Anne W. Patterson: “If confirmed, my top priority will be to protect our country and our allies.”

Certainly not. The President and certainly the Secretary have said many times that Assad's departure is absolutely critical to any future in Syria.

We don't believe it is possible to have any sort of settlement there, either a political settlement or any military defeat of ISIL, without the departure of Assad.

To protect U.S. interests amidst this volatility, we have to recognize and cope with the challenges that states across the region face.

We have provided over $2 billion, $2.5 billion, for humanitarian assistance inside Syria.