Mohammedans have practiced "divide and conquer" on the Western world before. And the US attempts to form a coalition met with limited success, because (as now) some European countries preferred to appease the Mohammedans.
America and the Barbary Pirates: An International Battle Against an Unconventional Foe, by Gerard W. Gawalt (the manuscript specialist for early American history in the Manuscript Division, Library of Congress.)
Ruthless, unconventional foes are not new to the United States of America. More than two hundred years ago the newly established United States made its first attempt to fight an overseas battle to protect its private citizens by building an international coalition against an unconventional enemy. Then the enemies were pirates and piracy. The focus of the United States and a proposed international coalition was the Barbary Pirates of North Africa. [snip]Jefferson's plan for an international coalition foundered on the shoals of indifference and a belief that it was cheaper to pay the tribute than fight a war.
Someone should point "internationalist" John Kerry in the direction of Gerard W. Gawalt the manuscript specialist for early American history in the Manuscript Division, Library of Congress.