President Obama Blames Chemical Attack on Assad Regime; Military Jury Recommends Death Penalty For Hasan
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Jessica, thanks very much. Good evening everyone. Tonight, breaking news, President Obama says there is no doubt chemical weapons were use in Syria or the Syria regime used them. The question now, what is he going to do about it? We're going to take a hard look at the tough choices. Also tonight, they have run from our cameras. The charity we've identified as America's worst, raising millions, tens of millions they say for dying children but spending next to nothing on them. Now, finally, they are talking their claim and how it adds up. We're keeping them honest. And later, President Obama stands where Dr. King stood half a century ago and speaks the courage that carried martyrs to Washington and helped carry a nation forward. We're going to speak to Maya Angelou who was and is part of that struggle. She joins me tonight for an emotional and inspiring conversation. We begin, though, with Syria and the breaking news. President Obama tonight not saying if or when but clearly making the case for a limited strike on Syria. Not however to take down the Assad regime. Only to punish it for using chemical weapons. He spoke late today with PBS' Gwen Ifill and Judy Woodruff who asked him the key question right off the bat.</s>JUDY WOODRUFF, PBS: How close are you to authorizing a military strike? And can you assure the American people that by doing so, given Iraq and Afghanistan, that the United States will not get bogged down in yet another war half way around the world?</s>BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Well, first of all, I have not made a decision. I have gotten options from our military. I had extensive discussions with the National Security Team. We do not believe that given the delivery system using rockets that the opposition could have carried out these attacks, we have concluded that the Syrian government, in fact, carried these out and if that's so, then there need to be international consequences.</s>COOPER: As for what those consequences might be, the president said he does not foresee an open ended conflict with Damascus. The aim, he said, would be to send a signal.</s>OBAMA: We want the Assad regime to understand that by using chemical weapons on a large scale against your own people, against women, against infants, against children, that you are not only breaking international norms and standards of decency, but you're also creating a situation where U.S. national interests are affected, and that needs to stop.</s>COOPER: In the meantime, the president is trying to get his diplomatic ducks in a row. The five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council met informally today. Member and ally Great Britain gearing up for a vote in parliament drafting a Security Council Resolution authorizing, quote, "necessary measures to protect civilians." Syria's key ally, Russia, calling it premature, saying, there is no proof yet the Assad regime is behind last week's chemical attack. On the ground in Syria, U.N. inspectors got back to work and got a warm welcome. Survivors lining the streets, greeting the white Toyota SUVs with cries of "God is great." They'll be working for another several more days. Fred Pleitgen, one of the few Western reporters still in Syria, is once again monitoring developments in Syrian capital. He joins us now. What's the latest there tonight, Fred?</s>FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, the latest is actually a report that we're trying to confirm right now, Anderson. And that is, that apparently, some key military installations, the headquarters of the Air Force and possibly also the army seemed to have drastically cut down their staff and it also seems as though the Syrian military might be moving some hardware to different locations. The U.N. ambassador for Syria was asked about that today. He said he wouldn't comment on it but one of the things that these media reports are saying is that apparently some of the artillery cannons that are on the hill around Damascus apparently were moved to some other places and what we're hearing tonight is that it's very, very quiet here in Damascus. There is a lot less shelling than before. That of course doesn't confirm or deny that report. However, there does seem to be an eerie calm right now in the Syrian capital -- Anderson.</s>COOPER: There's also kind of a new twist from the Syrian ambassador to the U.N. who announced that he submitted evidence or what he claims is evidence from three previous instances where the opposition had used chemical weapons. What more do you know about that?</s>PLEITGEN: Well, they say that those are three incidents that happened in the past couple of days here and around the Damascus area, and there was one incident that I found particularly interesting -- particularly because I was actually there when it allegedly happened. It's in the Jobar district and it apparently happened last Saturday, August 22nd. We were around that area when the Syrian military said that its forces were moving into that district and then came under the influence of some sort of chemical. They say that some of their forces suffered suffocation signs and had to be brought to the hospital. But I was later shown some soldiers who told me that they had actually been subject through these chemical, whatever it was, but they didn't show any outward signs of any sort of suffocation. Nevertheless, the Syrian government is saying that it wants the United Nations to look at these incidents, as well, and possibly stay in the country longer, of course, delaying any sort of report that would come out -- Anderson.</s>COOPER: And, Fred, is it known how much longer this U.N. team plans to be on the ground?</s>PLEITGEN: Well, the word that we're getting is about another four days. There are still apparently some sites that they want to look at. Of course we have to keep in mind that on -- on Tuesday they weren't able to go out because of security concerns. They apparently did get a lot done today. They were in the northeastern part of Damascus in a place called Zamalka which is the place that apparently had the highest death toll in that alleged chemical attack last Wednesday. There are some things they still want to work out. It's unclear whether or not they're actually going to stay</s>COOPER: Fred Pleitgen, stay safe in Damascus. Thank you. Talking now about options, few of them good. None ideal. With us national security analyst, Fran Townsend, who currently sits in the Homeland Security and CIA External Advisory Boards, also chief international correspondent and host of "AMANPOUR," Christiane Amanpour, chief national correspondent John King, and Michael Hayden. General Hayden has run both the CIA and the NSA. He's currently a principal with the Chertoff Group, a security consulting firm, and serves on the boards of several defense firms. Christiane, you have been reporting on this. You talked to a number of folks, of allies of the United States around the world. What is their reaction to this and in particular Britain, which is capable of launching Tomahawk missiles. Are they saying that they want the U.N. to actually publish a report before they're willing to make a decision about whether or not to have military action?