Talking like a college professor the President outlined the problems Iraq faces because different Muslim sects cannot get along. Mr. Obama's analysis was long on detail, short on solutions.
Even though the Pentagon recommends bombing the al Qaeda army which is slaughtering thousands of people and threatening to overwhelm Iraq, Mr. Obama says he will not bomb the terrorists who are moving back and forth the flat terrain to and from Syria. Instead he's sending in 300 American military advisors and asking for international help.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: We have immediate problems with terrorist organizations that may be advancing. And rather than try to play whack-a-mole wherever these terrorist organizations may pop up, what we have to do is to be able to build effective partnerships, make sure that they have capacity.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
O'REILLY: So, once again, the President seeks consensus from other countries rather than charting a direct course that might damage the evil al Qaeda.
Now, there are two things in play. First, what's happening inside Iraq -- which few care about -- those people have been killing each other for centuries and are not likely to stop any time soon. Iran, a she a country next door, now holds power in southern Iraq. Who is going to counter that? No one. So, let's stay out of Iraqi politics. We can encourage the Shia-Sunni folks to be reasonable but don't expect it.
The second Iraq issue is very important to America. We defeated terrorism there at a great cost in blood and treasure. Now terrorism is back. We cannot defeat it again on the ground. But we can damage the terrorists from the air. And we should do that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), SENATOR: Air strikes are an important factor psychologically and many other ways and that may require some forward air controllers and some special forces. We cannot afford to allow a Syria/Iraq enclave that will pose a direct threat to the United States of America.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
O'REILLY: As mentioned, the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, General Martin Dempsey agrees with Senator McCain, but President Obama dissents. Why? All I could glean from remarks today is that he feels military action will lead to unintended consequences. Remember, he wouldn't pull the trigger in Syria on the poison gas deal and generally is very cautious about direct action to right wrongs. He would rather have meetings.
As "Talking Points" stated after the President pulled back on Syria that emboldens our enemies. They don't believe Mr. Obama the will to punish them; Putin, China, now al Qaeda -- all directly challenging America and the world. Even though President Obama's poll numbers are falling, he knows many Americans have lost the will to fight abroad. Iraq and Afghanistan have drained us.
Mr. Obama is basically a man of theory, not action, a person who avoids evil rather than confronting it. And the evildoers know it.
And that's "The Memo."
- You can catch Bill O'Reilly's "Talking Points Memo" weeknights at 8 and 11 p.m. ET on the Fox News Channel and any time on foxnews.com/oreilly. Send your comments to: oreilly@foxnews.com.
