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 Both candidates said the Middle East would be less tumultuous
today if Libya's Muammar Gaddafi and Iraq's Saddam Hussein were
still in charge, arguing that the United States faces a greater
threat from Islamic State and other extremist groups that have
flourished in their wake.
"The region would be much more stable" with Gaddafi, Hussein and
Assad in place, Sanders, a Democrat, said on NBC's "Meet the Press."
"100 percent - is there even a doubt in your mind?" Trump, the
Republican frontrunner, said in a separate interview on the same
show.
Though they agree on little else, both the Democratic challenger and
Trump appeal to voters who view the 2003 invasion of Iraq as a
mistake and are leery of getting too deeply involved in the region.
 Sanders, seeking to bite into frontrunner Hillary Clinton’s big lead
in the November 2016 Democratic White House race just six weeks
before the first nominating contest in Iowa, has criticized her for
being too quick to intervene in the Middle East.
He has repeatedly reminded voters of Clinton's support for the 2003
invasion of Iraq, which she has since called a mistake and has been
critical of her support for the speedy departure of Assad, who has
resisted all diplomatic efforts to leave power with a civil war
raging in his country and swathes of territory controlled by Islamic
State, also known as ISIS.
The U.S. bombing of Libya in 2011 when Clinton was Secretary of
State hastened Gadaffi's downfall but created a vacuum which is
being filled by extremist groups, the Vermont senator said.
"Gaddafi, terrible dictator, gotten rid of," Sanders said. "Right
now, ISIS is gaining ground in Libya because of all of the
destabilization in the region and all of the turmoil."
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Trump has sought to appeal to hawkish Republican voters by
criticizing the Obama administration for not pressing the fight
against Islamic State aggressively enough.
At the same time, he has criticized Republican rivals such as former
Florida Governor Jeb Bush who believe that Assad must go, warning
that regime change can lead to unintended consequences.
"Every time we get involved with rebels ... it ends up being far
worse than the people who were there in the first place," he said.
Sanders and Trump both said the United States should focus on
defeating Islamic State rather than trying to oust Assad at the same
time.
"I don't agree with him on much, but if he says that, I'm okay with
it," Trump said, referring to Sanders.
(Reporting by Andy Sullivan; Editing by Alan Crosby)
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