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House Approves Plan to Arm and Train ISIS to Fight ISIS
Syrian "rebels" are virtually all members of ISIS and al-Qaeda

Washington Post - House approves Obama’s Iraq-Syria military strategy amid skepticism

The House on Wednesday approved President Obama’s plan to train and equip moderate Syrian rebels to counter the growing threat of the Islamic State organization, even though lawmakers in both parties remain deeply skeptical about its chances for success.

The vote placed Congress one step closer to authorizing the third significant U.S. military operation in Iraq in the past quarter century, and it put lawmakers on record approving U.S. engagement in the years-long Syrian civil war. It delivered Obama much-needed domestic political support as he seeks an international coalition to combat the growing threat of Islamist terrorism in the Middle East.

But the tally — 273 to 156 — also revealed widespread misgivings in both parties about the plan’s chances of success, even among lawmakers who voted in favor of it.

Obama’s proposal was opposed by more than 40 percent of Democrats, many of whom are concerned that new U.S. military operations in the Middle East could fester for several years with no clear strategy or definition of success.

Republicans provided the lion’s share of support, but many are worried that Obama’s plans are too limited. One top GOP leader suggested that Congress could give the president blanket military authority, even if Obama doesn’t want it, when lawmakers hold a much broader debate after the November elections about the fight against Islamist militants.

Obama on Wednesday repeated his promise not to send ground forces into the military campaign against the Islamic State, telling troops in a speech at Florida’s MacDill Air Force Base that he will “not commit you . . . to fighting another ground war in Iraq.”

In a statement after the House vote, Obama said, “There will be no U.S. military personnel in Syria as part of this program. We’ve learned over the last decade, and through our successful campaign to degrade al-Qaeda, that it is more effective to use America’s unique capabilities to take out terrorist targets in support of our partners’ efforts on the ground to secure their own future.”

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