Obama's Phony War On ISIS

Remember last January when President Obama said that ISIS was a "JV team"? I don't know whether they took that personally but since then they have done everything they can to prove him wrong. They have amassed an army of over 60,000, killed tens of thousands of innocent people, conquered cities and towns throughout Syria and Iraq, taken billions of dollars from banks in the region and even captured an oil refinery. They have reclaimed territories that had been liberated by United States military forces during the Iraq war, including U.S. bases, and have helped themselves to military supplies and equipment we left behind.

I'm glad they're only a JV team otherwise they would be dangerous.

Eventually someone was able to convince President Obama that he should at least appear to do something against ISIS. The American people watched in horror as they (ISIS) beheaded, on film, two Americans they held hostage, along with several hostages from other countries, and many Americans demanded Obama take action.

In response the President told the American people that while he would not put boots on the ground against ISIS he would begin precision air strikes against any ISIS target that posed a threat to American interests in the region. From that point on the media was reporting, almost daily, about the success of U.S. air strikes against ISIS and the President was bragging telling the American people of those successes. But are they telling the truth?

I watched an interview last evening with General Thomas McInerney, U.S. Air Force (Ret), concerning the U.S. air strikes against ISIS. General McInerney related that during the first Gulf war, Operation Desert Storm, U.S. military air forces flew 1200 sorties (a term used by pilots for their attack mission) per day. During Operation Iraqi Freedom they flew at least 800 sorties per day.

General McInerney said that currently in the "assault" on ISIS in Iraq and Syria, U.S. air forces are flying an average of 7 sorties a day. That's seven.

How serious can President Obama be about "degrading and destroying ISIS" if we're only flying 7 sorties per day? It's no wonder ISIS continues to grow, expand, conquer and kill. They're laughing at Obama's air strikes.

Meanwhile, it seems ISIS may have gone too far in the Muslim community with their execution of captured Jordanian pilot, Lieutenant Muath Safi Yousef al-Kasasbeh. Al-Kasasbeh was caged, doused with gasoline and burned alive by ISIS on Tuesday morning. ISIS claims they burned al-Kasasbeh in retribution for his killing ISIS members on the ground with his fiery bombs.

Muslim leaders throughout the region are condemning ISIS for burning the man saying "Burning is an abominable crime rejected by Islamic law regardless of its causes. It is rejected whether it falls on an individual or a group or a people. Only God tortures by fire," said leading Saudi cleric Salman al-Odah.

Ahmed al-Tayeb, the Grand Imam of the al-Azhar mosque in Cairo, who is widely considered the world’s most influential Sunni Muslim cleric, called the Islamic State "satanic" and called for its members to be "killed, crucified or to have their limbs amputated"

Even radical imams are condemning ISIS' actions as unappealing and counterproductive. "This weakens the popularity of the Islamic State because we look at Islam as a religion of mercy and tolerance. Even in the heat of battle, a prisoner of war is given good treatment," said Mohamed al-Shalabi, a Salafi jihadist who spent 10 years in prison in Jordan for terrorist activities. 

"Even if the Islamic State says Moath had bombed, and burnt and killed us, and we punished him in the way he did to us, we say, OK but why film the video in this shocking way. This method has turned society against them," he told Reuters.

Saudi Arabia and Iran have both condemned the killing of al-Kasasbeh calling it "un-Islamic and inhumane." But will they do anything about it? That is the question.

Jordan responded to the murder of their pilot by executing two Al Qaeda affiliated terrorist. Jordan's King Abdullah II, a former special forces commander, has vowed to carry out attacks on ISIS until his military is "out of fuel and bullets."

During a press briefing yesterday White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest was asked if the President supported the execution of the two terrorists by the Jordanian government in response to ISIS burning their pilot to death. Earnest would not give a straight answer.

Fox News' Chief White House Correspondent, Ed Henry, wasn't going to let it go.

"I’m confused by your answer to Michelle’s question about the executions that happened overnight," Henry said. "When you said, ‘I don’t have a reaction to it’ — I mean, how can the president, yesterday, say, you know, ‘We’re here, we support Jordan, they are a key member of the coalition.’ They make this decision overnight and you can’t say whether or not you support the executions?

Still Earnest refused to give a straight answer.

Well Ed, it is certainly possible for us to continue to support and stand with the people of Jordan at this very difficult time," he replied. "You know, clearly, their nation, in the same way that we all are, is shocked and appalled at this terrible act of violence that was captured on video by ISIL and released to the world.

He went on.

"And the United States stands with our friends in Jordan as they confront this awful, barbaric act. But as it relates to decisions that are carried out by the Jordanian justice system, I’d refer you to them. I just, I don’t have the working knowledge of the Jordanian justice system to render an opinion on this."

"All I know is that the individuals that we are discussing here, were individuals who were convicted of terrorism-related crimes. They were individuals who were sentenced to death and these were individuals who had been serving time on death row."

In his typical evasive manner Earnest spoke a whole lot without really saying anything at all. My guess is that he didn't want to admit that President Obama silently condemns the Jordanian actions.