Rick Perry says Obama ‘not capable’ of defeating ISIS

The Obama administration is “not capable” of defeating the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), according to former Texas Gov. Rick Perry.

Speaking at the Western Conservative Summit in Denver, the GOP presidential candidate chalked up the terror group’s rise to President Obama withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq in 2011.

“The lid can be put back on. The lid should never have been taken off,” Perry told the audience.

{mosads}He said the White House was “not capable” of eliminating ISIS because Obama’s track record has been to “take a step back” in battling the group.

Perry pointed to the president’s reluctance years ago to provide weapons to Syrian rebels to fight ISIS while the organization was largely centered in that country, and provide similar lethal aid to Kurdish security forces in northern Iraq.

The White House has come under withering criticism in recent weeks from Republicans and Democrats, including former administration officials, who argue the president doesn’t have a strategy for destroying the group.

Concerns have only risen as an effort to train and equip moderate Syrian rebels to battle ISIS has failed to meet recruitment expectations.

Perry said ISIS could be wiped by a “coalition effort” that includes putting U.S. boots on the ground in the region.

Such a push would be able to “bring peace,” he said.