Thanks, Obama! It will take 80,000 troops to restore Iraq to where it was before Obama cut and ran

It's been almost three years since President Obama callously cut and ran from Iraq so he could proudly proclaim, “I ended the war in Iraq, as I promised," as he ran for reelection. Former Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta confirmed he "viewed the White House as so eager to rid itself of Iraq that it was willing to withdraw rather than lock in arrangements that would preserve our influence and interests."

Panetta concluded that "to this day, I believe that a small U.S. troop presence in Iraq could have effectively advised the Iraqi military on how to deal with al-Qaeda’s resurgence and the sectarian violence that has engulfed the country." As predicted, because of Obama's actions, the country has fallen to Islamic terrorists, horrific violence, and more war.

So much has been lost to ISIS under Obama that the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff told Congress on Thursday, "We're going to need about 80,000 competent Iraqi security forces to recapture territory lost, and eventually the city of Mosul, to restore the border."

America's top general also testified that because the Iraqi army is in such bad shape after losing its American support that he is considering sending in U.S. ground troops again:

General Martin Dempsey, the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, indicated to the House of Representatives armed services committee that the strength of Isis relative to the Iraqi army may be such that he would recommend abandoning Obama’s oft-repeated pledge against returning US ground troops to combat in Iraq.

Retaking the critical city of Mosul, Iraq’s second largest, and re-establishing the border between Iraq and Syria that Isis has erased “will be fairly complex terrain” for the Iraqi security forces that the US is once again supporting, Dempsey acknowledged.

“I’m not predicting at this point that I would recommend that those forces in Mosul and along the border would need to be accompanied by US forces, but we’re certainly considering it,” he said.

... But should the Iraqi military prove unwilling to take back “al-Anbar province and Ninewa province” – the majority of territory in Iraq seized by Isis – or should the new Iraqi prime minister, Haider al-Abadi, exclude Sunnis from power, “I will have to adjust my recommendations,” Dempsey said.

Once again, if Obama had negotiated a responsible draw down that left provisional forces to protect our interests and progress, none of this would have happened.

Instead, Iraq will need 80,000 troops and additional U.S. ground troops to recover. Thanks, Obama!

Days before 9/11 Obama authorizes additional embassy security for Baghdad

On Tuesday, the White House announced that it's sending more troops to Iraq to protect the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad:

Press secretary Josh Earnest said in a statement that that the Defense Department authorization stemmed from a State Department request for “approximately 350 additional U.S. military personnel to protect our diplomatic facilities and personnel.”

“This action was taken at the recommendation of the Department of Defense after an extensive interagency review, and is part of the President’s commitment to protect our personnel and facilities in Iraq as we continue to support the Government of Iraq in its fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). These additional forces will not serve in a combat role,” Earnest said.

Thank God Obama seems to have learned from Benghazi that you don't deny State Department requests for more embassy security in a volatile region of the world - especially ahead of the anniversary of 9/11.

The PJ Tatler notes:

It also comes after Senate Intelligence Committee Chairwoman Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) warned Sunday that Baghdad could be the next to fall.

“I believe their goal is Baghdad. I think it’s very, very serious and we have to have a strategy to deal with it in Syria and in Iraq in this new caliphate and to prevent that caliphate from expanding,” she said, stressing that ISIS “is on its way to Baghdad and I believe that they will try to attack our embassy from the West, which is a Sunni area where I believe they are infiltrating now.”

Scary stuff!

The infuriating part is that if we hadn't left in 2011, we wouldn't have to go back in now and the world would be a much safer place. Obama better get a strategy quick or ISIS is going to do a LOT worse than have a pool party at our embassy.

Originally posted at The Political Insider

WOW! This open letter to Obama from the parents of a fallen SEAL Team Six member is BRUTAL!

The parents of SEAL Team Six member Aaron Carson Vaughn know what real courage and sacrifice is. Billy and Karen Vaughn's son was killed with 37 others on August 6, 2011, when his helicopter was shot down in Afghanistan. After watching the sickening beheading of James Foley, they were inspired to write a scathing open letter to President Obama.

The Vaughns are expressing what everyone has been feeling in a way only they can. This powerful piece needs to be read in full and shared far and wide:

After finally choosing to view the barbaric, on-camera beheading by ISIS of freelance war correspondent James Foley, I have been left with a level of rage known only to those of us who have sacrificed unspeakable offerings on the altar of world peace.

My offering was my only son — Aaron Carson Vaughn. Aaron was a member of SEAL Team VI. He was killed in action when a CH47D Chinook, carrying thirty Americans and eight Afghans was shot down in the Tangi River Valley of Afghanistan on Aug. 6, 2011.

Many times over the past three years, I have been asked what drove my son to choose his particular career. What made him want to be a Navy SEAL? My answer is simple.

Aaron Vaughn was a man who possessed the courage to acknowledge evil. And evil, once truly acknowledged, demands response. Perhaps this is why so few are willing to look it in the eye. It is much simpler — much safer — to look the other way.

