Hillary Clinton previewed her plans to combat the Islamic State before her major foreign policy address in New York City while chatting on “Live! With Kelly and Michael” on ABC Thursday morning.
The former secretary of state explained that although many people are arguing about whether the U.S. should let Syrian refugees into the country, Washington should be more focused on potential terrorists who could be turned “into jihadis online.”
“We have a slightly different problem but just as equally important as the Europeans,” Clinton said. “They’re dealing with a lot of movement. So many more people left there to go to Syria and now they’re coming back after they’ve been in training camps. We’ve got to take a hard look at the people who are already here as well as keeping out any potential terrorists.”
While discussing the recent threats the terrorist group has made in the wake of the attacks in Paris, Clinton said that although the threats on U.S. cities may never actually come to fruition, “we’ve always got to take them seriously.”
“When they make these threats they may be some distance from being able to deliver on the threats, but they’re hoping that some discontented person or group right here in our country will hear the threat … and they’ll implant the idea that we can’t implement that threat but maybe you all out there can.”
Clinton also lamented that America’s loose gun laws make it “way too easy” for potential terrorists to act and carry out attacks. The Democratic front-runner has promoted increased gun control on the campaign trail since May.
As much fear as groups such as ISIS attempts to instill, Clinton urged viewers to tell their children “not to let those threats in any way to upset their minds or prevent them from going out.”
Clinton will further outline her plans to combat the terrorist group later Thursday morning at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York City.
