'Too Cautious' Obama Pressed to Take Action on ISIL

Democrats and Republicans took to the Sunday talk shows to send President Obama a bipartisan message that he needs to act swiftly on ISIL militants before it's too late.  

Senate Intelligence Committee Chair Dianne Feinstein said President Barack Obama was “too cautious” when he said the U.S. hasn’t developed a strategy to combat ISIL.

“I think I've learned one thing about this president, and that is he's very cautious. Maybe in this instance, too cautious,” Senate Intelligence Committee Chair Dianne Feinstein told NBC’s Andrea Mitchell during an interview that aired Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press."

During a news conference Thursday, President Obama admitted that "we don't have a strategy yet," drawing sharp criticism from allies and opponents, alike. 

ISIL “is a major varsity team, if you want to use those kinds of monikers,” Feinstein added Sunday, saying Obama was wrong to call the organization a "jayvee team" earlier this year. 

“This is a vicious, vicious movement, and it has to be confronted,” she said. “I mean, [ISIL] crossed the border into Iraq before we even knew it happened. So this is a group of people who are extraordinarily dangerous. And they'll kill with abandon.”

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Sen. John McCain echoed Feinstein's sentiments Sunday on CBS' "Face the Nation."

"We now are facing the largest, most powerful, wealthiest terrorist organization in history, and it's going to require some very strong measures to defeat them," said McCain. "And they must be defeated, not contained."

McCain pointed out that the U.S. does not have to confront ISIL alone, but potential partners need to know a strategy has been put in place. 

"Iraqis will fight, but there has to be a strategy and a policy to implement that strategy," said McCain. "I think it starts with understanding that this is a direct threat to the United States of America."

Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger struck a more cautious tone on CNN’s “State of the Union,” saying, “We don’t have intelligence at this point that an attack on the United States is imminent. If we need to protect ourselves from ISIS, we will….You don’t tell an enemy you’re coming in to attack them. I think you will see action within the next week or so."

RELATED: Libyan Militia Now Controls U.S. Embassy Compound in Tripoli

This article was originally published at http://www.thewire.com/global/2014/08/too-cautious-obama-pressed-to-take-action-on-isil/379425/

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