World

President Obama Isn't The Founder Of ISIS. This Guy Is.

Simply put, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi created the group that would eventually become ISIS and shape its ideology. POTUS is not the founder.

President Obama Isn't The Founder Of ISIS. This Guy Is.
U.S. Department of Defense
SMS

"In fact, in many respects, they honor President Obama. ISIS is honoring President Obama. He is the founder of ISIS. He is the founder of ISIS," Donald Trump said at a rally. 

Wait, is Trump actually saying Obama founded ISIS?

"Last night, you said the president was the founder of ISIS. I know what you meant. You meant that he created the vacuum; he lost the peace," Hugh Hewitt said on his radio show.

"No, I meant he's the founder of ISIS. I do. He was the most valuable player. I give him the most valuable player award," Trump replied.

I can't believe I have to say this, but, no, President Barack Obama is not the founder of ISIS.

SEE MORE: How ISIS Distorts The Teachings Of Islam

He's the guy whose airstrike campaign has killed up to 45,000 ISIS fighters.

This is the guy who founded ISIS: Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.

He's from Jordan. And in 1999, he founded Jamaat al-Tawhid wal-Jihad. This group would eventually become what we know today as the "Islamic State," or ISIS. He was killed in Iraq in 2006 after the U.S. dropped two 500-pound bombs on him.

That's pretty much it. Zarqawi was a man so extreme that even Al-Qaeda chided him over his tactics.

Today's ISIS is based off his ideology, and the group often honors him in messages. 

The person ISIS doesn't honor? 

Obama, whom ISIS portrays as a top enemy.

This video includes images from Getty Images and clips from C-SPANThe Hugh Hewitt ShowU.S. Air Force and U.S. Central Command. Music provided courtesy of APM Music.