</s>CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, the very latest, in fact, from Great Britain is precisely that. They have said now that they will not join any action against Syria until there is a report from the U.N. inspectors. We don't know all the details about what the British actually mean about that, but it certainly does seem to be putting the brakes on what seem like a lot of momentum from Britain just today. What with that draft U.N. Resolution which was under the Chapter 7, which means under the Use of Force mandate, and that got nowhere. There was no -- not even a U.N. Security Council meeting today. So that was batted away. And also, William Hague, the U.K. foreign minister, saying that chemical weapons were used. That this is a war crime and the world cannot stand by. And he this morning saying any reaction had to come sooner, rather than later, because if it was going to be a lesson, it's needed to be a lesson that was given right now. France, where I am, the president has said they stand ready to, quote. "punish" anyone who made that, quote, "vile decision" to use chemical weapons against innocent civilians. But ,you know, it's really not clear right now if they will go with the United States, particularly Britain if the U.S. decides to go it alone. Obviously, the U.S. does not want to wait for the U.N. approval and it seemed the consensus really it's been trying to achieve is amongst NATO forces and NATO countries.</s>COOPER: Yes. Fran, I mean, that would be -- there's a big distinction, the U.S. position, which seems to be kind of at least waiting for U.N. personnel to get out of this team to finish their investigation, but not actually come up with a published report.</s>FRANCES FRAGOS TOWNSEND, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CONTRIBUTOR: Well, you have to ask yourself, what is it you expect the U.N. to be able to say when they leave, right, on Sunday? So first, we know chemical weapons were used, the Syrians, the Russians, everyone seems to acknowledging that there were chemical weapons used. So we've got that first piece of the puzzle dealt with. The second one is who used them. And I think the president quite rightly points to the delivery mechanisms to indicate that it's the Syrian regime. We know if the rebels had the sort of capability that it would have taken to launch this sort of devastation in addition to chemical weapons, they would have overthrown the Assad regime. So it's reasonable to say that given the delivery systems, it is the Assad regime. And we don't know what additional classified information. They are talking about de-classifying some information that they have -- that further indicates it's the regime. So you sort of -- you know it's chemical weapons. You've got a reasonable basis to believe it's the Assad regime. But you don't know his motive. I mean, there were -- there's been all sorts of speculation, was it a command-and-control decision from Assad himself, was it an individual unit acting? I mean, that's interesting but I don't think it's dispositive because the president is quite right, if you don't act on this proliferation issue, it signals weakness around the world to an accepted principle that these type of weapons should never be used.</s>COOPER: General Hayden, do you agree with this that the delivery systems for this makes it incredibly unlikely, if not impossible, for the opposition to have been the one to use these chemical weapons?</s>GEN. MICHAEL HAYDEN, U.S. AIR FORCE (RET.): Very strongly, Anderson. I agree totally with what Fran laid out there. Just by instinct, I mean, this seems to fit the broader pattern and as Fran suggested I'm quite sure there's other information that doesn't contradict that which seems obvious and that which has already been made public. I think the president was on very solid ground when he said what he said earlier this evening.</s>COOPER: It's interesting, John King, you know, obviously this is hugely unpopular, you look at polls. It doesn't seem like anybody obviously wants to be taking this kind of action if in fact action is going to be taken. The president tonight in this interview on PBS making the case that potential military action in Syria is in the national security interest of the United States. I just want to replay that for people.</s>OBAMA: When you start talking about chemical weapons in a country that has the largest stockpile of chemical weapons in the world where over time their control over chemical weapons may erode, where they're allied to known terrorist organizations that in the past have targeted the United States, then there is a prospect, a possibility in which chemical weapons that can have devastating effects could be directed at us.</s>OBAMA: Clearly, whether that is true or not, I mean, clearly he is trying to build support for some sort of a strike.</s>JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: They would chafe at the Obama White House when I say this, but it sounds a bit like the Bush doctrine. I need to get them before they can get us there, from the president. He said a few important things tonight, Anderson, in that interview and that was one of them, trying to explain his rationale for why. They have these weapons, they violated an international norm. If you left them go unsanctioned, what signal would that send to the rest of the world? That was an important statement from the president. Also saying it's in our core national security interest not only because of that, the chemical weapons violation, but because of the proximity of key allies like Turkey and Jordan and Israel. And the president also was very clear, I do not want a long-term, I won't have a long-term engagement. The American people need to hear all those things. But he didn't say a lot of things, too. And there are still more things to answer. How does he define coalition, especially if the Brits want to hold on for several more days? Is he willing to go this alone? And what is the end goal? If the goal is not to topple Assad and you can't directly strike the chemical weapons because of how dangerous that is, what is the goal of a military strike? So this was the beginning of a process by the president tonight, by no means the end in explaining this.</s>COOPER: General, does it make sense to you a strike like this in order just to punish that doesn't change the calculus on the ground? That doesn't actually -- or do you believe it could change the calculus on the ground?</s>HAYDEN: No, I don't believe it will change the calculus on the ground. Anderson, this is kind of the modern equivalent of a 19th century punitive expedition. And I -- the president, I think, said that quite explicitly. This is designed to punish Bashar al-Assad for what he has done in order to convince him not to do it again, and yet, the president doesn't want to do anything so severe that changes the military situation in Syria or actually threatens the regime. This is a very narrow space that American targeteers are going to have to navigate to pull this off.</s>COOPER: Yes. Everyone, stick around, because we've got to take a quick break. We're going to have more with our panel in just a moment. You can follow me on Twitter. We can talk about it during the commercial break, @andersoncooper. Later, what the charity we identified as the worst of the worst has to say for itself. We're "Keeping Them Honest."