Obama Presses Congress On Syria Strike; Protesters Rally Outside White House; Anti-War Protest Planned Today; Getting Congress On Board; Rumsfeld: Obama Lacks Clarity On Syria
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: All right, welcome to the second hour of the NEWSROOM. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Here are the top stories we're following in the CNN NEWSROOM. President Barack Obama puts on a full-court press to convince Americans and the world that a military strike on Syria is the right response for a suspected chemical weapons attack, but this is what he is seeing outside his door, demonstrators, angry that the U.S. is even considering attacking Syria. We'll take you to two major protests happening right now. And a shocking confession online, a man admits to killing someone while drunk driving. Hear how his surprising mea culpa could affect his trial and possible sentence. It's a critical weekend for President Barack Obama. He is hoping to make major gains in convincing Congress and U.S. allies that a military strike against Syria is justified. He has sent Secretary of State John Kerry to Europe to secure international support for a limited air strike in response to Syria's alleged chemical weapons attacks and Kerry met with European Union leaders in Lithuania today. After wards, E.U. ministers insisted there is strong evidence the Syrian regime used chemical weapons. They said quote, "A clear and strong response is clear to make clear that such crimes are unacceptable and that there can be no impunity," end quote. But they stopped short of supporting U.S. military action. Back at home, President Obama is working the phones, trying to convince Congress to authorize use of force in Syria and he's also preparing to deliver a major speech to the nation Tuesday night. Brian Todd joins us live now from Washington. So Brian, this is very much a working weekend for the president. He'll be making his case to members of Congress who are on the fence, but what is the strategy?</s>BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fredricka, this weekend, the president, very likely tapping into every ounce of his political skill, he is having his top national security team do this as well. Working the phones, angling in, trying to get as many members of Congress as they can to support a strike on Syria. It's a case he's been making for the past week with mixed success.</s>BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: The United States should take military action against Syrian regime targets.</s>TODD (voice-over): But not right away. The president would first ask Congress. The next day, Sunday, the administration begins to make its case, that Syria's regime launched a poison gas attack killing 1,400 victims and that it's in America's interest to respond. On Monday, the president makes his pitch to Senator John McCain, the he fought for the White House in 2008. McCain sounds supportive.</s>SENATOR JOHN MCCAIN (R), ARIZONA: We have to bring Bashar Al-Assad down.</s>TODD: Then on Tuesday at a White House meeting, the president presses top lawmakers to endorse a strike. House leaders say yes.</s>REP. JOHN BOEHNER (R), HOUSE SPEAKER: We're not going to tolerate this type of behavior.</s>REP. NANCY PELOSI (D) HOUSE MINORITY LEADER: He crossed the line with using chemical weapons.</s>TODD: But when administration officials face a Senate panel, there is a mixture of support and skepticism.</s>SENATOR RAND PAUL (R), KENTUCKY: I don't know we can say that by attacking him he is not going to launch another chemical attack.</s>TODD: By Wednesday, the first test vote in a Senate panel, 10 senators support a strike on Syria, and seven oppose it. In the House the president's team faces another day of questioning by lawmakers.</s>JOHN KERRY, SECRETARY OF STATE: People shouldn't be allowed to gas their citizens with impunity.</s>REP. ELIOT ENGEL (D), RANKING MEMBER, FOREIGN AFFAIRS COMMITTEE: There should be no American boots on the ground in Syria.</s>TODD: The president heads overseas taking his case abroad.</s>PRESIDENT OBAMA: I didn't set a red line. The world set a red line.</s>TODD: Thursday, the president arrives in Russia to press foreign leaders at the G-20 Summit, but the U.K., China and Russia oppose military intervention. Back home, polls are now showing initial public opinion leaning against a military strike and some lawmakers are getting an earful.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Why are you not listening to the people and staying out of Syria. It's not our fight.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have to stop Bashar Al-Assad at any price.</s>TODD: On Friday after the summit, the president says he is ready to strike Syria with or without an international consensus.</s>PRESIDENT OBAMA: The 1,400 people were gassed and if we are not acting, what does that say?</s>TODD: But he declines to say what he will do if Congress voted no.</s>RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: I think the week started off very well for the president with support from the congressional leadership and the House leadership in both parties, John McCain, Lindsey Graham, but as it has gone on, it's really underscored the challenge that he faces.