There were no new policy prescriptions, no fresh military strategies and no timelines.
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President Obama also emphasized the importance of remembering our humanity.
President Barack Obama says he understands why Americans are anxious about the threat of terrorism but is reassuring Americans the US will overcome it.
“The point that we’ve made here is that the president believes strongly in good encryption and strong encryption, that that is important to protecting our civil liberties”.
Obama’s short address – just 13 minutes – underscored the simple message, one that seemed to conflict with the iconic, high-profile setting.
But the lack of new policies underscores the White House’s confidence in the current approach and a paucity of good alternatives. Obama pledged to “hunt down terrorist plotters” anywhere they are. That criticism has grown more fierce in recent months, as the terrorist network has initiated or inspired attacks beyond those borders -in Paris; in Beirut, Lebanon; in the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt; and, perhaps, last week in the US. “So this was an act of terrorism”, he said.
Authorization for the use of military force: President Obama has laid out an effective strategy to degrade and ultimately defeat ISIL.
Obama also detailed the ways in which the USA has already stepped up its efforts against ISIS, including training moderate Iraqi and Syrian forces, deploying more American special forces to the area and increased intelligence sharing with allies. And throughout his presidency, Obama and his aides have sought backdrops outside Washington.
Republican critics wasted no time reacting to the address. One is changing the visa-waiver program, which allows people coming to the US from certain European countries enter the USA, through an expedited process with less stringent background checks. “I really don’t want to talk about who did it, but you know, we just want to say that they were bad people and they were thugs”.
He also urged Congress to ban gun sales to people on the no-fly list, and to set limits on the sale of assault weapons.
U.S. Rep. Martha Roby, R-Montgomery, said she was “disappointed” in the president’s address.
GOP hopeful Marco Rubio spoke on Fox News after the address, saying, “I ran into someone else who said they’re avoiding stadiums and malls this holiday season because they’re scared”. “This is not a time for ideological silliness, this is a time for serious action because the future security of our country is at stake”.
Unsurprisingly, Republican presidential candidates have not heeded the president’s advice.
The FBI is investigating the massacre as a terrorist attack that would be the deadliest by Islamic extremists on American soil since September 11, 2001.
“We should not be drawn once more into a long and costly ground war in Iraq or Syria”.
His direct appeals were aimed at circumventing Republicans who have been cranking up the rhetoric about Muslims, weak immigration laws and terrorist threats in a feverish presidential election campaign. But judging by the immediate response after the speech, Obama did little to bridge the partisan divide.
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In the wake of San Bernadino, what the nation wants from the president is a plan…a strategy to succeed.
