The Obama administration is brushing aside Syrian President Bashar al Assad’s declarations of victory in the face of President Obama’s announcement that he would hold off on any military strike in retaliation to the Assad regime’s use of chemical weapons while he takes his case to Congress.

“Assad has said a lot of things in the course of this … the more he stands up and crows, the more he will help this decision to be made correctly,” Secretary of State John Kerry told ABC’s George Stephanopoulos on Sunday.