San Bernardino Redefines Obama’s Remaining Time in Office

US President Barack Obama entered office charged with ending war in Iraq. His final year in office will center on defeating Islamic State extremists that have emerged amid power vacuums in the same region, in the wake of civil war leaving 200,000 dead in Syria and millions displaced. The new push on terrorism comes as the Islamic State uses social media to incite sympathizers in launching attacks worldwide. Attacks in Paris, killed 128. A mass shooting at a year-end holiday work luncheon in San Bernardino, California, left 14 dead. Suspect profiles vary: marginalized men in France versus a couple in the US, a co-worker along with his wife from Pakistan, both educated and parents of a 6-month-old. Critics contend the Obama administration underestimated the Islamic State threat. Obama “appealed to America's Muslims to do more, ‘without excuse,’ to counter radical ideology being made in the name of Islam, and he urged other Americans not to demonize Muslims,” reports Susan Page for USA Today. “Obama's legacy seems inextricably linked to whether he can reassure and unite an anxious nation, and if his administration can prevent more incidents of terrorism on American soil.” The Islamic State thrives on perceptions that the West is at war with Islam. – YaleGlobal