[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 7]
[Senate]
[Page 10063]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                                  ISIS

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, often the Republican leader comes to the 
floor and complains about the battle against ISIS without ever offering 
a word as to what he would do that is not being done by President Obama 
and the rest of the allied forces. But let's talk a little bit about 
the progress that has been made.
  Is it all done? Of course not. We are working on that every day. 
Since the height of the ISIS power, U.S. and coalition forces have 
captured about 50 percent of the land ISIS once held in Iraq, and they 
are losing land every day. ISIS has lost 20 percent of the land it held 
in Syria. Ramadi and Tikrit were key victories for the U.S.-backed 
Iraqi forces. Iraqi forces captured the city of Fallujah in the last 
few days and are now working to put out the next pockets of resistance 
in that key Al Anbar Province town. As we speak, Kurdish, Iraq, and 
Syrian Democratic forces backed by the U.S. Special Forces are making 
preparations to retake ISIS's key strongholds in Mosul and Raqqa in 
Iraq. We have killed more than 25,000 ISIS fighters and 120 key ISIS 
leaders. We have cut ISIS funds by up to one-third and some say 
approaching 50 percent. We have drastically slowed the flow of foreign 
recruits from a high of about 2,000 a month in 2014 to 200 a month 
today. The same goes for the young Americans who have sought to travel 
and join ISIS abroad. A year ago, about 10 Americans a month--hard to 
comprehend that, but it is true--were leaving to join ISIS. That is now 
numbering about one a month.
  At home the FBI is cracking down on recruits. They are doing a good 
job. It is a tough job. Are they going to be able to get it all done 
quickly enough? We don't know, but they are doing their best. Over the 
past 2 years the FBI has arrested 80 individuals on ISIS-related 
charges. Prosecutions have gone forward, and with rare exception, they 
have all gone forward successfully.

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