The White House may really be about to win on Syria  —  The AP tweets:  —  Assuming that sticks, it's game.  The White House just achieved its goal.  —  Remember: The White House's aim here wasn't to topple Assad, or even hurt him.  It was to affirm and reinforce the international norm against chemical weapons.

Putin: Syria chem arms handover will work only if US calls off strike  —  Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Syria's chemical arms handover will only work if the US and its allies renounce the use of force against Damascus.  —  “Certainly, this is all reasonable …

Making Sense of Syria  —  This is what I think we're seeing:  —  The president has backed away from a military strike in Syria.  But he can't acknowledge this or act as if it is true.  He is acting and talking as if he's coolly, analytically, even warily contemplating the Russian proposal and the Syrian response.

Syria, chemical weapons, and the worst day in Western diplomatic history  —  Monday 9 September, 2013, was the worst day for US and wider Western diplomacy since records began.  —  At the Foreign Office here in London we had the bizarre spectacle of US Secretary of State John Kerry giving …

Administration Changes Russian Proposal's Origin Story  —  Back-dating a policy.  —  From left: U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff U.S. Army General Martin Dempsey testify at the House Armed Services Committee in Washington, Sept. 10, 2013.

Fight Delayed  —  Majority Leader Eric Cantor spent 90 percent of a presentation to House Republicans in the Capitol basement this morning explaining and defending his convoluted plan to force the Senate to vote on defunding Obamacare before eventually allowing the upper chamber to send a “clean” CR to President Obama.