Jeb Bush Foreign Policy Speech: Hillary Clinton Criticized as Five-Step Plan to Combat ISIS Revealed

By Michael Oleaga Aug 11 2015, 23:40 PM EDT

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, among the leading Republican presidential hopefuls, revealed his foreign policy plan to improve situations in the Middle East.

From the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California, Bush said one of the biggest threats currently facing the U.S. is radical Islamic terrorists, whom he said are "gaining ground."

"The reality is that radical Islam has been spreading like a pandemic -- across the Middle East, throughout Africa and to parts of Asia, even in the nations of the West, finding recruits in Europe and the United States," said Bush on Tuesday evening, noting the radical Islamic caliphate in the Middle East is larger than the size of Indiana.

Recognizing the Islamic State militant group, often referred to as the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), as a "genocidal terrorist army," Bush said the Obama administration has no strategy to stop the extremist organization. The former Florida governor claimed the administration has pursued a minimal approach.

"No leader or policymaker involved will claim to have gotten everything right in the region, Iraq especially," continued Bush, stating the U.S. military surge had been a success, but the withdrawal from Iraq was a "fatal error" that would eventually allow ISIS to infiltrate Iraq. Bush also said Iran "exploited" the situation following the U.S. withdrawal from Iraq.

As expected, Bush criticized former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, acknowledging she visited Iraq only once.

"Who can seriously argue that America and our friends are safer today than in 2009, when [President Barack Obama] and Secretary Clinton -- the storied 'team of rivals' -- took office? So eager to be the history-makers, they failed to be the peacemakers. It was a case of blind haste to get out, and to call the tragic consequences somebody else's problem," said Bush.

The Republican presidential candidate said the Iraqi and Syrian conflicts grew due in part of Iran, Syria President Bashar al-Assad and sectarian militias. He would criticize the Iran nuclear deal, stating the negotiations led to Iran receiving more funding and acquiring nuclear weapons. The former governor said Congress should reject the nuclear deal, but if not, then the next U.S. president should scrap the plan.

On handling Iraq, Bush revealed a five-step approach. The first step supporting Iraqi forces against ISIS and Iran's influence, in addition to improved engagement with Sunni tribes. Bush's second step calls for better airpower operations for Iraqi forces. The third step is reassuring Iraqi forces of the U.S. commitment, not solely through advice and training local forces, but "better use" of the existing American soldiers and marines in Iraq. The penultimate step is increased support to the Kurdish fighters. Finally, Bush wants to restart diplomatic efforts by having Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds decide their fate, specifically if they want to live together and share power. Regardless of their decision, Bush said the U.S. will "have their back."

On Syria, Bush said the "ultimate goal" is to defeat ISIS, but the militant group's defeat requires defeating Assad. Bush wants an international and coordinated effort to provide Syria's "moderate forces the upper hand." His second plan includes more recruitment and training of Syrian forces against ISIS, followed by establishing "safe zones" to protect populations. He also wants partners to declare a no-fly zone over Syria, which would negatively affect Assad and Iranian influence.

Leading up to Bush's address, Democratic National Committee (DNC) spokesman Eric Walker called Bush's foreign policy speech as the "Bush Doctrine - The Sequel." Walker said the Republican presidential candidate's proposals are failed and outdated policies from the George W. Bush administration, noting 19 of 21 of the former governor's foreign policy advisors worked for his father and brother.

"The reality is that many of our enemies that we face today were emboldened and took rise because of George W. Bush's devastating foreign policy that Jeb Bush supported," said Walker in a statement. "When George W. Bush misled the world and marched us into war, he shredded our alliances and made us weaker abroad. Jeb Bush supported all of that."

"The Jeb Bush doctrine seems to be embrace decisions that made the world more dangerous, then blame the folks who've been trying to clean it up. That's not leadership," added Walker.

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