Donald Trump Refused To Commit To Sending Ground Forces To Syria And Called The Middle East “One Big, Fat Quagmire.” “[Donald Trump] said the Russian plane crash that ISIS has claimed responsibility for poses a new threat to American interests. … Trump would not commit to sending group forces into Syria, calling the Middle East ‘one big, fat quagmire’ for which the U.S. should not be exclusively responsible. He said the lessons of history, such as the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979, caution against becoming entangled in the Middle East.” [The Hill, 11/8/15] Trump Supported Putting 10,000 Ground Troops In Syria To Defeat ISIS. SCARBOROUGH: “Right. But you need ground troops to do that?” TRUMP: “Yes, you'll need some ground troops. Yeah. You'll need ground troops.” SCARBOROUGH: “What do you think? 10,000, 20,000? Do you have a number?... So -- I want to get specific with you like I will with Ted Cruz and everybody else because I think people need to start giving us specifics on how we get there.” TRUMP: “Well, I've been specific.” SCARBOROUGH: ”So 10,000 troops?... I'm talking specifically about ground troops… So would you support taking it, say, ten thousand ground troops as part of an international force?... Would you support 10,000 ground troops?” TRUMP: “I would. Yes, I would.” [Morning Joe, MSNBC, 12/8/15] TRUMP ADVOCATED TARGETING THE FAMILIES OF TERRORISTS TO DEFEAT ISIS Donald Trump Said He Would Kill Terrorists’ Families As Part Of The Fight Against ISIS. “Donald Trump said Wednesday that he would kill the families of terrorists in order to win the fight against ISIS. … "The other thing with the terrorists is you have to take out their families, when you get these terrorists, you have to take out their families. They care about their lives, don't kid yourself. When they say they don't care about their lives, you have to take out their families," Trump said. Trump said he would "knock the hell out of" ISIS, and criticized the U.S. for "fighting a very politically correct war." [CNN, 12/2/15] Donald Trump Said The U.S. Was “Fighting A Very Politically Correct War,” And Called For Taking Out ISIS Families. TRUMP: “I would knock the hell out of ISIS, I would hit them so hard like they’ve never been before. KILMEADE: “What about civilian causalities? What about the fact that we’re targeting them and people are concerned about collateral damage?” TRUMP: “I would do my best, absolute best. I mean one of the problems that we have and one of the reasons that we’re so ineffective, is they’re trying to, they’re using them as human shields. A horrible thing. They’re using them as shields. But we’re fighting a very politically correct war. And the other thing is with the terrorists, you have to take out their families. When you get these terrorists, you have to take out their families. They care about their [families’] lives, don’t kid yourself. But they say they don’t care about their lives. You have to take out their families.” [Fox & Friends, Fox News, 12/2/15] TRUMP CALLED FOR CUTTING OFF ISIS’S REVENUES FROM OIL Donald Trump Said The U.S. Needed To, “Take Away The Energy, The Fuel, The Money From ISIS” — “I Want To Take The Oil.” “Donald Trump says any plan to defeat the Islamic State in Syria (ISIS) will hinge on cutting off the revenue stream that the terrorist group takes in from oil. ‘I’m looking to take the oil. I want to take the oil. I want the oil,’ Trump said on ABC’s ‘This Week’ on Sunday. ‘We have to stop the source of money, and the source of money is oil,’ the businessman added. …‘You know, if you stop transportation, I mean, you’re talking about the blood – the blood of the world and we’re going to have to be very, very strong,’ Confidential Page 92