White House Advisor Rhodes: Not in Assad’s interest to retaliate; “no doubt” Assad regime responsible

Ben Rhodes, White House Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communication & Speechwriting, appeared on “New Day” to talk to Anchor Chris Cuomo about the administration’s case for military action in light of new CNN/ORC poll that shows a majority of Americans are against military action whether or not Congress approves the resolution. Rhodes also confirmed that there is “no doubt” that Assad is responsible for the use of chemical weapons, and said that the President of Syria has no interest to retaliate, as the United States is “prepared for any contingency.”

“It’s simply not in anybody’s interest to invite further strikes from the United States by doing anything,” Rhodes said. “We’re going to make it very clear; we’re prepared for any contingency. Our military can handle whatever comes at us. But the fact of the matter is, we don’t think it’s in the interest of Assad or any of his allies in the region to… test the resolve of the United States by doing something after we take this strike.”

“New Day” airs weekday mornings from 6-9 a.m. ET on CNN.