Obama lays out plan to combat ISIL

President Barack Obama called the authorization of military action in Iraq and Syria “different from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan” in a speech that was broadcast nationwide on prime-time television Wednesday night. Obama promised that plans to assist local forces who oppose the terrorist organization ISIL with financial aid and air support will include “no combat troops fighting on foreign soil.”

Obama also said he would “not hesitate to take action against ISIL,” but urged the American people and Congress to support the already effective operation.

“I believe that we are strongest as a nation when the president and Congress work together in the effort to assure the world that Americans are united,” the president said.

According to the Washington Post, American support for air-strikes in Iraq has seen an increase from 45 percent to 71 percent since June. The public’s shift from war-weary to pro-involvement was bolstered by two videos released by ISIL last month depicting the decapitations of James Foley and Steven Sotloff, two American journalists working in the region who were captured by the organization.

Calling the security of the American people his highest priority, Obama laid out a 4-step plan to combat ISIL that includes increased financial and intelligence support to the Iraqi and Kurdish forces currently fighting against the terrorist group in the region. The plan also includes the authorization of air-strikes in Syria. The move comes just over a month after the president first approved air-strikes in Iraq.

“If you threaten America, you will find no safe haven,” Obama said. “(America’s) endless blessings bestow an enduring burden, but as Americans we welcome the responsibility to lead.”

Not all Americans are gung-ho for U.S. military involvement in the Middle East. The President’s speech occurred on the eve of the 13th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks that shocked the nation, and memories of the destructive military conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq that followed are still fresh in the public’s minds.

“The beheadings of the American journalists were barbaric and horrifying, but I just don’t think emotion and revenge are the best basis for American foreign policy,” engineering junior Michael Retherford said. “The fact that American opinion has swung so quickly in favor of military action is incredible, and I think a direct effect of those videos.”

Despite the varying opinions of the public, Obama vowed to help and protect refugees and prisoners of ISIL as well as the guerilla forces who oppose them. While downplaying ISIL’s current ability to directly attack America, he said that America must “remain vigilant as threats emerge,” calling American leadership “the one constant in an uncertain world.”

“Despite all the divisions and discord within our democracy, I see the… common goodness in the American people every single day, and that makes me more confident than ever about our country’s future,” Obama said.

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