John Kerry

This is not about getting into Syria's civil war. This is about enforcing the principle that people shouldn't be allowed to gas their citizens with impunity.

Let me make it as clear as I can to all of you. That is just not true. This is about the world's red line.

The President stated that he has no interest in an open-ended U.S. involvement in Syria.

The indiscriminate and large-scale use of chemical weapons by the regime on August 21 violates clearly established international norms against the use of chemical weapons and the law of war.

Our objective is to deter further chemical weapons use by the regime, to degrade their capacity to carry out future chemical weapons attacks, and to enforce the international norm against chemical weapons use.

Our goal is a peaceful political transition that results in Asad's departure and the establishment of a representative and legitimate government that represents the will of all Syrians.

We haven't done enough on that score. The fact that they are going to block us shouldn't dissuade us.

We should make them wear being a pro chemical weapons nation like a rotting carcass around their neck in every instance we can.

The President is not asking you to go to war. He is not asking you to declare war.

If people are asked, 'Do you want to go to war in Syria?' of course not. Everybody, one hundred percent of Americans, will say no.

We do not believe we are going to war in the classic sense of taking American troops and America to war.

If the United States of America does not hold him accountable on this with our allies and friends, it is a guarantee Assad will do it again--a guarantee--and I urge you to go to the classified briefing and learn that.

I can make it crystal clear to you that Israel will be less safe unless the United States takes this action.

Do you really want to have a situation where that gas may be available to these groups if it continues to deteriorate, because Assad can use this gas to continue to subjugate his population that is looking for a governance that is, you…

If the United States knowing it and knowing that we have drawn a line that the world has drawn with us, is unwilling to stand up and confront that, it is an absolute certainty that gas will proliferate.

The world decided after World War I and the horrors of gas, and the trenches, and the loss of an entire generation of young people in Europe that we were never again going to allow gas to be used in warfare.

Here we have weapons of mass destruction that we not only know do exist, but they have been used.

If the Congress decides not to do this, it is a guarantee... we will have invited a for-certain confrontation.

The President would have the authority, and the right, and, conceivably, the imperative to respond without any other authorization if Assad were to attack again.

It would not be sensible to pass this resolution with a view to degrading his capacity and preventing him from doing it, if he were foolish enough to do it again.

We saved countless numbers of lives, and I believe, the President of the United States believes, we can do that now.

History is full of opportunity of moments where someone did not stand up and act when it made a difference.

It is a guarantee that if the United States does not act together with other countries, we know what Assad will do.

If the United States, which has the greatest capacity to do that, does not help lead that effort, then shame on us.

This is a very open-ended proposal with no specific limits on types of forces that would be used, with no limit on their duration.