| Happy Tuesday and welcome to Overnight Defense. I'm Ellen Mitchell, and here's your nightly guide to the latest developments at the Pentagon, on Capitol Hill and beyond. THE TOPLINE: The clock is ticking for President Trump's planned response to new allegations of chemical weapons use by the Syrian regime. On Monday, the president vowed a swift response and said a decision would be made in the next 24 to 48 hours. As of Tuesday evening, though, the White House has yet to reveal its plans. At least 49 people have been reported dead and hundreds injured by an apparent nerve agent in the Damascus suburb of Douma, a town controlled by opponents of Syrian President Bashar Assad. Here are the latest developments... Trump consults US allies: White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders on Tuesday told reporters the Trump has had "a number of conversations," with both French President Emmanuel Macron and United Kingdom Prime Minister Theresa May about the incident. In addition, he has spoken with other countries "at an administration level," Sanders said at the daily White House press briefing. "We're going to continue to work with a number of our partners and allies as we determine what the next best steps are." Trump on Monday discussed response options to the attack with his national security team and military brass, but said prior that "nothing is off the table." Corker wants more than 'bluster': Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) said Tuesday he thinks the United States will strike Syria in response to the latest chemical attack, but he hasn't heard anything concrete from the White House. Asked by The Hill if he's gotten any updates from the administration in the last day about possible action in Syria, Corker shook his head and said, "Bluster so far." "I haven't seen any action," he told reporters. Pressed on if that means he thinks the United States won't strike, Corker said, "I think we will strike." "I do think we'll strike, but so far it's talk," he continued. Roadblocks at the UN: Russia on Tuesday rejected a measure in the United Nations Security Council that would have created a new investigative body to examine the suspected chemical weapons attacks in Syria. The U.S.-led resolution, vetoed by Russia's U.N. envoy, would have condemned the use of chemical weapons and established a panel to determine responsibility for their alleged use in Syria. The veto from Russia was largely expected. Vassily Nebenzia, the Russian ambassador to the U.N., said a day earlier that the resolution contained "some unacceptable elements." As one of the council's five permanent member states, Russia holds veto power over any resolution. Haley pushes back: U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley on Tuesday condemned Russia's veto, saying that Moscow had chosen Assad over the Security Council. "The record will not be kind to one permanent member of this council. Unfortunately, Russia has chosen the Assad regime again over the unity of this council," Haley said. "We have said it before that Russia will stop at nothing to shield the Assad regime." Russia warns against US response: A top Russian lawmaker warned on Tuesday that Moscow could respond with military force to a potential U.S. strike on Syria in the wake of the deadly chemical weapon attack. Vladimir Shamanov, the chairman of the defense affairs committee in the State Duma, said in televised remarks that Russia would consider "all political, diplomatic and military measures" against the U.S. in the event of a strike in Syria. "The politics of double standards have hit rock bottom," Shamanov said, according to the Russian state-run TASS news agency. "And here the United Russia party conscientiously states that all political, diplomatic and military measures if necessary will be taken. No illegal action will remain unanswered." | 
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