This article from Seymour M. Hersh in the New Yorker, March 5, 2007, is relevant for understanding the current situation in Syria; namely, how there has been perfect continuity between the Bush and Obama administrations in U.S. policy towards that country. Hersh wrote about how,

In the past year, the Saudis, the Israelis, and the Bush Administration have developed a series of informal understandings about their new strategic direction.

Included in these understandings was that

the Saudi government, with Washington’s approval, would provide funds and logistical aid to weaken the government of President Bashir Assad, of Syria.

In the above video, former NATO commander Gen. Wesley Clark outlines how the so-called neoconservatives planned to implement regime change in seven countries, starting with Iraq and including Libya and Syria and, ultimately, Iran.