Al-Baghdadi Raid Does Nothing To Mute Democrats' Impeachment Drive
President Trump’s announcement Sunday that a U.S. military strike killed Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi drew cheers from both sides of the political divide in Washington but did not blunt House Democrats’ drive for impeachment.
Democratic leaders and the party’s presidential hopefuls did not credit Mr. Trump with a win in the war on terror. Instead, they commended the U.S. military and intelligence community for dealing a blow to the terrorist army.
They also said Mr. Trump’s decision this month to pull U.S. troops from the Turkey-Syria border emboldened the Islamic State, or ISIS.
Vice President Mike Pence said the raid on al-Baghdadi is the latest evidence that Mr. Trump is fighting for America and added that the president is the target of a partisan impeachment hunt.
Ford O’Connell, a Republican strategist with close ties to the White House, said the raid was “a big feather in President Trump’s cap.”
“It sends the message to America’s enemies that we have the will and ability to bring you to justice,” he said. “Unfortunately, congressional Democrats aren’t concerned with what is best for this country or with substantive victories. They just want Trump’s head and will continue their sham impeachment drive in search of a crime.”
Trump To Islamic Nations: Drive Out Extremists
President Trump yesterday painted a stark new portrait of U.S. goals in the Middle East in a speech that exhorted Saudi Arabia and other Islamic countries to vanquish extremists and signaled the U.S. is abandoning long-standing ambitions to spread freedom and transform the region, analysts said.
Trump, speaking yesterday to the Arab Islamic American Summit, the centerpiece address of his two-day visit to the Saudi capital Riyadh, said America was “not here to lecture, we are not here to tell other people how to live, what to do, who to be, or how to worship.”
The speech was notably bereft of entreaties about human rights, democracy and being on the right side of history — staples of Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama’s speeches on fighting terror in the Islamic world, GOP strategist Ford O’Connell said.
“He’s saying, ‘Forget all of that, I’m telling you right now, our No. 1 concern is putting these guys down, and however we can work together to make that happen, that’s great,’ ” O’Connell said.
A key part of that strategy, O’Connell said, will be arms deals such as the one Trump announced with the Saudis this weekend, to provide the country with $110 billion in tanks, fighter jets, combat ships and the THAAD missile defense system.
Mogul Stands Behind Ban Despite Jihadi Clip Featuring His Quotes
Republican front-runner Donald Trump is standing by his call to ban Muslims from entering the United States after his rhetoric was used in a newly released recruitment video for an al-Qaeda affiliate.
The video from Somalia-based al-Shabaab shows Trump calling for the “total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States,” using the business magnate to illustrate anti-Muslim sentiment in the United States.
Strategists say the group’s use of his words could actually strengthen Trump’s lead in the crowded GOP field by keeping him squarely in the spotlight as the ultimate foe of international extremist groups.
“Trump just got a Christmas gift,” said Republican strategist Ford O’Connell. “It boosts him to the forefront of the national conversation.”
While this can be an “I-told-you so” moment for Clinton, O’Connell said, Trump supporters will likely see this as proof that al-Qaeda would prefer a Clinton victory because she is less of a threat to terrorist groups.
“Each of them gets their spin,” O’Connell said. “But Trump will find every which way possible to show that it’s clear al-Qaeda and ISIS will do anything to make Hillary win.”
Read more from Lindsay Kalter at the Boston Herald
ISIS Could Test U.S. War Resolve
The Islamic State looks poised to test the willingness of the United States and its allies to put ground troops into the fight in the new year, potentially forcing President Obama into tough decisions and creating trouble for Hillary Clinton if terrorism fears begin to outpace economic concerns among Democratic voters.
The intensifying conflict could have a game-changing effect on Hillary Clinton’s electoral prospects if Obama’s hand is forced to ramp up American military presence in Iraq and Syria, possibly sparking more attempts at stateside terrorism.
“Terrorism right now is not a big thing for Democrats ... right now, still the economy is the biggest issue (for them),” said GOP political operative Ford O’Connell, who advised John McCain’s 2008 campaign against Obama. “If it changes from the economy to ISIS, she’s dead in the water.”
An October Pew Research poll showed Republicans are 15 percentage points more likely than Democrats to view terrorism as a very important voting issue.
Terrorism A Priority For N.H. Republicans
Nearly half of New Hampshire Republicans rank terrorism among the top issues driving their choice for president, while just 17 percent of Democrats feel the same way, according to a new Franklin Pierce University/Boston Herald poll.
“The point is that voters want to feel safe,” Republican strategist Ford O’Connell told the Herald. “Right now it’s a bigger issue for the Republicans, but it could turn into a much bigger thing for Democrats depending on how world events unfold leading up to the election.”
In a clear sign that the terror attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, Calif., have Republicans looking to elect a president that will be tough on jihadis, 46 percent of those polled had terrorism in their top three issues, and 24 percent said it was their top deciding issue.
Less than 6 percent of Democrats had terror at the top of their list.
The disparity, O’Connell said, shows the increasing focus on terrorism by Republican presidential candidates is having an impact on voters. The constant use of the word “safe” during Tuesday night’s final Republican primary debate, O’Connell said, was no accident.
“One example of that is Chris Christie shifting from being a New Jersey governor to being a federal prosecutor with a history of prosecuting terrorists,” O’Connell said.
“Candidates want to talk about issues and policies, but at the end of the day there are certain buzzwords that will make voters feel better about them.”
