Obama Gives Final National Security Address

However, Obama’s ideas on counter-terrorism are in stark contrast with the hard-line stance of Trump and many the president-elect has nominated to serve in his cabinet.

Obama is speaking at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, home to U.S. Special Operations Command and U.S. Central Command.

Earlier this year, a US district judge sided with the Republican-led House of Representatives, saying the administration is spending illegally on the health law because Congress never specifically provided the money.

According to his pre-election speeches, Trump wants to step up the torture of terror suspects, continue placing terror suspects in Guantanamo, implement a ban on Muslim immigration and reassess the U.S.’s involvement in North Atlantic Treaty Organisation.

“We have to take a long view of the terrorist threat, and pursue a smart strategy that can be sustained”.

The president will explain “why we did what we did”, Rhodes said.

“We should take great pride in the progress that we’ve made over the last eight years”, he said. Terrorists want to be the “vanguard of a new world order, but they should be treated as the thugs and murderers they are, he said”.

The White House sought to show that the array of USA military actions on President Barack Obamas watch have been on solid legal footing, with a new report on December 5, 2016, shedding light on how an evolving interpretation of a 9/11-era law has been used to justify new and emerging threats overseas.

Obama also called for the need to close Guantanamo Bay, another area where he and Trump differ.

President Barack Obama reaffirmed his counterterrorism strategy in his final national security speech Tuesday, even as his successor has threatened to reverse course on many of Obama’s priorities.

“U.S. targeting practices comply with the principle of proportionality, which, among other things, prohibits attacks in which the expected loss of life or injury to civilians and damage to civilian objects incidental to the attack would be excessive in relation to the concrete and direct military advantage expected to be gained”, it notes.

Obama acknowledged he wasn’t entirely successful in what he has described as his push to take the US off its wartime footing.

“In short, al-Shabab has entered the fight alongside al-Qaeda and is a co-belligerent with al-Qaeda in hostilities against the United States”, the report says.

Rep. Luis Gutiérrez (D-Ill.) said Trump’s remarks to Time show the Democratic message is breaking through.

Obama argued his approach is more sustainable for protecting American security interests. The move away from entire divisions and toward selective strikes and local forces also gives the US political cover in host states, which is essential for tamping down nationalist and ethnic tensions that play to ISIS and other insurgent groups.

When asked if Obama had regrets, Rhodes pointed to the civil war in Syria, where Obama’s diplomacy has failed to bring about a cease-fire and the ouster of Syrian regime President Bashar al-Assad.

President Barack Obama arrives in Tampa this afternoon to meet with the men and women who have been on the front-lines enforcing his policies in the fight against terrorism. He also highlighted his change in strategy – shifting from a major US military presence on the ground to supporting host nations with a counterterrorism and training role. Additional U.S. troops and assets are also in Jordan, Djibouti, Turkey, Egypt and Cameroon to support counterterrorism missions, while other overseas operations remain classified.

Since taking office, Obama has increased the US reliance on special forces to address extremist threats with a limited USA footprint.