ISIS, the driving force behind the terrorist attacks on Paris and Brussels, would not exist in its current form without the policies of Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hilary Clinton.

The terrorist organization can thank Obama for its territorial gains in Iraq, made possible by his complete withdraw of combat forces in that country. Iraq was not able to defend itself, a situation Obama was well aware of when he ordered the retreat. It was not tactical — it was a purely political decision to score points with his liberal base.

After taking control of Iraq’s western oil fields, ISIS was able to bring in millions of dollars a day to pay its fighters and create its own government, all while Obama sat idly by and mocked reporters who brought up the threat.

Obama was warned repeatedly that a complete withdraw from Iraq would destabalize the nation and cause massive human suffering, but his liberal legacy was worth more to him than the lives he was told would be lost as a result of his actions.

To be sure, many policy plunders (an ill-advised invasion being one of them) led to the situation Obama faced in Iraq, yet each blunder had at least been done with the intent of making the situation better. Politicians are not always aware of the full effect of their actions.

Yet Obama was told, repeatedly and very clearly, of the dire consequences that would certainly stem from leaving Iraq before the Iraqis were able to defend themselves.

He made the choice. It was cold and calculated. Our French allies have paid the price. The people of Brussels have paid the price. The Americans murdered in San Bernardino paid the price for Obama’s political calculation.

“We never should have been in Iraq”

Going into Iraq was a terrible mistake. Leaving Iraq was not a mistake — the consequences were well known. It was an immoral decision that party politics were more important than innocent lives.

You break it, you buy it.

America shouldn’t have broken Iraq, but it did, and Obama left before fixing it. By pulling out all American troops before Iraq was able to defend itself, Obama removed all barriers to an armed insurgency conquering most of the country and enriching itself on Iraq’s oil wealth. ISIS’s territorial gains also gave it the appearance of legitimacy and helped it recruit a massive amount of jihadists to its cause.

Meanwhile, the Obama/Clinton strategy of failing to even acknowledge the threat of global terrorism allowed ISIS to thrive. During the Arab Spring, they supported any group that challenged sitting middle east dictators, no matter how extreme the views held by these groups. As a result, ISIS rides around in vehicles and shoots weapons paid for by American taxpayers.

When ISIS began taking and holding territory, Obama would not take them seriously, referring to them as the “JV team” and mocking reporters for asking about the threat. As Secretary of State, Clinton did all she could to support the narrative that terrorism was on the run.

“ISIS doesn’t pose an existential threat,” Obama said, just hours before 16 Americans were gunned down in California by ISIS thugs.

Only after the problem had gotten out of hand did Obama start a bombing campaign against ISIS — which was mostly ineffectual due to self-imposed rules that prevented any real damage to the terrorist group’s infrastructure.

Obama stubbornly refused to put boots on the ground, again making decisions for political optics rather than effectiveness. He had to know that by not dealing with the issue he was leaving a bigger problem for the next administration.

By not putting a few boots on the ground years ago, many more men and women will have to fight a battle that grew from a local issue to a global threat. It’s already started. The administration has very quietly reversed itself and sent more men and women in uniform to the Middle East.

Years of Obama and Clinton ignoring the issue (and in many cases, actually arming and funding the very terrorists that are committing atrocities) only created a larger fight. Instead of the withdraw from the Middle East that Obama’s supporters wanted so desperately they pressured him to leave under any circumstances, the future will see more American parents sending their children to foreign battlegrounds.

And it will see more body bags in friendly cities across the world.