Since his first day in office, Obama’s foreign policy has lacked direction and consistency. The current mess in Iraq is the direct result of his previous failures. ISIS militants now use the weapons we provided to the Iraqi army against the U.S. and our allies. We armed the region and then failed to monitor and protect it. Now thousands, if not tens of thousands, of people have been murdered.

Sen. John McCain’s prediction of a disaster has come to pass. By pulling out the last American troops in Iraq in December 2011, Obama allowed gains to evaporate and put the fate of the nation in Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki’s hands. In retrospect, it’s clear that Maliki was not qualified then and is not qualified now to lead Iraq.

Now the president must set up a safe zone to protect not only the Kurdish people, who have been our strong allies throughout the war, but also the countless American diplomats, military advisers and other citizens in the region. To be clear, troops on the ground are not necessary, but we must continue to bombard ISIS with tactical air strikes until that safe zone is created.

But more important, the U.S. cannot go back to being a paper tiger. Time and time again, Obama has failed to act on threats and has appeased the aggressive military actions of militant groups. In doing this, he has given a green light to barbarians such as ISIS to commit genocide and not fear any form of meaningful retribution.

The president has at long last finally done something to try and save the thousands of Yazidis who are trapped and dying atop Mount Sinjar.

The American people are sick of war, but we must end the dangerous situation that this administration’s failed policies have helped to create.

Al D’Amato, a former U.S. senator from New York, is the founder of Park Strategies LLC, a public policy and business development firm. Comments about this column? ADAmato@liherald.com.