Senator Chuck Grassley
A vote is expected in Congress this week on President Obama’s request to step up the U.S. response to militants with the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley, a Republican, says he’ll likely vote in favor of the plan, which includes sending another 500 U.S. military personnel to Saudi Arabia to train and equip rebels to fight the group known as ISIS.
Grassley says, “If the American people don’t want American soldiers on the front lines in the battle against ISIS and if the people that should be on the front lines aren’t trained to do it and if we can help with that training, we should do that.” It’s also an effort by the U.S. to show it’s willing to put action behind its words, according to Grassley, and demonstrate to the world we’re serious about taking on and destroying ISIS.
“I think it also lends credibility to the other people that may be reluctant to go forward in our coalition, even though 40 countries have said so, but they have not said what they’re going to do,” Grassley says. “There’s some question of are they going to do anything?” Leaders from 30 nations met in Paris on Monday to discuss the threat from ISIS terrorists. U.S. allies pledged they’ll help Iraq “by any means necessary.”