Ohio Governor John Kasich followed the lead of other Republican presidential candidates in using Tuesday's debate in Las Vegas to focus on foreign policy and terrorism.
“And when we see red flags, a father, a mother, a neighbor who says we have got a problem here, then we have to give law enforcement the ability to listen so they can disrupt these terrorist attacks before they occur," said Kasich.
Speaking about the war-torn country of Syria, Kasich said President Bashar al-Assad needs pushed out of office.
"I don’t understand this thing about 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."
The comments seemed to be a dig at fellow candidate Ted Cruz, who spoke against toppling the Assad regime.
Kasich also called for less arguing betwen GOP presidential candidates.
Kasich stays out west Wednesday for campaign events in Utah.
