America wants action

Only twice since becoming president has Barack Obama spoken to the American people from the Oval Office, which is why his speech on Sunday, following the massacre in San Bernardino, garnered so much attention in the United States.

It was a speech that needed to be given, but which came late. Terrorism hit America in the wake of the Paris attacks, just as Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio predicted. People are anxious in the streets again. The speech, however, was disappointing, promising nothing new.

"Nothing that happened in the speech tonight is going to assuage people's fears," Rubio said. The president did vow to "destroy [the Islamic State group] and any other organization that tries to harm us," but then failed to express any real intention of changing the strategy in the war against Islamic State. The speech was full of words, words, words. America today expects action, action, action.

The truth hurts

During the president's speech I was at the airport in Washington. People waiting for their flights rose from their seats to listen to the president. Global warming is an important matter, but the terrorist threat is far more pressing for Americans. This threat is even making people forget the scars left by the war in Iraq. Islamic State has become a real nightmare. If ground forces are the only way to defeat the group then today, based on the most recent polls, people are no longer scoffing at the idea of sending in ground troops.

Obama, however, is unmoved. He insists on beating Islamic State from the air. Good luck.

The U.S. president still refuses to mention radical Islam, but understands it is inspiring terrorist attacks across the globe -- and in America. Obama realizes the people aren't naive and that this is an election year, which has forced him to admit to the connection between other terrorist attacks -- such as the 2009 shooting in Fort Hood -- and jihad. He needed six years to grasp the connection. Perhaps he is a slow learner? Or perhaps the truth just hurts.

Speaking of elections, the terrorist attack in California has altered the discourse and the agenda in America. Hillary Clinton understands this. In an aggressive yet optimistic speech at the Saban Forum, she promised to toughen the campaign against global jihad. Obama is still in the White House, but there is already talk of mending rifts.

The American president was right to call on Muslims to join the campaign -- similar to the aftermath of the Twin Tower attacks in 2001, when the Muslim world, primarily the Sunni world, was asked to play a central role. However, the world must not delude itself in the war against ISIS, as it did during the fight against al-Qaida. Salvation will not come from the Arab world. It will come -- if it comes -- from the West.

Focus on the actual threat

On the topic of Islam, France's president, Francois Hollande, voiced similar sentiments to Obama. We can understand the two. The demographics have changed. Muslim communities in the West have grown considerably. The terrorists from San Bernardino, Sayed Farook and his wife, Tashfeen Malik, could have been anyone's neighbor down the street. This is why the fight is so difficult. This is why terrorists like them manage to fly under the radar -- and it is precisely for this reason that Islamic State must be destroyed quickly. Potential terrorists cannot be allowed to have a successful source of inspiration. Obama is right not to make sweeping generalizations, but he is wrong not to put his finger on the problem.

The U.S. president is choosing to use the incident in California to promote his agenda against the Second Amendment to the Constitution, which allows people to carry guns. One can agree or disagree, but the two issues cannot be tied together. Terrorists, for the most part, are not law-abiding citizens. Banning the sale of firearms will not prevent them from carrying out terrorist attacks. It's best to focus on the actual threat.

Obama would much rather spend his final year in office dealing with other issues. He, who so desired to be the president who brought the world peace, is looking on as all of his prognostications crumble to pieces. Is the world today a safer place than it was in 2008, when he was elected to office? The president probably won't like the answer, which is why many people also didn't like his speech.

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