in order to dominate any territory location where it is. it's frankly the enemy of civility, the enemy of rule of law, the enemy of pluralism, the enemy of decency and we need to make it crystal clear as we have the united states views it as a threat to our interest as well as the interest of our friends and allies in the region. >> let's bring in pentagon correspondent barbara starr. so read between the lines for us, barbara. >> look, carol, i think straight up it is absolutely clear the white house is saying that the president has not made a decision about how to proceed. there are things other than air strikes. he could announce more armed sales. he could announce intelligence sharing. if it does come down to air strikes, what we hear at the