Obama: 'Americans will not be terrorized'

Standing with French President Francois Hollande, Obama offered France the United States' 'deepest condolences' and said the American people stand in 'solidarity' with the country

'Destroy ISIS': Obama uses tough new language as he stands with French president after Paris attacks and says 'Americans will not be terrorized'

President Barack Obama is meeting with French President Francois Hollande at the White House today to discuss France's own 'ramp up' 

'We believe that there is more that can be done if countries are willing to contribute additional resources,' Obama's spokesman said yesterday
Obama's strategy has come under new scrutiny since the ISIS-initiated shooting spree in Paris this month

On Sunday one of his previous secretaries of defense, Leon Panetta, advised him to send in more special troops and approve them for combat
See the latest news on the international military attacks on ISIS 

President Barack Obama promised today to 'deliver justice' to ISIS for its assault on France, which he said was an 'attack against the world itself' and declared: 'Americans will not be terrorized.'

Standing with French President Francois Hollande, Obama offered France the United States' 'deepest condolences' and said the American people stand in 'solidarity' with the country.

'This is an important moment for our nation and the world, ' Obama said as he addressed the nation for the first time on U.S. soil since his statement on the evening of the killings in Paris.

Obama said, 'What happened in Paris is truly horrific. I understand that people worry that something similar could happen here.' The U.S. continues to do everything in our power to protect our nation.


President Barack Obama promised today to 'deliver justice' to ISIS for its assault on France, which he said was an 'attack against the world itself' and declared: 'Americans will not be terrorized.'

President Barack Obama is meeting with French President Francois Hollande at the White House today to discuss France's offensive against ISIS

He said 'as Americans we all have a role how to play in how we respond to threats,' though.

'Even as we are vigilant we cannot and we will not succumb to fear,' Obama said.

A part of that is 'upholding the rights and freedoms that define' our republic, he said, including freedom of religion and equality before the law.''

At times in in our history, 'in moments of fear,' he said, we have failed to uphold our ideals, and it has been to our 'lasting regret.'

The country must show that America is strengthen by people of every religion and background, Obama said, responding to calls from GOP presidential candidates, namely Donald Trump, for Muslims to be screened more aggressively than other refugees fleeing ISIS in Iraq and Syria.

Obama noted that France will keep its commitment to taking in 30,000 refugees from Syria, and said, 'Nobody who sets foot in America goes through more screening than refugees.'

The Statue of Liberty, a gift from France, says, 'Give me your poor, your tired, your huddled masses,' he recalled.

'That's the spirit that makes us Americans. That's the spirit that binds us to France,. That's spirit we need today,' Obama said.

Iraq forces supported by U.S.-led coalition airstrikes advance their position during clashes with Islamic State group in the western suburbs of Ramadi, the capital of Iraq's Anbar province last Saturday. 'The United States is certainly pulling more than our own weight when it comes to the contribution behind this coalition,' the White House said yesterday

The White House is urging its allies abroad to escalate their efforts against ISIS and devote more resources to the coalition led by the United States to defeat the terrorist group.

'We believe that there is more that can be done if countries are willing to contribute additional resources,' White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said after a meeting between Vice President Joe Biden and ambassadors from coalition countries.

Obama was meeting with Hollande at the White House today to discuss France's own 'ramp up.'

'The United States is certainly pulling more than our own weight when it comes to the contribution behind this coalition,' Earnest said yesterday.

The Obama administration official noted that the U.S. formed the international coalition and continues to lead it. It is also the single largest provider of humanitarian assistance. Add in the airstrikes it's been carrying out in Iraq and Syria for more than a year and that makes for quite a 'significant' donation. 

The White House said the meeting would serve to show the United States' 'solidarity and support' for the citizens of France. Next week, Hollande will return the hospitality and host Obama in France

Hollande: France will not intervene on the ground in Syria

Earnest said the U.S. is 'glad to do' - but it cannot carry the load alone.

'The President certainly believes that there is more that our coalition partners can do to contribute to this effort,' he told reporters. 'The success of this mission is dependent on 65 nations coming together.'

Republicans in Congress have complained since the start of the fight with ISIS that Obama had not appropriated enough of the United States' resources to decimating ISIS.

His strategy has come under new scrutiny since the ISIS-initiated shooting spree in Paris this month, and on Sunday one of his previous secretaries of defense, Leon Panetta, advised the president to send in more special troops and approve them for combat.

'I think that the resources applied to that mission, frankly, have not been sufficient to confront [ISIS],' he said on NBC's Meet the Press.

Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein, the former head of the Senate Intelligence Committee and a reliable Obama ally, also said Sunday, on CBS' Face the Nation, 'I don't think the approach is sufficient to the job.'

