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President Obama鈥檚 primetime speech on Syria Tuesday night seemed almost anti-climactic after all the buildup聽 鈥� six network TV interviews the night before, the flurry of speeches and interviews by top advisers, the sudden opening Monday of a diplomatic path for dealing with Syria鈥檚 chemical arsenal.

Indeed, Mr. Obama鈥檚 announcement that he had asked the leaders of Congress to postpone a vote to authorize use of force against Syria was not even necessary. Action in Congress had already been put on hold.

But the president鈥檚 16-minute speech did at least lay out, in one digestible narrative, his thought process on dealing with the Assad regime, which had crossed Obama鈥檚 鈥渞ed line鈥� after allegedly using chemical weapons on its own people Aug. 21. Obama also shed light on how he processes events. To wit:

Obama and children. The suffering of children sparks an emotional reaction in Obama like nothing else. As with his response to the school massacre in Newtown, Conn., last December, Obama鈥檚 eyes shone with contempt and moral outrage when he discussed the 鈥渉undreds of children鈥� subjected to poison gas in Syria last month.

Himself the father of two young children, the president referred to the children who died no fewer than seven times 鈥� at times in graphic terms, including the searing image of 鈥渁 father clutching his dead children, imploring them to get up and walk.鈥�

And he directed one moral plea about the children to a constituency that usually backs him.

鈥淭o my friends on the left,鈥� Obama said, 鈥淚 ask you to reconcile your belief in freedom and dignity for all people with those images of children writhing in pain, and going still on a cold hospital floor. For sometimes resolutions and statements of condemnation are simply not enough.鈥�

Two of Obama鈥檚 top foreign policy advisers 鈥� National Security Adviser Susan Rice and UN Ambassador Samantha Power 鈥� have also highlighted the suffering of Syrian children in their public remarks calling for US action. But Obama鈥檚 rhetoric Tuesday showed that it鈥檚 not just the women of his administration who are hard-wired to feel special compassion for children.

The Obama administration has shown videos that depict hard-to-watch scenes of the chemical weapons attacks to members of the Senate Intelligence Committee, and reportedly considered including images as part of the president鈥檚 presentation Tuesday night, but opted not to, as children might have been watching.

'Outside' influences. The 鈥渂ubble鈥� in which Obama 鈥� and all presidents 鈥� resides is far from airtight. Though his didn't mention his wife, Michelle, in his speech, he has noted her hesitation over Syria at other times recently. On Tuesday night,聽Obama acknowledged that the public criticism over his handling of Syria had reached him, loud and clear.

鈥淚 know Americans want all of us in Washington 鈥� especially me 鈥� to concentrate on the task of building our nation here at home: putting people back to work, educating our kids, growing our middle class,鈥� Obama said.

鈥淚t鈥檚 no wonder, then, that you鈥檙e asking hard questions. So let me answer some of the most important questions that I鈥檝e heard from members of Congress, and that I鈥檝e read in letters that you鈥檝e sent to me.鈥�

Obama presented some of the questions, then answered them, almost like a Q & A with the American people, but without the possibility for followups.

Won鈥檛 his call for limited air strikes in Syria, aimed at degrading its chemical weapons capability, just put the nation on 鈥渁 slippery slope to another war,鈥� the president said many Americans have asked.

鈥淢y answer is simple: I will not put American boots on the ground in Syria,鈥� Obama said. 鈥淚 will not pursue an open-ended action like Iraq or Afghanistan. I will not pursue a prolonged air campaign like Libya or Kosovo.鈥�

Other questions 鈥� What鈥檚 the point of getting involved without removing Syria鈥檚 dictator, President Bashar al-Assad? And what would a "pinprick" strike accomplish? 鈥� elicited this response, which allowed him to reinforce his point that Syria won鈥檛 turn into another Iraq.

鈥淭he United States military doesn鈥檛 do pinpricks. Even a limited strike will send a message to Assad that no other nation can deliver,鈥� Obama said.

鈥淚 don鈥檛 think we should remove another dictator with force 鈥� we learned from Iraq that doing so makes us responsible for all that comes next. But a targeted strike can make Assad, or any other dictator, think twice before using chemical weapons.鈥�

Additional questions allowed the president to rebut other objections that have led solid majorities of Americans to oppose airstrikes in Syria, and made congressional authorization impossible, for now.

On the danger of retaliation, Obama offered an assurance that the Assad regime does not have the ability to seriously threaten the US military. On concerns for Israel, he asserted that nation鈥檚 ability to defend itself with 鈥渙verwhelming force鈥� 鈥� and the 鈥渦nshakeable support鈥� of the US.

On the question of whether enemies of the US 鈥� like Al Qaeda 鈥� might be strengthened by an attack on the Assad regime, Obama made this promise: 鈥淭he day after any military action, we would redouble our efforts to achieve a political solution that strengthens those who reject the forces of tyranny and extremism.鈥�

Obama acknowledged twice the oft-repeated charge that the US should not be the 鈥渨orld鈥檚 policeman.鈥� And while agreeing with that sentiment, he rebutted the notion that that should mean doing nothing 鈥� bringing his argument back to children.

鈥淲hen, with modest effort and risk, we can stop children from being gassed to death, and thereby make our own children safer over the long run, I believe we should act,鈥� he said.

The followup questions to the president鈥檚 answers began even before the speech concluded. Where is the iron-clad evidence that the Assad regime was behind the chemical weapons attack? How can Americans be 100 percent certain, under the law of unintended consequences, that a limited airstrike won鈥檛 morph into a larger engagement? After all, at a Senate hearing last week, Secretary Kerry refused to rule out 鈥渂oots on the ground鈥� in Syria before changing his tune moments later.

That Americans 鈥� Republican, Democratic, and independent 鈥� are war-weary may be an understatement, making his unexpected request for congressional approval on Syrian airstrikes a lingering mystery.

In his speech, Obama said he believed American democracy is stronger when the president acts with Congress鈥檚 support. But even recently, in the case of Libya, US forces acted without upfront congressional approval.

Taking his case on Syria to Congress was always predicated on 鈥渢he absence of a direct or imminent threat to our security,鈥� as Obama put it Tuesday night. So if the diplomatic avenue that opened this week doesn鈥檛 pan out, Obama may still act militarily, even without Congress鈥檚 blessing. And in the meantime, Syria鈥檚 knowledge that Obama believes he can act unilaterally could provide the leverage needed to bring Assad to heel.