Obama: U.S. Underestimated Rise of ISIS in Iraq and Syria (+video)

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Photo Credit: REUTERS / Larry DowningBy CBS Interactive Inc.

President Obama acknowledged that the U.S. underestimated the rise of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS, also called ISIL) and overestimated the ability of the Iraqi military to fend off the militant group in an interview that will air Sunday on 60 Minutes.

The president was asked by 60 Minutes correspondent Steve Kroft about comments from Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, who has said the U.S. not only underestimated ISIS, it also overestimated the ability and will of the Iraqi military to fight the extremist group.

“That’s true,” Mr. Obama said. “That’s absolutely true.”

“Jim Clappper has acknowledged that I think they underestimated what had been taking place in Syria,” he said, blaming the instability of the Syrian civil war for giving extremists space to thrive.

The comments were among the president’s most candid to date about the rapid rise of the terrorist group that has ransacked much of Syria and Iraq in recent months.

Read more from this story HERE.

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European ISIS fighters: Are there really 3,000 jihadis? (+video)

By David Clark Scott.

How big is the homegrown ISIS threat?

The European Union’s Anti-Terrorism Chief Gilles de Kerchove told the BBC Friday that the number of Islamic State fighters from Europe is “probably above 3.000, which is unprecedented.”

That statement prompted a number of sensational headlines – especially in Britain, where the Parliament voted Friday to join the airstrikes against ISIS.

But 3,000 Islamic State fighters is probably an inflated figure. Mr. de Kerchove himself qualifies that total saying 3,000 includes all those who have been to the region, including those who have returned and those who have been killed there.

The European jihadis threat assessment includes the dead? Out of those estimated 3,000, how many of those European ISIS jihadis are still alive?

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Poll: 72 Percent Of Americans Think Ground Troops Will Be Deployed Against ISIS (+video)

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Photo Credit: TownHallWill America put boots on the ground in Iraq and Syria? Well, some are already there serving as military advisers, but in terms of divisions of ground troops being deployed; 72 percent of Americans think this will happen if we continue to engage ISIS.

The figure comes from a NBC poll, which also noted “45 percent are in favor of using them if military commanders think they’re the best way to defeat the ISIS army, while 37 percent are opposed.”

Right now, the European Union estimated that more than 3,000 Europeans have flocked to the Middle East to fight for ISIS; there are about 12 Americans fighting with them amongst their ranks.

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US Military Battles to Halt Spread of Ebola Virus in West Africa (+video)

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U.S. military personnel have begun constructing tent hospitals and other facilities to help fight the Ebola epidemic in West Africa, though experts warn that they may be too late to prevent the outbreak from killing thousands more.

The Wall Street Journal reports that troops from the Navy’s 133rd Mobile Construction Battalion began building the first of a dozen planned hospitals in a field outside the main airport in Liberia, one of three countries along with Sierra Leone and Guinea that has been hit the hardest by the epidemic.

As of September 23, the Journal says 6,574 cases had been reported in five West African countries — Senegal and Nigeria are the other two — with 3,091 deaths reported. Those official numbers represent a twofold increase in both categories from August, and global health officials have repeatedly stated their belief that the number of cases has been underreported by a factor of three or four. Last week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention predicted that the number of cases would skyrocket to 1.4 million without international aid.

President Obama announced that 3,000 U.S. troops would be sent to West Africa on September 16. In addition to hospital construction, the military’s duties include unloading medical supplies and training nurses. However, the Journal reported that U.S. officials are still hashing out final details of the mission.

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WATCH: College Officials Caught on Video Threatening to ARREST Conservatives Handing Out Constitutions

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Photo Credit: ARCHIVES.GOVThe First Amendment, particularly the freedom of political speech, is under assault in our country.

Democrats in Congress are trying to amend the First Amendment and place limits campaign financing, which is recognized as free speech. Fortunately, they have met with resistance in the Senate.

The attack on free speech is mostly evident though in the new creation of so-called “First Amendment zones” or “designated free speech areas”, which are designed to contain and constrain legitimate protests and expressions of political dissent.

College and High School campuses have been just as bad, if not worse, in their efforts to control political speech. A high school recently confiscated American flags from students on the anniversary of 9/11, and the University of Wyoming has PREVENTED a student who is an Army veteran from reciting the Pledge of Allegiance, as it might be “offensive” to some students.

This politically correct push to not offend anyone is actually offensive in and of itself. It is also the driving force behind the restrictive “speech codes” found on most liberal COLLEGE CAMPUSES these days. Such is the case at Penn State University, where students were prevented from handing out Constitutions on Constitution Day, according to Breitbart.

Read more from this story HERE.

ISIS Member: We’re Planning A ‘Brilliant Attack’ On New York (+video)

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Photo Credit: Daily CallerBy Scott Greer.

