Obama Vows to "Degrade and Ultimately Destroy" ISIS
In a televised speech Wednesday night, President Obama announced plans to ramp up airstrikes, send additional service members to Iraq, and provide more humanitarian aid in an effort to "degrade and ultimately destroy" the terrorist group ISIS.
Obama outlined the four-part plan in a 13-minute speech, claiming that although he has the authority on his own, Congress should support his efforts to "show the world that Americans are united in confronting this danger."
Describing 150 "successful" US airstrikes last month in Iraq, Obama pledged to also launch strikes against militants in Syria, saying, "if you threaten America, you will find no safe haven."
The president also pledged to send 475 service members to Iraq, but stressed their roles would be limited to intelligence gathering and training Iraqi and Kurdish forces.
"These American forces will not have a combat mission — we will not get dragged into another ground war in Iraq," he said.
Obama also listed counterterrorism and humanitarian assistance as major aspects of the counter-ISIS plan. The president stressed international cooperation as a key aspect, something the New York Times noted after an "unusually extensive" White House briefing about a "frenzied effort to line up the support of partners worldwide to combat ISIS."
According to the Times, King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia expressed support for the White House strategy before the speech.