That is, unless you are the leader of the Free World.

As Commander-in-Chief, your actions — or lack thereof — Mr. President, cost lives. As you bumble about in your golf cart, slapping on a happy face and fist-pounding your buddies, your cowardly lack of leadership has left a gaping hole — not only in America’s security — but the security of the entire globe. Your message has come across loud and clear, sir: You are not up to this job. You know it. We know it. The world knows it.

Please vacate the people’s house and allow a man or woman of courage and substance to seize the reigns of this out-of-control thug-fest and regain the balance we, America, have provided throughout our great history.

Thanks to your “leadership” from whatever multi-million dollar vacation you happen to be on at any given moment, the world is in chaos. What’s been gained, you’ve lost. What’s been lost, you’ve decimated. You’ve demolished our ability to hold the trust of allies. You’ve made a mockery of the title “President.” And you’ve betrayed the nation for which my son and over 1.3 million others have sacrificed their very lives.

But this should come as no surprise, since your wife uttered a vile statement on Feb. 18, 2008, during the primary campaign — one that speaks volumes of your true convictions. “For the first time in my adult life, I am really proud of my country,” she said.

I am sure my deceased son thanks you for that, Mrs. Obama. Oh, and you’re welcome.
Never in my lifetime have I witnessed such despair and such growing fear that the world’s last best hope, America, has finally been dismantled. Perhaps the better word is transformed — fundamentally transformed. Come to think of it, it’s become difficult — if not impossible — to believe things haven’t gone exactly as you planned, Mr. President.

Amazingly, in five short years, your administration has lurched from one disaster to another. You spearheaded the ambitious rush to end the wars in both Iraq and Afghanistan — with no plan on how to do so effectively. Also, the release of “the Taliban five” in exchange for one American — without consulting Congress — is also on your shoulders.

You have been at the helm during unprecedented national security leaks — including, but not limited to the outing of SEAL Team VI on the Bin laden raid, the outing of the Pakistani doctor who provided the intelligence for that raid, the outing of Afghanistan’s CIA station chief, and the outing of your personal “kill list” to make you look tough. In addition, 75 percent of American deaths in Afghanistan and 83 percent of Americans-wounded-in-action have occurred on your watch, according to icasualties.org.

And now, we have this recent, heinous event: the beheading of an American citizen by a barbaric organization you foolishly referred to as “the JV team” in your statements to the New Yorker magazine in January.

You, sir, are the JV team. It’s time for you to step down and allow a true leader to restore our honor and protect our sons and daughters.

America has always been exceptional. And she will be again. You, Mr. President, are a bump in our road.

HOOYAH!

This article was originally posted on The Political Insider.

SCARY: Obama doesn’t “have a strategy yet” for ISIS

Does Obama even care anymore? I mean, really, could he be any more aloof and detached? After last week's tone deaf, out-of-touch, "now watch this drive" moment when he golfed immediately after expressing his heartbreak over James Foley's execution and pledging vigilance, now he says he doesn't have a strategy against ISIS:

“We don’t have a strategy yet,” Mr. Obama said of his plans for defeating the Islamic State in Syria. “We need to make sure that we’ve got clear plans. As our strategy develops, we will consult with Congress.”

After a week of speculation that he was about to expand U.S. airstrikes against the terrorist group — also known by the acronyms ISIL and ISIS — from its positions in Iraq to those in Syria, the president said he has ordered his military advisers to give him “a range of options.”

But Mr. Obama tried to tamp down the suggestion that his decision was imminent, saying “folks are getting a little further ahead of where we’re at than we currently are.”

That's because Obama should be much further ahead on this! This is an urgent situation and he's known about the threat from ISIS and its previous iterations for years (although he infamously dismissed them as the "jayvee team"). He should have already had a strategy and contingency plans, the admission that he doesn't is just more evidence of how unfit he is to be Commander-in-Chief.

White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest offered this inexplicable "clarification" of Obama's comments:

In his remarks today, POTUS was explicit - as he has been in the past - about the comprehensive strategy we'll use to confront ISIL threat.

— Josh Earnest (@PressSec) August 28, 2014

In what world is "we don't have a strategy" an "explicit...comprehensive strategy?!" A world where war is peace, freedom is slavery, and ignorance is strength.

Mind-boggling.

Originally published on The Political Insider.

No, Obama, ISIS isn’t the Jayvee Team, they’re the terrorist Dream Team

I’ve talked about how ISIS is targeting Americans through Twitter, but even more terrifying is what ISIS can do to reach America beyond cyberspace. ISIS has only gotten stronger and more powerful – now al-Qaeda has announced its support after previously disavowing them – and their capabilities grow by the day.

We are living with the devastating consequences of reelecting a weak president who recklessly and prematurely pulled out of Iraq, turned a blind eye to the Middle East, and dismissed ISIS as the “jayvee team.”

