Kirsten Powers on Obama's Inability to Recognize Christian Persecution

During the summer of 2014, liberal commentator Kirsten Powers became convicted that President Barack Obama was not a humanitarian for his flaccid response to the Yazidi and Mosul Christians of being the expropriated, enslaved and threatened with extermination by ISIS. 

Unfortunately, in the ensuing nine months, the 44th President has done nothing to burnish his mantle of being a humanitarian. Powers pointed to the recent joint press conference between Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and President Obama at the White House.  Renzi's reaction to the news that Muslims on a refugee boat from Africa threw  twelve Christians overboard into the Mediterranean for their faith was that it was a "one off event" and that it did not reflect a clash of religious. Mr. Obama remained mute.  

When jihadist terrorists do slaughter the innocent, President Obama has shown himself unwilling to acknowledge their Christian faith.  Mr. Obama referred to the slaughter of 148 Christians by Al Shabaab in Kenya on Maundy Thursday were just folks, whereas the 21 Coptic Christians executed by ISIS in Libya were simply "Egyptian citizens".  Even Britain's Prince Charles, who occupies a primarily non-partisan role as Prince of Wales, has lamented the violent persecution of Christians in Iraq.

Perhaps it was no mistake that early in the Obama Administration, the Chosen One seemed congenitally incapable of echoing the Declaration of Independence correctly and invoking the Creator as it was written. But then again, those were the days when we expected Mr. Obama to follow the law and the Constitution as written,

Early Retreat from Mesopotamia?

Now that President Obama declared that the United States would commence air strikes in Iraq for humanitarian help to the Yazidis who ISIS is committing genocide, one can wonder if Mr. Obama lead America on an early retreat from Mesopotomia.

President Obama has declared that there will be no soldiers deployed  for these new missions over Iraq.  Perhaps he thinks that unless there are boots on the ground that there is not war.  But the Military Times reports that these "targeted air strikes" will require 15,000 troops. Because there are no longer American troops stationed in Iraq, this will have to be done via carriers or distant air bases.

 It is a pity that the Obama Administration failed to secure a Status of Forces Agreement with the Iraqi government, so America abandoned its military equipment there (in many cases now in ISIS hands) to withdraw from Iraq.  This suited President Obama as he promised to end the war in Iraq before the 2012 Presidential election, and he did-- sort of.

Mr. Obama blames the Maliki government for not agreeing to a SOFA.  Perhaps some blame lies with Chief US negotiator Vice President Joe Biden.  But this was more likely a SOFA strategy designed to fail from the Oval Office .  Having US troops with immunity in Iraq would be a tough sell for the Maliki government. The Pentagon wanted 10,000 to 15,000 troops and they were wanted by the Iraqi government.  The Commander-In-Chief countered with a bid of 3,000 troops.  This token level was unacceptable to the Iraqi government as it was ineffective and not worth the heat in their domestic politics.  So President Obama could brag about bringing the boys back home from Iraq for his re-election campaign as a promise kept.

And here we are today.  Bringing the fight back to Iraq after an early retreat. Not having the infrastructure on the ground which American troops fought so hard.  Needing to do costly missions from carriers.  Fighting an evil enemy with too little and to late help to prevent humanitarian atrocities with Christians, Yazidis and Sunni Muslims who do not suit ISIS.

So Mr. Obama announced timorous airstrikes without a set strategy or a timetable.  Then Mr Obama flew off to Martha's Vineyard for another several week vacation.  . 

Mike Huckabee on Evil ISIS

Even though ISIS had been threatening "Nazaranes" (Christians in Iraq) in Mosul with expropriation or extermination unless they renounced their faith, this had not moved the Obama White House into action.

A fortnight later, 40,000 Kurds who practice the Yazidi faith  were herded onto Mount Sinjar and left to fend for themselves or be slaughtered. Yazidis  have a monotheistic faith which has roots in Zoroastrianism with elements of Islam as well as Christianity.

What may have prompted President Obama to act in the case of the Yazidis rather than the Iraqi Christians may have been concentrated the ethnic  on a mountaintop for genocide and then bragging about it on Twitter. Or perhaps it was ISIS terrorists putting Yazidi kids' heads on a pike as a message to the world.  Nonetheless, former Governor Mike Huckabee has it right, it is evil