</s>TODD: And the challenges are no better illustrated than with the numbers in Congress, regarding a resolution authorizing the use of force against Syria. In the Senate, a deceiving lead in favor of the president, 25 senators say they will vote yes and we have an updated to the numbers we're showing you here, 20 senators now say they are going to vote no. We just updated that graphic for you. So 25, yes, 20 no, but there are 55 undecided senators, so the White House has its work cut out there. But in the House, this is a much more difficult battle, 24 House members say they will support the president, but 119 are opposed to a strike, 270 are undecided, 20 unknown and you've got House Democratic Leaders Nancy Pelosi and Steny Hoyer indicating they will have a very difficult time convincing the vast majority of their rank and file to support this -- Fredricka.</s>WHITFIELD: All right, Brian Todd, thanks so much in Washington. So, the president doesn't have to look very far. You see how many Americans feel about his plan on Syria. Protesters opposed to a military strike are gathering right now outside the White House and our Emily Schmidt is there. So Emily, what are the demonstrators telling you as they gather?</s>EMILY SCHMIDT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fredricka, they just began demonstrating here about half an hour ago. Their message boils down to four words, no war in Syria. And they have brought that message as close to President Obama as they can because you see them picketing right in front of the White House. It isn't the first time they've been here. In fact, this same group was here last week, but today, there's going to be a little bit of a difference because after they talk in front of the White House, they are going to march to Capitol Hill. The difference being of course, at this time last week, they didn't know that President Obama was going to be asking Congress to weigh in on this decision in Syria. Some of the people who have gathered here are President Obama's supporters, like Margaret Morales, who came here from Pennsylvania, a university professor. Why are you here today?</s>MARGARET MORALES, OPPOSES MILITARY ACTION IN SYRIA: Because I felt like I had to have my presence here. It's like a protest for me. This is a peace march, but I want my congressmen and John Kerry and President Obama to understand that the people don't go want war and if John Kerry said who's going to be the last man to die in Vietnam and now, you watch him on CNN or any of the news channels, he's arrogant. When he was trying to convince those senators that they should vote for this, it's like he didn't want to hear the other answer.</s>SCHMIDT: Margaret, you're going from the White House to Capitol Hill. Do you think that there is still room in Congress for them to hear your --</s>MORALES: I hope so. I hope Bill Shuster, my congressman, realizes that people are against this. I don't know anybody who really is for the bombing. Not one.</s>SCHMIDT: Margaret, thank you so much for joining us. Fredricka, this group will be going to Capitol Hill. They'll be spending a couple of hours here and if President Obama returned from the G20 Summit thinking about people that he was trying to convince overseas, all he has to do is look out his front door and see some of the people he still has to convince here in Washington -- Fredricka.</s>WHITFIELD: All right, Emily, thanks so much. Keep us up to date. So, as Congress makes up its mind on whether to take military action against Syria, antiwar groups are getting ready to stage protests in New York, in Times Square. Our Rosa Flores is joining us now live from New York with more on that -- Rosa.</s>ROSA FLORES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fredricka, hundreds if not thousands of protesters are expected here in Times Square in about 45 minutes. But the organization that is organizing this tells me it's the International Action Center tells me that this is happening in dozens of cities around the country and that they're getting responses from thousands of organizations asking them to join in and of course, Syria is the topic of conversation all around here. A man from South Dakota has been so nice to talk to us today and of course, the conversation is Syria. Everybody's talking about what's going to happen. What is your take on U.S. involvement in Syria?</s>NICK NEMEC: Well, I trust the administration and the intelligence. I don't think believe the hyped up conspiracy theories. There wasn't a chemical attack, but I'm leery of putting boots on the ground in Syria just because of potential for American casualties.</s>FLORES: I know there's been a lot of talk about that intelligence. You trust that intelligence and you're comfortable with what we've been hearing and you're saying you trust it, your biggest concern at this point?</s>NEMEC: My biggest concern is if we were to put soldiers on the ground in Syria, that there would be American casualties and I'd hate to see American casualties and I'd hate to see the United States get bogged down in another Middle East quagmire.</s>FLORES: All right, well, thank you so much, Nick, for joining us. We appreciate your take on it. Again, hundreds, if not thousands of protesters, Fredricka, are expected here in Times Square in about 45 minutes and we will, of course, stay here and bring you the latest as it becomes available -- Fredricka.</s>WHITFIELD: All right, Rosa Flores, thanks so much for that in New York, Times Square. So, later, we're going to be talking about a man who confesses to the world that he killed someone while driving drunk. Find out why he did that. And next, what will it take for President Obama to get international support for a strike on Syria? Former Defense Secretary William Cohen joins me next.