Sanders’s apparent reference to Adolf Hitler directly followed his recollection of Trump’s controversial comments late last year about temporarily banning Muslims from entering the country.

The senator from Vermont told his audience here that he and Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.), a Muslim in Congress, visited a Washington mosque shortly afterward to denounce the Republican front-runner’s position and talk about “fighting Islamaphobia.”

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Sanders said if he is elected president, “trust me, Muslims, or anybody in this country, are not going to live in fear because of their religion, because of the color of their skin, because of the country they came from. That is not what this country is about.”

Sanders then launched into his reflection on his family and the Holocaust.

During an appearance Sunday on ABC News's "This Week," Sanders tried to clarify his comments.

“I did not compare Trump to Hitler," he told host George Stephanopoulos after he played video of Sanders's remarks.

Sanders has made Trump a focus of his remarks for weeks now, accusing him of racism and bigotry. During an appearance Thursday in Sheboygan, Wis., Sanders referred to Trump as “a nutcase.”