Assad Quotes

• I still think a reasonable question is, would we be better off with [Muamar] Gadhafi and Bashar al-Assad still in there and Mubarak still there and Saddam [Hussein] there than the crap we have got looking at us now?

  Chris Matthews

  Thinking, Hussein, Als

  Source: www.msnbc.com

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• All dignified people in the world, whether Arabs or Muslims or others with dignity, are very proud of the speech made by president Bashar al-Assad a few days ago here in Damascus. For me he is the last Arab ruler, and Syria is the last Arab country. It is the fortress of the remaining dignity of the Arabs, and that's why I'm proud to be here.

  George Galloway

  Country, People, President

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• I'll tell you whose view on [Bashar] Assad is the same as mine. It's Prime Minister [Benjamin] Netanyahu. Prime Minister Netanyahu has said Israel doesn't have a dog in that fight because Assad is a puppet of Iran, a Shia radical Islamic terrorist, but at the same time, Prime Minister Netanyahu doesn't want to see Syria governed by ISIS.

  Ted Cruz

  Dog, Islamic, Fighting

  Source: cnnpressroom.blogs.cnn.com

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• I don't understand this thing about [Bashar] Assad. He has to go. Assad is aligned with Iran and Russia. The one thing we want to prevent is we want to prevent Iran being able to extend a Shia crescent all across the Middle East. Assad has got to go.

  John Kasich

  Russia, Iran, Middle East

  CNN-Facebook Republican Presidential Debate, cnnpressroom.blogs.cnn.com. December 16, 2015.

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• We could have made peace with Syrian dictator Bashar Assad a long time ago. It didn't happen, because Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu doesn't want to give up the Golan (Heights).

  Tom Segev

  Giving Up, Long, Want

  Source: www.spiegel.de

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• [Vladimir] Putin wants to keep [Bashar] Assad in power and expand his own military base in Syria, whatever the cost. I even believe he has an interest in more and more people fleeing the country. The flow of refugees improves his negotiating position toward the West, including the German chancellor.

  Garry Kasparov

  Country, Military, Believe

  "Putin Needs Wars To Legitimize His Position". Interview with Erich Follath, www.spiegel.de. November 10, 2015.

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• I invite President Assad to come to Jerusalem and to speak with me, with our parliament, with whomever he wants to speak in Israel and in the territories among the Palestinians.

  Yitzhak Rabin

  Israel, President, Jerusalem

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• I don't think that the United States has the bulk of the responsibility. I really put that on Bashar Assad and on the Iraqis and on the region itself.

  Hillary Clinton

  Responsibility, Thinking, United States

  "Second Democratic Debate" by Ryan Teague Beckwith, time.com. November 15, 2015.

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• Part of the problem that we have currently in the Middle East is that[Bashar] Assad has hung on to power with the very strong support of Russia and Iran and with the proxy of Hezbollah being there basically fighting his battles.

  Hillary Clinton

  Strong, Fighting, Russia

  Source: time.com

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• Russia went into Syria basically to support President Bashar al-Assad. And the Western allies have said Russia's really done very little against ISIS. For his part, Putin said Russia's open to stronger cooperation, and he supports Frances's effort to build a strong anti-terror coalition.

  Corey Flintoff

  Strong, Russia, Isis

  "Between France And Russia, Presidents Seek Common Ground In Syria". "All Things Considered" with Ari Shapiro, www.npr.org. November 26, 2015.

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• This comes from a group of people who`ve been wrong about every foreign policy issue over the last two decades. They supported Hillary Clinton`s war in Libya. They supported President [Barack] Obama`s bombing of Assad.

  Barack Obama

  War, Two, Issues

  Source: www.nbcnews.com

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• I think we are making an assumption that that is the outcome of the negotiations. I think President Assad will be prepared to accept whatever the outcome of the intra-Syrian dialogue and the decision of the Syrian people is. But people are trying to decide and determine the outcome of the negotiation before even we agree to start the negotiations.

  Mohammad Javad Zarif

  Thinking, People, Decision

  "Iran's Javad Zarif on Syria, Russia, and Donald Trump". Interview with Robin Wright, www.newyorker.com. December 18, 2015.

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• What holds an Arab leader in power is a mixture of violence and prestige. Both President Assad and King Hussein were felt to have defended Arab interests against the world. That, in the end, is more important than what they wear on their head.

