Earlier this week, the Islamic State took control of the Iraqi city of Ramadi. In 2011 President Obama made the decision to begin the withdrawal of American troops. He has since capped the number of troops remaining in Iraq at 3,000. Sen. Tom Cotton (R., Ark.) said the number is an arbitrary number and that he wishes Obama would lift the cap.
Cotton argued that lifting the cap on troops that are on the ground would allow the United States to increase the use of special operations forces, intelligence, and logistics. He also said that it would keep Iraq from falling into a sectarian war.
"There's no doubt we need some of those specialized asset, whether they're special operations forces or intelligence experts to help defeat the Islamic State," Cotton said. "That's the president's stated goal. He's not providing the resources to achieve it."
Cotton went on to say that most Iraqi army units were disappointing, but a few were performing well. He also said it was a bad idea to send the militias into the Anbar province because it would create sectarian violence.
Having more troops on the ground would aid in training the Iraqi army, Cotton said, and he called what Obama knew in 2011 and continued to withdraw troops tragic.