Until then, senators will continue to get briefed by top administration officials — one classified session is scheduled for Monday evening.

Reid kept his comments on the Senate floor brief, noting that “many, many people have been killed” in the Aug. 21 chemical weapons attack that the Obama administration says was perpetrated by the Assad regime.

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Reid also thanked Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) and Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker, the panel’s top Republican for their “tremendous model of bipartisanship and cooperation” in drafting the resolution.

Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) presided over the short pro forma session.

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee cleared the authorization measure on a 10-7 vote on Wednesday, with Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) voting present. The resolution is much narrower than the initial version drafted by the White House, imposing an explicit ban on U.S. ground troops for combat operations. It also limits military action in Syria to 60 days, with one 30-day extension if necessary.

Two Democrats on the panel – Tom Udall of New Mexico and Chris Murphy of Connecticut – dissented, and in the days since the resolution passed, other Democrats, such as Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Brian Schatz of Hawaii, have announced their opposition.

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