It can be argued that it would be undiplomatic and even un-Clintonian for Hillary Clinton to weigh in on military action in Syria just as the Obama administration makes its best case for a strike to skeptical lawmakers on Capitol Hill.
But just like everything else the former Secretary of State does, the timing of a tweetcongratulating a record-breaking swim seemed peculiar given the heightening tension around U.S. intervention.
Flying to 112 countries is a lot until you consider swimming between 2. Feels like I swim with sharks – but you actually did it! Congrats!
Slate’s Dave Weigel dubbed it “a little glib” in a post dedicated entirely to it.
CNN took a tongue-and-cheek stab at it in its lead for a piece on whether Clinton should weigh in on Syria.
But the more valuable question seems to be when — not if — Clinton will be forced to react to the developments.
There’s little interest for her to dive into the debate voluntarily — or spontaneously, on a venue like Twitter.
Her statement will swiftly be parsed and chopped up by analysts and slammed by critics and enemies.
But it could be more difficult for Clinton to avoid the issue the next time she emerges for a public speech.
That moment could come as soon as next week in Philadelphia, when she is slated to receive the Liberty Medal.
It’s unclear if she’ll speak at the National Constitution Center, but it would seem odd for her to receive an award and not make any remarks.
If next week the U.S. is on the eve of a momentous vote on Syria, saying something about the crisis would seem to be incumbent for the last sitting Secretary of State.
Updated: An aide to Clinton has told multiple news outlets Tuesday night that Clinton supports President Obama on Syria: ”Secretary Clinton supports the President’s effort to enlist the Congress in pursuing a strong and targeted response to the Assad regime’s horrific use of chemical weapons.”
Clinton herself has still yet to issue a statement.
Follow Dave’s Blog at TheRun2016.com
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