Trump gets plan to beat ISIS

Washington -- President Trump received a set of options for escalating or transforming the war on the Islamic State. This may lead him to increase the presence of American military on the ground. 

It does not recommend that we "bomb the sh** out of them."

Secretary of Defense James "Mad Dog" Mattis (aka "The Monk") briefed top national security officials at the White House on the proposal initiated by the Pentagon. It includes military recommendations and proposals for ways of starving ISIS of funds and how to combat them online where they've recruited and turned thousands of psychopathic Muslims into jihadists.

Disclaimer: not all Muslims are psychopathic jihadists, but all jihadists are psychopathic Muslims.

It isn't known when President Trump will 'own' the undeclared war he inherited from his incompetent predecessor. Thus far, the campaign against ISIS has pushed them back in Iraq but Syria has been less militarily productive for U.S.-led forces. 

The president isn't expected to offer any detail when he addresses a joint session of Congress tonight (Tuesday). 

Some of Mr. Trump's options may be the deployment of more U.S. troops to Iraq or to Syria. The first option could incur political problems for Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Abadi.

The rules of engagement could also be modified--hopefully they will be. Under Obama, the Pentagon insisted that American forces might sometimes find themselves in combat but were not on a combat mission, a twisted and tortured explanation to protect Obama, not the U.S. forces, from political criticism.

Of late, our troops have moved closer to the front lines and Mr. Trump could change the rules further.

We could also increase aid to the Kurds, but that would risk the ire of our NATO partner Turkey. Iraq's government also fears the prospects that the insurgent Kurds might seek their own state.

Mattis is against Trump working closer with Russia or taking steps toward fulfilling his campaign pledge to create "safe zones" for Syrians fleeing the war, among other options.

President Trump spoke at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) last week and said his goal was to "totally obliterate ISIS." He also promised "working with out allies, we will eradicated this evil from the face of the earth."

Hyperbole or "bomb the sh** out of them?"

"I don't talk about military response," Trump said. "I don't say, 'I'm going into Mosul in four months.' Then three months later, 'We are going to attack Mosul in one month,'" he said in a mocking tone (once believed to be a gesture he made to mock a disabled reporter).

President Trump likes to keep certain things a secret, particularly his future military plans and his past tax returns.

I don't blame him one bit.




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