Obama asks Congress for war resolution against ISIS

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama is vowing to relentlessly hunt down terrorists from "Pakistan to the streets of Paris."

In his State of the Union Address, Obama is calling on Congress for a new war authorization to pursue Islamic State militants. He argues that American military leadership in Iraq and Syria is stopping the group's advance.

He says it will take time and focus to stand up to what he calls the "bankrupt ideology of violent extremism." But he says the effort will succeed.

Obama also is laying out a vision for what he calls "a smarter kind of American leadership" that combines military power with strong diplomacy.

He says America does not lead with bluster, but with "persistent, steady resolve."