Hillary Refuses to Say US Is at War With 'Radical Islam'

Hillary Clinton's refusal Saturday to say that the United States was at war with "radical Islam" led to a lengthy exchange of semantics among the three Democratic presidential candidates during their third debate in Iowa.

CBS News moderator John Dickerson asked the former secretary of state whether she agreed with Republican candidate Marco Rubio's assertion that United States was at war with "radical Islam."

"I don't think we're at war with Islam," front-runner Clinton began during the debate at Drake University in Des Moines. "I don't think we're at war with all Muslims. I think we're at war with jihadists … ."

When Dickerson clarified that Rubio was referring to "radical Islam," Clinton said: "You can talk about Islamists who clearly are also jihadists," adding that she agreed with rival Bernie Sanders that the U.S. needed to reach out to Muslim nations in the fight against terrorism.

After then slamming President George W. Bush for saying after 9/11 that the United States was at war with "violent extremism," Clinton said: "We are at war with people who use their religion for purposes of power and oppression.

"And, yes, we are at war with those people," she added. "But I don't want us to be painting with too broad a brush."

But Sanders retorted, "I don't think the term is what's important.

"What is important to understand is we have organizations, whether it is ISIS or al-Qaida, who do believe we should go back several thousand years.

"This world, with American leadership, can and must come together to destroy them."

Martin O'Malley then got into the fray by using the term "radical jihadis. That's calling it what it is."

He argued against judging all Muslims in the United States as terrorists because they are crucial to defeating radical groups abroad.

"We are going to be able to defeat ISIS on the ground there, as well as in this world, because of the Muslim Americans in our country and throughout the world who understand that this brutal and barbaric group is perverting their world's religion.

"Now, like never before, we need our Muslim-American neighbors to stand up and to be a part of this."