Dear Editor,
Barack Obama's speech Wednesday night and the Fox special with surviving Benghazi CIA security contractors offered an insight to the man that is our President. In his recent speech he made it clear no American combat boots would be on the ground, yet knowledgeable military officers have stated ISIS can't be eliminated without boots on the ground. Barack also made it clear that the boots will be the citizens of the invaded country or countries being Iraq and Syria. I understand his need for the occupied people to fight as we did to gain our freedom from England. Freedom is respected more when you or a family member's blood is shed for that freedom that we all should cherish. It is a gift given to us by other's sacrifices; it can also be taken or given away. The President wants the blood shed to be that of the people who will have an investment in that freedom.
This insight of Barack now makes sense when applied to the 9/11 Benghazi attacks and the 30 minute delay or stand down order of the CIA security contractors going to the aid of the Ambassador and the other victims. Remember that 30 minute delay or stand down would have been longer had not the contractors disobeyed orders going to the Consulate. What the administration wanted was for the local government army or security to handle the situation with the attacks. What Barack and Hillary Clinton don't understand about the Benghazi attacks was they were attacks on American citizens not citizens of another country. The victims being American citizens sent to this location, doing their directed job by the same administration. That fact made that fight an American fight and rescue. Relying on security from foreign countries as the only means of self defense is a mistake in it's self. Assign duties and train them but have a alternate plan if they fail or just walk away as the foreign security (if not involved with the attack) did in Benghazi and the Iraq army did with the invasion by ISIS. You can't put the lives of Americans in foreign hands for protection, that's why the secret service travels with the President and his family when they travel anywhere. Sometimes it takes Americans to save American lives especially in the Middle East.
As for the President’s plan I see one major misuse of power, that being the power of ISIS not being used on Bashar al-Assad in Syria. If ISIS is forced back into Syria its forces would then be forced to focus on winning the Syrian civil war and once that war has been decided you can pick the fight back up once our enemies have diminished each other. Let the blood shed be that of our enemies.
Steven M. King
Milton
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Obama’s speech gave insights