Kerby Anderson

Recently, one of the guests on my radio program told me about a poll that discovered that words like safety and security were being frequently mentioned as a reason to vote for a particular candidate. Key issues in any political campaign include the economy and social issues. Now the word “security” surfaced in many political polls.

Marc Lotter believes the election will come down to the word security in three different ways. First, is economic security. Donald Trump opposed NAFTA and TPP, while Joe Biden supported those treaties. President Trump has cut taxes, while former Vice President Biden proposed programs that the Tax Foundation estimated would cost $4 trillion over ten years.

Domestic security has become a big issue. Every night, it seems, we see more images of American cities burning as rioters and looters destroy property and attack police and average citizens. Most of these cities are run by Democrats. Many of the police departments are run by competent black police chiefs. But the riots and property damage continues.

Speakers at the Democratic National Convention ignored the violence and property destruction. Many of the speakers at the Republican National Convention noted the riots and looting. The two parties almost seemed to come down on different sides.

Security from foreign enemies is the third factor. President Trump has pushed to rebuild the military along with striving to end America’s involvement in what he has called “senseless wars.” Democratic leaders want to reduce military spending. Senator Bernie Sanders put forth a proposal that would reduce Pentagon spending by $74 billion. The Democratic Party Platform also calls for ending what it calls “forever wars.”

Security seems to be an important election issue. As you can see, there are striking differences between the candidates and parties on security issues.