House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Rogers argued Sunday that the Obama administration needs to take a tougher approach to foreign policy than tracking online trends and hashtag diplomacy.
The Michigan Republican criticized the administration for not designating Boko Haram a terrorist organization years ago. The Islamist militant group is responsible for abducting at least 276 schoolgirls from the northeastern Nigerian village of Chibok last month.
The kidnapping prompted a global reaction on social media, particularly Twitter, where the hashtag #BringBackOurGirls was born. First lady Michelle Obama even tweeted a photo of herself holding a sign with the hashtag.
“You can’t base your policy on what’s trending on Twitter,” Mr. Rogers said on CBS’ “Face the Nation.”
“It has to be more than hashtags and selfies,” he said, as reported by Politico.
Mr. Rogers cited a “new ecosystem of terrorism” that will take “a robust, holistic approach to what is radicalism and extremism popping up all over.”
“Can we help with the girls? I think we can and we should and we must,” he said. But “we also have to worry about the women of Afghanistan — some 11 million. We’re getting ready to walk away from them. In Syria, we have 12 million women who are under siege.”
• Jessica Chasmar can be reached at jchasmar@washingtontimes.com.
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