The overriding idea is that the US and its close allies get to choose who governs in the region. Assad must go not because he is authoritarian, but because he is allied with Iran, which, from the perspective of the US, Israel, Turkey, and several Gulf countries, makes him a regional threat.
简言之，总统奥巴马政府继承了针对中东政权变革的新保守主义思想。其最重要的出发点是美国及其紧密盟友来选择谁主导这一地区。巴沙尔之所以必须下台，不是因为他独裁，而是因为它与伊朗结盟，在美国、以色列、土耳其和一些海湾国家看来，这让巴沙尔成为了地区威胁。