Well, Mr. President, while you were out vowing to “maintain vigilance” against ISIS out on the golf course you may have missed the news from your Defense Department that the jayvee team has metastasized into the terrorist Dream Team:

The sophistication, wealth and military might of Islamic State militants represent a major threat to the United States that may surpass that once posed by al-Qaeda, U.S. military leaders said on Thursday.

“They are an imminent threat to every interest we have, whether it’s in Iraq or anywhere else,” Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel told reporters at the Pentagon. …

Asked if the hardline Sunni Muslim organization posed a threat to the United States comparable to that of the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, Hagel said it was “as sophisticated and well-funded as any group we have seen.”

“They are beyond just a terrorist group. They marry ideology, a sophistication of … military prowess. They are tremendously well-funded. This is beyond anything we’ve seen.”

Meanwhile, as the President finalizes his plans to give amnesty to millions more illegals, Jihadists are in a prime position to take advantage of the Obama-made border crisis. Breitbart TV reports that Rep. Ted Poe (R-TX), who sits on the House Judiciary Committee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security, has said that ISIS and Mexican drug cartels are “talking to each other.” Gov. Rick Perry echoed that concern during a speech at the Heritage Foundation on Thursday, saying terrorists could be crossing the border.

ISIS teaming up with al-Qaeda and the drug cartels? That’s a recipe for a horrific terrorist attack! The question is, at this point does Obama have the ability – or will – to do anything to stop what he’s started?

Article originally published on The Political Insider: http://www.thepoliticalinsider.com/obama-wrong-isis-isnt-jayvee-team-theyre-terrorist-dream-team/#ixzz3B9iUCquL

ISIS Tweets Me Graphic Images of James Foley’s Execution

Scary: CNN's Jake Tapper in Ferguson with "ISIS is Here" sign behind him

Two big stories in the U.S. this week revealed how ISIS is monitoring Twitter and using it to spread its propaganda and issue threats in entirely new and terrifying ways. The UK Daily Mail reports:

ISIS militants and their supporters are using social media to encourage protesters in Ferguson to embrace radical Islam and fight against the U.S. government.

Jihadists in Syria and Iraq and their sympathizers in the West have taken to Twitter to send messages of support to hundreds of demonstrators taking part in a ninth night of angry protests in the U.S. city following the shooting by police of unarmed black teenager Michael Brown.

The militants’ tweets denounce local officers for the way they have attempted to quell the violence, make reference to historic acts of police brutality, and even use the hashtag #FergusonUnderISIS in an attempt to get angry young men in the city to declare allegiance to the Islamist group.

The news comes as footage purportedly taken from the scene of the Ferguson protests appeared to show one demonstrator marching along a street holding a sign reading ‘ISIS is here’.

Although the Daily Mail notes that the sign may simply be a political statement comparing the police to ISIS, it says the “CNN footage [was] embraced by Jihadists who have claimed they prove Jihadists are already playing their part in the protests.”

Here’s an example of Jihadists calling for action in the U.S. based on Ferguson on Twitter:

@AmreekiWitness Preach, brother. We must organize brigades in preparation for the oncoming storm. #FergusonUnderIS #JihadinFerguson
— Amarka Al-Ahlam (@AmarkaAlAhlam) August 19, 2014

The photo of Tapper with the ISIS sign was made even more chilling with the news the following day of journalist James Wright Foley’s beheading.

Jihadists seized on the release of the video of his execution to target Americans on Twitter. After I used the hashtag #RIPJamesFoley, one tweeted at me a photo of his bloody decapitated head and body. Screenshot censored:

I reported the tweet but it is still up (as of August 22) at this link – GRAPHIC UNCENSORED IMAGE AT THIS LINK. If you decide to click the link, please report and block the image and account to Twitter.

Herman Cain’s former press secretary Ellen Carmichael was sent the following threatening image in a tweet that has since been removed, but the user is still active:

@ellencarmichael pic.twitter.com/IEN02wSRoe
— محمد الزوبعي (@AbuAli4ps) August 20, 2014

There are reports that Twitter is working to remove the images and ISIS accounts, but clearly they’re not working quickly enough.

This piece originally appeared on The Political Insider: http://www.thepoliticalinsider.com/shock-isis-infiltrates-twitter-feeds-threatening-images-james-foleys-execution/#ixzz3B9fsFxC9

Even the French are Mocking Obama’s Vacations!

When even the French are calling you out, you know it’s bad:

French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius has a message about Iraq for Barack Obama: Get back to the White House and do something.

‘I know it is the holiday period in our Western countries,’ Fabius told a radio interviewer Tuesday in France, ‘but when people are dying, you must come back from vacation.’
Full-time workers in France are guaranteed a whopping five weeks of paid vacation every year, making his plea all the more urgent.

Obama is on a family and golfing holiday in a ritzy neighborhood of Martha’s Vineyard but says he will come back to Washington briefly on Tuesday before returning to fun, sun, and more golf.

Fabius visited refugees in Iraq on Sunday, Obama golfed.

Enough said.

Originally published on The Political Insider: http://www.thepoliticalinsider.com/even-french-mocking-obamas-vacations-now/#ixzz3B9lFn7jM