White House: 'War on Terrorism' is over... 'Jihadist' and 'Global War', also unacceptable terms.

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Uploaded by on Aug 6, 2009

President Obama's top homeland security and counterterrorism official took all three terms off the table of acceptable words inside the White House during a speech Thursday at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think tank.

"The President does not describe this as a 'war on terrorism,'" said John Brennan, head of the White House homeland security office, who outlined a "new way of seeing" the fight against terrorism.

The only terminology that Mr. Brennan said the administration is using is that the U.S. is "at war with al Qaeda."

"We are at war with al Qaeda," he said. "We are at war with its violent extremist allies who seek to carry on al Qaeda's murderous agenda."

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in March that the administration was not using the term "war on terror" but no specific directive had come from the White House itself. Mr. Obama himself used the term "war on terror" on Jan. 23, his fourth day as president, but has not used it since.

Mr. Brennan's speech was aimed at outlining ways in which the Obama administration intends to undermine the "upstream" factors that create an environment in which terrorists are bred.

The president's adviser talked about increasing aid to foreign governments for building up their militaries and social and democratic institutions, but provided few details about how the White House will do that.

He was specific about ways in which Mr. Obama believes words influence the way America prosecutes the fight against terrorism.

Mr. Brennan said that to say the U.S. is fighting "jihadists" is wrongheaded because it is using "a legitimate term, 'jihad,' meaning to purify oneself or to wage a holy struggle for a moral goal" which "risks giving these murderers the religious legitimacy they desperately seek but in no way deserve."

"Worse, it risks reinforcing the idea that the United States is somehow at war with Islam itself," Mr. Brennan said.

As for the "war on terrorism," Mr. Brennan said the administration is not going to say that "because 'terrorism' is but a tactic — a means to an end, which in al Qaedas case is global domination by an Islamic caliphate."

"You can never fully defeat a tactic like terrorism any more than you can defeat the tactic of war itself," Mr. Brennan said.

He also said that to call the fight against al Qaeda and other terrorist groups — which he said remains "a dynamic and evolving threat" — should not be called "a global war."

While Mr. Brennan acknowledged that al Qaeda and its affiliates are active in countries throughout the Middle East and Africa, he also said that "portraying this as a 'global' war risks reinforcing the very image that al Qaeda seeks to project of itself — that it is a highly organized, global entity capable of replacing sovereign nations with a global caliphate."

The president's adviser said that in discussing counter terror operations, Mr. Obama "has encouraged us to be even more aggressive, even more proactive, and even more innovative" than they have been proposing.

But Mr. Brennan lamented "inflammatory rhetoric, hyperbole, and intellectual narrowness" surrounding the national security debate and said Mr. Obama has views that are "nuanced, not simplistic; practical, not ideological."

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Top Comments

  • Of course BO and his socialist gang are no longer at war with terrorists - theyre too busy being at war with Americans.

  • Obama is a fucking Constitution-defiling, taxpayer-robbing, semantics-playing, lying little piece of shit. IMO, he is likely worse than that asshole Bush. How dare he try to defile our rights to freedom of speech? I'll say Jihadist if I damn well please.

    Jihadists Jihadists Jihadists Jihadists Jihadists Jihadists Jihadists Jihadists Jihadists Jihadists Jihadists JIHADISTS!!!

    (/jihadists)

    (/politicsrage)

    P.S.: Yes, I am mad. I am really sick of Obama saying fuck you to the American people.

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All Comments (51)

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  • They must have been keeping him under world in a cave. he has no clue..

  • @Emu1gmx You are not the whole world

  • Taqiyyia, and loss of free speech comes to mind. Does anyone here still believe, that Obama has the best interest of America at heart? I think he has Islams best interests at heart.

  • This guy thinks he the president of the Muslims not the Americans? He is truly scary, the WHOLE FREAKING WORLD is at war with these people, and the sooner you realize its not a tiny fraction of muslims the better. Cannot wait for Imam Obama to get out of office, you are no true american you are an uetter ass kissing Muslim

  • Open arms, they ruin it. they do not try to do any good, just make everyone follow the satanic cult you think everyone should. You are simply the towel headed version of Nazis, and the sad thing is that the good Muslims that do exist are the true minority and they have to suffer because of you. But without them, there would be no Taxis, 7/11 or gas stations so there is a bright side after all.

  • @Emu- you are the reason nobody likes Muslims. We welcome and tolerate everyone, but now the world is waking up and seeing what Islam is really about- its not the religion of peace its the religion of Satan. What country are you from that is so wonderful?

    Look around you stupid, its not only the US that wants to stand up to the dumb mutts you are, Switzerland, Italy, France, UK, Russia, Germany, Greece, and on and on and on. They all see what happens when Muslims are welcomed with

  • @whyareyouhere11 kinde of what the terrorist are thinking of their religion isnt it??

  • @whyareyouhere11 hey shit head u think ur the only imigration country?? we got 20% imigrants here in switzerland! I live in Basel and we have 190'000 citizens and thy speak 80 different langueges... how many friends from other countrys do I have? hell I speak english and am comunicating in YOUR languege instead of insisting on german! very NAZI..... u call me A terrorist? still your the one thinking he lives in a country that has the right to speak for the World?? or in the Intrast of the world?

  • @Emu1gmx You are truly a dumb fucking idiot. USA is a fucking multi-cultural country. I have friends from Costa RIca, Greece, Italy, Spain, France, my family came here from France, The USA represents the whole fucking world and as we speak there are millions lining up to come here from muslim countries because they know they can have freedom from nazis like you. Go fuck yourself with your strapon dildo you fucking terrorist!!!!!!!!

  • @DavidGH75 woa replying to a one moth old coment.. I really didnt know what ur talking about^^ no ofcorse not the whole world! just like u cant say everyone loves Michael Jackson! But the part of world I consider worth talking about... Asia/Europ/middle East/ South-America... I dont really care if the Africans or Australians like you or not...

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