WASHINGTON – As the French uncover more information about the suspected mastermind behind the terror attacks in Paris, President Barack Obama is vowing the United States will offer more of the same in the fight against ISIS.
Prosecutors now know the man believed to be behind the attacks was planning another suicide bombing in the city.
French President François Hollande lobbied President Obama at the White House for the military might only the United States can provide.
"It is about taking out their financing, hunting down their leaders, dismantling their networks, and taking back the land they currently control," Hollande said.
This week, Obama will sign legislation sustaining American support to France and the 65 nations working together to stop ISIS. He also wants the European Union to require airlines to share passenger information, a move designed to stop terrorists from entering countries undetected.
"Make no mistake," the president said. "We will win and groups like ISIL will lose."
But for many Americans, simply sustaining America's current fight isn't enough.
The president is facing increased pressure to accelerate his efforts to destroy the Islamic State as a majority of Americans now fear a terrorist attack inside the United States is likely within a matter of months.
Even if America were attacked, Heritage Foundation national security expert James Carafano says he's not sure the president would change his strategy. And power or the lack thereof, he says, is the only thing ISIS understands.
"You have to look at it from ISIS's perspective," Carafano told CBN News. "I mean, they live in a part of the world where honor equals power. You're respected not because you're a nice guy and you pay your taxes but because you have power and you're willing to use it and that really is the coin of the realm."
In this war, Carafano says the two enemies bring different perspectives of success.
"Obama says it's this kind of slow, contained, run 'em down kind of strategy and the ISIS strategy is 'Well, as long as we're standing and the black flag is flying, we're winning,'" he explained.
Meanwhile, the president faces growing concerns from Democrats about his push to let Syrian refugees into the country. He maintains that doing less is un-American.
"On the Statue of Liberty, a gift from the people of France, there are words we know so well: 'Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to be free.' That's the spirit that makes us American," Obama said.
In a nation that knows what terror feels like, many Americans are eager to show France they care.
"President Obama needs to show the same kind of commitment and help that was provided by many countries after 9/11," Michael Gerson, a former policy adviser to President George W. Bush, told CBN News.
"You look at Great Britain – Tony Blair when our President Bush spoke on September 20 in the aftermath of the attack – Prime Minister Tony Blair came to the event, the joint session of Congress, to show solidarity with the United States. We had that after 9/11, and we need to show it to other countries," he said.
That opportunity comes next week when more than 120 world leaders will meet in Paris for a climate summit.
Obama and Hollande agree: attendance is the best possible response to the Islamic State's attacks.
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