A Washington Post poll released this morning showed Obama with a 46 percent approval rating post-Paris, down five points from October, and a terror score of 40 percent. Just 35 percent of Americans said he's handling ISIS correctly - 57 percent said he is not.

Earnest said on Monday that the U.S. could invest more of its own resources to the fight, but indicated the White House's preferences that it's partner nations make the first move.

As of Monday, the UK had dropped 17 new bombs on ISIS in Syria since the Paris attack.

Britain may begin bombing ISIS in Syria next week. Prime Minister David Cameron will present his plan to Members of Parliament on Thursday, and they will have the weekend to consider it.

France has been bombing the Raqqa region of Syria since the Sunday after the deadly terrorist attack. On Monday, it began a new phase of it's mission, deploying fighter jets from it's top aircraft carrier, the Charles de Gaulle.

Already, France had 12 planes in the Middle East carrying out airstrikes on terrorist strongholds in Iraq and Syria. The deployment of the Charles de Gaulle adds 26 warplanes to its count.

The White House last week said 'the only reason that the French are in a position to carry out this kind of response is because of the early investment in our military and our intelligence that the President ordered more than a year ago.'

Earnest reiterated that point yesterday as he asserted the U.S. is 'pulling more than our own weight.'



Russian Aerospace Forces are seen here carrying out an airstrike against oil extraction, storage and refining facilities controlled by ISIS on Monday. The French President is expected to press Obama today to work more closely with Moscow in the terror fight after last week telling members of his own nation's government that the world must 'fight this terrorist army in a broad, single coalition'

Russia also hit 472 targets in Syria over the weekend in 141 missions over Raqqa, Damascus, Aleppo and Homs.

France is coordinating with Russia in addition to the U.S. on its military actions in the Middle East. Hollande will visit the Kremlin after his meeting with Obama today at the White House.

Yesterday Hollande welcomed Cameron in Paris, and tomorrow he'll see German Chancellor Angela Merkel before holding talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday.

The French President was expected to press Obama today to work more closely with Moscow in the terror fight after last week telling members of his own nation's government that the world must 'fight this terrorist army in a broad, single coalition.'

A French diplomat told the Associated Press yesterday, 'We are not talking about a command center. We are talking about coordination of methods and exchange of intelligence.'

Turkey's fire on a Russian war plane it says invaded its airspace without permission adds a new dimension to today's talks. A Defense Department official told AP that the U.S. was not involved in the incident and found out about it from it's Turkish coalition partner.

Still, it complicates the relationship between Russia and the U.S. over the international coalition that the Kremlin has been accused of trying to co-opt.

For the U.S. to cooperate more aggressively with Russia, the White House said Monday that Moscow must commit 'to the kind of counter-ISIL-focused military effort that our coalition is carrying out.'

As it currently stands, the Russians are 'undermining our effort to reach a political settlement' in Syria, Earnest said, where the U.S., France and others are trying to push out the country's dictator over human rights abuses.

'They are doing that because they are concerned primarily with propping up the failed regime of Bashar al-Assad,' he said. A'nd those efforts only undermine our ability to engage the moderate Syrian opposition in a discussion about the long-overdue political transition that even Russia acknowledges is needed and long overdue inside of Syria.'

But, 'if Russia is prepared to change their strategy and prepared to focus their efforts on ISIL, and to work with the international community to do that,' he said, 'then we would welcome them as members of our coalition.' 

'We believe that there is more that can be done if countries are willing to contribute additional resources,' White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said yesterday after a meeting between Vice President Joe Biden and ambassadors from coalition countries


The meeting was a show of the United States' 'solidarity and support' for the citizens of France, the White House said. Hollande and Secretary of State John Kerry are seen here in Paris last week after the attack

The White House had little to say about the meeting between Hollande and Obama outside of their anticipated discussion about the 'ramp up.'

The meeting would also serve to show the United States' 'solidarity and support' for the citizens of France, Earnest said.

'This is a time when the French people are grieving. And knowing that they can count on the most powerful country in the world to have their back as they determine what’s necessary to strengthen homeland security in their own country but also to take the fight to ISIL,' he told reporters on Monday. 'I think that will be a source of significant comfort to the French people.'

Secretary of State John Kerry rushed to France at the conclusion of G20 meetings in Turkey last week. During his two-day stay he met with Hollande and French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius.

Obama and Hollande will convene a bilateral meeting in the Oval Office today. Following their private talks, they'll hold a joint press conference at the White House.

The two presidents will meet again, on Hollande's turf, next week in Paris when Obama is in town for a climate conference hosted by the United Nations.

Daily Mail