You May Not Believe the Democrat Who Stood Up to MSNBC on Syria

Rep. Alan Grayson didn't back down Sunday from his opposition to any U.S. engagement in Syria, telling an MSNBC anchor who pressed him that it's "not our responsibility" to get involved.

"First, it's not our responsibility. Secondly, whatever we do won't actually accomplish anything useful, third, it's expensive, and fourth, it's dangerous," the Florida Democrat counted off. "It's simply not our responsibility. We're only one country out of 196 and we have our own problems to deal with and we're not the world's policeman, nor the world's judge, jury and executioner."

MSNBC's Alex Witt tried to corner Grayson, an outspoken and fiery liberal, on his past statements questioning the validity of last month's reported chemical attack.

"You're misquoting me and quoting me out of context. I said that several days ago before that evidence came in," Grayson said. "Now I think there is substantial evidence that there was a chemical attack...it doesn't change my mind about anything I've said though. I still think it's not our responsibility, it's expensive and it's dangerous and our attack won't do any good. I've yet to have anybody explain to me why our attacking Syria will take away their ability to take away any attack in the future. It won't."

Grayson said any U.S. intervention would only serve to "give us the sense we're doing something useful."

Witt asked Grayson whether he was questioning President Barack Obama calling Syria a threat to U.S. national security.

"Absolutely," he responded. "We haven't been attacked at all. Not a single American has been attacked during the course of this entire civil war. I think Americans understand that. Let's tend to our own garden."

Watch below via MSNBC:

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