Sen. Kay Hagan (D-NC), who is running for re-election in 2014, clarified Wednesday that she does not support American troops on the ground in Syria as the White House considers military action.
“The Senator was indicating the need to be extremely thoughtful before putting boots on the ground,” Hagan spokesman Christopher Moyer told TPM in an email Wednesday afternoon.
Hagan’s stance was called into question by her opponents in a local news piece published Wednesday, when she was interpreted as suggesting “boots on the ground” would be appropriate. “I think we really have to give serious consideration to something that would put American boots on the ground in a place like Syria,” Hagan said.
Brad Dayspring, a spokesman for the National Republican Congressional Committee, which is targeting Hagan for defeat, called her remark “[s]hocking.”
Shocking: North Carolina Senator Kay Hagan seemingly advocates boots on the ground in #Syria – http://t.co/ag7Mcrlhbe #NCsen
— Brad Dayspring (@BDayspring) August 28, 2013
The ambiguity in her Wednesday remark aside, Hagan has been clear she opposes boots on the ground.
“We do not need to have boots on the ground in Syria,” she said in a different article published Monday. “I wish we could exert more pressure especially from a diplomatic standpoint to bring some sort of an end to the violence.”
In an Tuesday article published in the Greensboro News & Record, Hagan said, “At this point I do not think the U.S. needs boots on the ground.”
This article has been updated.
