President Obama announced earlier Monday the U.S. will deploy 250 additional special operations forces to help troops in Syria defeat the Islamic State.
But the news was met with pushback after the White House promised, on multiple occasions, no ground troops would be deployed to the Middle East.
Below are 10 instances where the president publicly stated he would not put boots on the ground to fight terrorism in Syria:
“And in no event are we considering any kind of military action that would involve boots on the ground; that would involve a long-term campaign.”
-Obama in remarks with the presidents of Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia at the White House
“Now, after careful deliberation, I have decided that the United States should take military action against Syrian regime targets. This would not be an open-ended intervention. We would not put boots on the ground.”
-Obama in a statement on Syria at the White House
“… no boots on the ground … “
-Obama in meeting with congressional leaders
“What we’re talking about is not an open-ended intervention. This would not be another Iraq or Afghanistan. There would be no American boots on the ground.”
-Obama in his weekly address
“I will not put American boots on the ground in Syria. I will not pursue an open-ended action like Iraq or Afghanistan. I will not pursue a prolonged air campaign like Libya or Kosovo. “
-Obama in a televised national address from the White House
“With respect to the situation on the ground in Syria, we will not be placing U.S. ground troops to try to control the areas that are part of the conflict inside of Syria.”
-Obama in remarks at a NATO conference
“I want the American people to understand how this effort will be different from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. It will not involve American combat troops fighting on foreign soil.”
-Obama in his plan to destroy the Islamic State
“I won’t commit our troops to fighting another ground war in Iraq, or in Syria.”
-Obama in his weekly address
“It is not enough for us to simply send in American troops to temporarily set back organizations like ISIS.”
-Obama in remarks at Pentagon