A Canadian member of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria issued a grim warning for the United States that his group is planning a “brilliant attack” on New York City, and claimed that they have thousands of Western prisoners they are willing to behead.

In a video conference interview with Vice News, Farah Shirdon (also known as Abu Usamah Somali) announced the plot while discussing the current operations of the terrorist group.

“We’ll sure be making attacks in New York soon [with Allah’s permission]. A lot of brothers there are mobilizing right now [thanks to Allah],” Shirdon told Vice’s Shane Smith.

“What are they mobilizing for?” Smith asked.

Shirdon laughed and responded, “Mobilizing for a brilliant attack, my friend.”

Read more from this story HERE.

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ISIS threat: Expect terror group to attack Baghdad next

By USMC Lt. Col. Bill Cowan.

In the many months since the U.S. military left Iraq, and despite Iraqi security forces’ best efforts, deadly bombings have wracked Baghdad and Iraq’s other major cities. Most recently, as reported by FirstPost.com “A car bomb exploded near a market in the Shiite neighborhood of Sadr City in Baghdad on Tuesday, killing at least 14 people.”

In some months, the bombings have claimed more than 1,000 lives, and in all cases the bombings have pitted Shiites against Sunnis and vice-versa.

Most of the targets have been civilian in nature, taking place on busy streets, in market places, mosques, and the like.

While America or Europe might be a preferred target, Baghdad is an easier one. ISIS is on the doorstep. Now all they need to do is step in.

Read more from this story HERE.

HealthCare.gov Actually Cost Over $2.1 Billion — And Counting (+video)

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HealthCare.gov alone has cost federal taxpayers $2.1 billion so far, according to a Bloomberg Government analysis — and the feds still aren’t finished building it.

The Obama administration’s most recent estimate on spending related to HealthCare.gov was just $834 million through February 2014. Health and Human Services secretary Sylvia Burwell projected in May that through fiscal year 2015, additional costs would bring HealthCare.gov’s grand total to just above $1 billion. (RELATED: HealthCare.gov Will Cost OVer $1 Billion To Build)

“The way in which Obamacare has been rolled out has been very messy,” Peter Gosselin, the study author, told Bloomberg News. “One of the reasons it has been implemented in the way it has been, financially, is precisely to deny opponents of the law a clear target.”

Federal officials intentionally spread out HealthCare.gov spending across “dozens of contracts,” according to the report, in a concerted effort to prevent transparency on the health-care website’s true cost.

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WATCH: Veteran Rescheduled MN VA Appointment from the Grave

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Photo Credit: APCould the death of Jordan Buisman been prevented with immediate care? KARE-11 follows up on their earlier exposé on the Minneapolis VA with this heartbreaking story of a young Marine who died while waiting 70 days to get to an appointment that might have otherwise saved his life. Medical attention after his conditioned worsened might have gotten him past the acute crisis in his seizure disorder, but not only did the VA not expedite his request for a follow-up, his appointment got pushed out even further, supposedly at his own request … four days after he died:

Jordan Buisman’s family believes his medical records were falsified to hide serious delays in patient care at the Minneapolis Veterans Administration Medical Center.

“It really makes me angry,” says Lisa Riley, Jordan’s mother.

Read more from this story HERE.

A Single Trip for Obama to Play Pool, Drink Beer and Raise Money Cost Taxpayers about $700,000 (+video)

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Photo Credit: AP / Jacquelyn MartinTaxpayers had to cough up $1,159,823 in just one month to fly President Obama to New York and Denver to raise money for Democrats and attend an LGBT event, according to documents obtained by a taxpayer watchdog group.

Judicial Watch told Secrets that the Air Force just provided expense reports detailing the flight costs of Air Force One to the cities in July.

The documents show that president’s July 8-9 fundraising trip to Denver cost the taxpayers $695,894.10.

His July 17-18 fundraising trip to New York City cost taxpayers $463,929.40.

Travel costs are typically a small portion of presidential trips. Judicial Watch said that the U.S. Secret Service has not complied with a request to detail security expenses and the costs of housing and moving the president and his staff are also unknown.

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Fallon Roasts President After Chicago Decision To Squash ‘Obama High School’ (+video)

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Count Jimmy Fallon as the latest person to poke fun at President Obama.

The late night host railed on Obama in the wake of last week’s news that Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel quashed plans to name a new $60 million high school after the president.

“More bad news for the president: Chicago is reversing its plan to name a high school after President Obama because it received multiple complaints from people in the community,” said Fallon.

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White House: Americans with Islamic State Have Returned to U.S. (+video)

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Photo Credit: iStockThe White House acknowledged on Monday that some Americans fighting with the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria have returned to the United States, estimating that more than 100 fighters from the U.S. have joined the terrorist group.

To date, the White House had not publicly revealed that Americans fighting on behalf of the Islamic State were back in the U.S. The FBI is now monitoring the American-born fighters who have come home, a senior administration official confirmed.

Read more from this story HERE.