  James Buchan

  Kings, Leader, Important

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• While all Alawites fear vengeance against their entire community should Assad fall, there are varying degrees of loyalty to the Assads.

  Elliott Abrams

  Loyalty, Fall, Community

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• I think those who have wanted regime [of Bashar Assad] change have made a mistake.

  Rand Paul

  Mistake, Thinking, Regimes

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• To me, what I've always said is that the president [Barack Obama] has set up an awful situation through his deal with Iran, because what his deal with Iran has done is empower them and enrich them. And that's the way ISIS has been created and formed here. ISIS is created and formed because of the abuse that [Bashar] Assad and his Iranian sponsors have rained down on the Sunnis in Syria.

  Chris Christie

  Isis, Iran, Empowering

  "Rush Transcript second debate: CNN Facebook Republican Presidential Debate", December 16, 2015.

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• We need to learn from history. These same leaders - [Barack] Obama, [Hillary] Clinton, and far too many Republicans - want to topple [Bashar] Assad. Assad is a bad man. Gadhafi was a bad man. Mubarak had a terrible human rights record. But they were assisting us - at least [Muammar] Gadhafi and [Hosni] Mubarak - in fighting radical Islamic terrorists.

  Ted Cruz

  Islamic, Fighting, Men

  CNN-Facebook Republican Presidential Debate, cnnpressroom.blogs.cnn.com. December 16, 2015.

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• I think [Bashar] Assad is a bad guy, a very bad guy, all right?

  Donald Trump

  Thinking, Guy, Bad Guys

  Source: cnnpressroom.blogs.cnn.com

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• The other thing I said is the great irony is you will be back fighting against your own weapons. Had [Bashar] Assad been bombed when he used chemical weapons two years ago, ISIS would be in charge of all of Syria now.

  Rand Paul

  Fighting, Isis, Years

  Source: cnnpressroom.blogs.cnn.com

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• You can imagine what the advisers are telling Junior Assad: "Your statues are much stronger than Saddam's. His were hollow, and bolted in place with inferior metal; yours are solid, and are anchored to a depth of three feet. Let the American tanks come! Their gears will strip and their engines whine in defeat as they attempt to pull down your statues!

  James Lileks

  Feet, Stronger, Tanks

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• We will have to work around the world with less than ideal governments. The government in Saudi Arabia is not a democracy, but we will have to work with them. The government in Jordan is not perfect, but we will have to work with them. But anti-American dictators like [Bashar] Assad, who help Hezbollah, who helped get those IEDs into Iraq, if they go, I will not shed a tear.

  Marco Rubio

  Government, Iraq, Perfect

  Source: cnnpressroom.blogs.cnn.com

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• Hillary Clinton has gotten every foreign policy challenge wrong. Hitting the reset button with Vladimir Putin - recall that she called Bashar Al-Assad a positive reformer and then she opened an embassy and then later she said, over, and over, and over again, "Bashar Al-Assad must go." Although she wasn't prepared to do anything about it.

  Carly Fiorina

  Reset Button, Challenges, Buttons

  5th Republican debate transcript, annotated: Who said what and what it meant, www.washingtonpost.com. December 15, 2015.

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• A large part of the left is pro-Assad. In those circles, you can't criticize Assad, but you know he's a monstrous war criminal. And anyone who criticizes Assad is joining the US imperialists. That's just ludicrous.

  Noam Chomsky

  War, Circles, Criminals

  Source: www.truth-out.org

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• We have to get rid of ISIS first. After we get rid of ISIS, we'll start thinking about it. But we can't be fighting [Bashar] Assad. And when you're fighting Assad, you are fighting Russia, you're fighting - you're fighting a lot of different groups.

  Donald Trump

  Fighting, Thinking, Russia

  Source: cnnpressroom.blogs.cnn.com

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• I'll tell what reckless is. What reckless is is calling [Bashar] Assad a reformer. What reckless is allowing Russia to come into Crimea and Ukraine. What reckless is is inviting Russia into Syria to team with Iran. That is reckless. And the reckless people are the folks in the White House right now. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton are the reckless people.

  Chris Christie

  Team, Russia, Ukraine

  "Rush Transcript second debate: CNN Facebook Republican Presidential Debate", cnnpressroom.blogs.cnn.com. December 16, 2015.

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