Perry: U.S. troops may be needed to fight Islamic State

Potential Republican presidential candidate Rick Perry says U.S. troops will be needed to fight alongside local forces against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.

"We are going to have to have our military actively engaged," Perry said an interview broadcast Sunday on CNN's State of the Union.

Perry, the former governor of Texas, said he would defend a troop decision against Americans who fear a repeat of problems in Iraq and Afghanistan when it comes to the Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL.

"I think if American and Western values are in jeopardy — and U.S. troops working with coalition force is how you stop ISIS — I think the bulk of the American people are going to say thank you, Mr. President, for standing up for our values, thank you for stopping this face of evil," Perry said.

Perry, who ran for the presidency unsuccessfully in 2012, spoke with CNN during appearances at the recent Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), an event that did not go well for him.

Perry finished 11th in the CPAC straw poll, with 1.1% of the vote. Rand Paul finished first, and Scott Walker was close behind.

The former Texas governor posted a Web video of his appearance at CPAC, as well as snippets from recent visits to early presidential states, that attests to his readiness. In the video, Perry says in one of his early state visits that at this stage in the race "there's only one individual that's ever had the uniform of this country on, and that's me. And that matters."

Perry served in the U.S. Air Force in the 1970s and flew transport aircraft around the world. Sen. Lindsey Graham, who is also considering a presidential bid, also served in the Air Force as a lawyer and continues to serve in the reserves.