Experts: Despite Criticism, Trump's Muslim Rhetoric May Resonate With GOP Base
Although Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump's call for ban on allowing Muslims into the U.S. has drawn swift rebuke from his rivals and party leadership, the enthusiastic applause he received at a campaign rally Monday night proves his ideas are resonating with some in the party.
Trump issued a statement on Monday afternoon proposing a "total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country's representatives can figure out what is going on." In media interviews Tuesday, Trump defended this position, claiming on CNN that "we have people out there that want to do great destruction to our country."
He did not explain how long it would take to "figure out what is going on," but he told ABC News Tuesday night that the ban could be "quick."
Ford O'Connell, a Republican strategist, said there are many problems with Trump's proposed Muslim ban, but it may make sense for his campaign because "fear is a powerful political motivator."
O'Connell noted that a recent CNN/ORC poll found only 33% of Americans approve of Obama's handling of ISIS and 38% approve of his policies on terrorism. The poll also shows 90% of Republicans feel Obama has not been aggressive enough in fighting ISIS.
"There's not a lot of confidence that the Obama administration is going to do what it takes to protect America," O'Connell said, so it is understandable that Trump's message is resonating.
"When Trump speaks, even when he misspeaks, a lot of his followers think that he exudes confidence and strength," qualities Republicans feel Obama lacks.
Obama Admits Attack Was ‘Act Of Terrorism’
President Obama’s pledge to largely stay the course in his strategy to defeat Islamic State militants last night was at times encouraging and underwhelming, politicians and security experts told the Herald, as Obama sought to use a rare Oval Office address to quell national unease after the apparently ISIS-inspired mass shooting in California.
Speaking to the nation for only his third time from the Oval Office, Obama said the “threat from terrorism is real, but we will overcome it” and that the San Bernardino shooters had “gone down the dark path of radicalization.”
“This was an act of terrorism designed to kill innocent people,” he said in the 13-minute address.
Obama did propose some minor steps, calling for a review of the visa waiver program the female shooter used to enter the country. He also called on Congress to pass new authorization for military actions underway in Iraq and Syria, and to approve legislation to keep people on the “no-fly list” from buying guns.
Republican strategist Ford O’Connell told the Herald Obama “gets kudos for finally acknowledging that this was an act of terrorism,” but said the address was “largely a defensive speech that didn’t inspire confidence that Obama’s taking the fight to ISIS and terrorists at large.”
Will Candidates Rise Or Fall As 2016 Race Pivots To Terrorism, Foreign Policy?
Democratic presidential candidates detailed their plans for combating ISIS Thursday as the focus of the 2016 campaign shifts to national security and foreign policy in the wake of the terrorist attacks in Paris last week.
If voters remain interested in terrorism and national security as a top campaign issue, it could reshape a race that has largely focused on domestic and economic issues so far. How big of a change it will be depends on whether additional attacks occur and which candidates adjust their message most effectively.
In the immediate aftermath of the attacks, some pundits and party insiders suggested that Republican voters would reconsider their support for Donald Trump and Ben Carson, politically inexperienced outsiders who have not displayed a strong grasp of foreign policy issues in debates and interviews.
Political strategists and experts expect it will take a bit more time for the true effects of the Paris attacks on the American electorate to become clear.
"Trump is a unique animal. In his case, it's not yet hurting him," said Republican strategist Ford O'Connell.
Carson's numbers have slipped slightly from the point where he was beating Trump in some polls last month. Although it is hard to pin that on a specific reason, doubts have been raised about Carson's foreign policy knowledge this week by pundits, rivals, and one of his own advisers.
"This is something that you honestly have to be thinking about and talking about for several years...It's very hard to close that learning curve," O'Connell said.
LOUISIANA'S JINDAL DOUBLING DOWN ON 'NO-GO ZONE' ASSERTION
Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal plans to double down on the assertion there are neighborhoods in Western nations where Islamic traditions trump civic laws, a move that appears aimed at standing out in a crowded field of potential Republican candidates for president.
Yet some in his party question if it's a strategy that has the potential to resonate in the early voting states of Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina, especially if well-funded establishment favorites - including former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and 2012 GOP nominee Mitt Romney - join the race.
"He's in a battle for headlines in a field that includes Jeb and Mitt," said Ford O'Connell, a Republican strategist who advised John McCain's presidential bid on connecting with rural voters.
Read more from Philip Elliot and Steve Peoples at The Associated Press
Obama To Deliver State of Union Address Amid Rising Threat Of Global Terror
U.S. President Barack Obama is expected to address the rising threat of global terrorism at Tuesday's annual State of the Union address, just weeks after the bloody massacres in Paris that shocked France and nations worldwide.
Experts and officials fret other radical groups may be emboldened by those slayings and could be eying the U.S. as a possible target. At the same time, critics accused Obama of showing little leadership on the issue, which they say was spotlighted by the U.S. president's no-show at an anti-terrorism rally in Paris last week that drew 40 world leaders including the heads of Germany, Britain and Israel.
Republican strategist Ford O'Connell told Xinhua that while Obama will address Americans' concerns over terrorism, the topic is unlikely to comprise the bulk of the speech. "The terrorism part, I can't see him spending a lot of time on it, but obviously his approval ratings are (low) and a lot of Americans don't think he is focusing on (terrorism) in the best way," he said.
"Security is going to be over the next three or four years one of the top three or four issues...It's something that Americans are concerned about," O'Connell said.
