White House makes clear it's not trying to push Assad out
WASHINGTON -- The Trump administration declared Friday that it wasn't pursuing a strategy to push Syrian President Bashar Assad out of power, making clear its focus is on defeating the Islamic State group.
White House press secretary Sean Spicer said the U.S. approach was being driven by a new "reality" and that Assad's future had to be a decision for the Syrian people. Similar statements were made earlier by U.S. Cabinet members speaking in Ankara, London and at the United Nations.
"There is a political reality that we have to accept in terms of where we are right now," Spicer told reporters. "We had an opportunity and we need to focus on now defeating ISIS."
