Obama says U.S. should strike Syria, will seek congressional vote

U.S. President Barack Obama (R) meets with his national security staff to discuss the situation in Syria in the Situation Room of the White House in Washington, in this photo taken August 30, 2013, courtesy of the White House. REUTERS/Pete Souza/White House/Handout via Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama said on Saturday he had decided the United States should strike Syrian government targets in response to a deadly chemical weapons attack, but said he would seek a congressional vote for any military action. "We cannot and will not turn a blind eye to what happened in Damascus," Obama said in statement at the White House Rose Garden. (Reporting by Paul Eckert)