Opposing force....

Bush calls out Rubio, Cruz for opposing authorizing force in Syria

By Eli Stokols

Jeb Bush, continuing to press his case as a strong commander in chief in the wake of last week’s ISIL attack in Paris, singled out Sens. Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz for opposing the authorization of force against Syria in 2013.

During an interview with the New Hampshire Union Leader editorial board Thursday, Bush blamed the senate for failing to grant Obama permission to take on Syria and its president, Bashar Assad, after evidence surfaced of a nerve gas attack that killed 1,400 Syrian civilians.

“We had two United States senators—three—their views at the time were that it wasn’t our fight,” Bush said.

The singling out of Cruz and Rubio comes as both senators have overtaken Bush, trying hard now to revive his presidential bid by presenting himself as a capable commander in chief in serious times, in the broader battle for the GOP nomination.

“Ted Cruz said something to the effect that—I don’t want to provide the air force power for ISIS, that’s basically his argument. Rubio said that we don’t have an interest in the subject,” Bush continued. “He’s changed his views on this now and said he didn’t think Obama, once granted that force, would be serious about using it.

“It’s clear the ‘red line’ drawn by President Obama has now been crossed,” Rubio in April of 2013. “The time for passive engagement in this conflict must come to an end.”

But in September, when the issue came before Congress, Rubio voted against the authorization of limited military force. “I have never supported the use of U.S. military force in the conflict," he said. "And I still don’t.” Rubio said he was “unconvinced that the use of force proposed here will work,” and could even be counterproductive, suggesting that Assad might emerge strengthened after surviving a limited U.S attack and said he feared further destabilizing the Middle East.

Rubio's campaign argues that he has been consistent in opposing air strikes against Assad, whose defeat, Rubio argued Thursday in a Politico Magazine Op-Ed, is critical in "cutting off oxygen to ISIL."

"It's sad to see Governor Bush flat-out misleading about Marco's record and positions," said Alex Conant, Rubio's campaign spokesman. "Marco's warned about the rise of ISIS for years, which is why for years he has opposed President Obama's misguided Syria strategy and urged a serious US response."

Bush passingly mentioned Rand Paul, a foreign policy isolationist, even though he is not much of a factor in the broader primary battle at this point.

“And Paul, I think, has been consistently against and I admire his principled centered view on this, but I think he’s wrong," Bush said.