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U.S. Representative John Boehner
The Speaker’s
Meeting with President Obama & Congressional Leaders on ISIL
WASHINGTON, DC – At the White House this afternoon, Speaker Boehner met
with President Obama, Leader Reid, Leader McConnell, and Leader Pelosi
for a discussion of the terrorist threat posed by the Islamic State of
Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). The President began the meeting by
laying out some of the ideas he has already discussed publicly about
how to combat this threat.
The Speaker said the spread of radicalized Islam is a global epidemic
and our national objective must be to defeat and destroy ISIL. He
asked the president to define success in those terms when he addresses
the nation tomorrow night. The Speaker expressed support for
certain options that have been proposed by the president, such as
increasing the effectiveness of the Iraqi Security Forces and training
and equipping the Syrian opposition. The Speaker made it clear
that ISIL is preparing to fight us, and that as we learned in Syria,
the longer we wait, the more difficult our choices become. It is
in the best interests of the United States and our allies to put in
place a strategy that rises to the challenge of the threat we face, and
takes the fight directly to ISIL in a decisive fashion, the Speaker
said.
The Speaker stated he would support the President if he chose to deploy
the military to help train and play an advisory role for the Iraqi
Security Forces and assist with lethal targeting of ISIL
leadership. Lastly, the Speaker made clear that the
administration should re-examine our border and homeland policies and
authorities to determine whether there are loopholes or weaknesses that
could expose the homeland to an immediate ISIL-linked attack.
The Speaker looks forward to hearing the president outline a
comprehensive strategy for destroying and defeating ISIL tomorrow night.
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