We are less than six months away from the presidential elections, and its crucial that Black women’s voices are heard. For the next few weeks, we’ll be taking a quick look at some of the most important issues on the ballot this season to make sure that you understand each candidate’s stand on the issues. This week, it’s all about national security.
A Quick Guide to the Presidential Candidates’ Stand on: Gun Control
Hillary Clinton
Clinton’s email “scandal,” in which she used her personal email account to send messages during her time as Secretary of State, has many of her critics saying that she put national security at risk. However, Clinton has promised that security is one of her main priorities, and the best way to make sure we’re safe, she said, is by having a strong military and diplomatic foundation.
She has vowed to defeat ISIS from afar by offering support to our partners, adding that she refused to engage our troops in another ground war. She said that she will keep nuclear weapons out of Iran’s hands and decrease our country’s dependence on Russian oil.
Additionally, Clinton has said that she wants to look to the future by strengthening relations with growing nations in Latin America and Africa and solidifying the United States’ role when it comes to issues like climate change and contagious diseases.
Read more here.
A Quick Guide to the Presidential Candidates’ Stand on: Reproductive Rights
Donald Trump
As we all know, Trump doesn’t shy away from the topic of national security. He has been vocal about his plans to build a wall to keep illegal immigrants from entering the nation’s borders, and after last year’s Paris attacks, he vowed to “bomb the s—t out of’ ISIS while barring Syrian refugees from entering the United States.
Though his campaign website does not have a detailed national security plan, he has outlined his platforms in various speeches, repeatedly promising that he would continue to strengthen and grow our military, both in size and in weaponry. Just last month, he criticized President Obama between blurring the lines between our allies and enemies, saying that he has pushed away allies while
losing the respect of enemies.
If elected, Trump said that he will formulate a plan to stop the spread of radical Islam—both overseas and domestically—and adopt an unpredictable tactic to defeat ISIS.
Read more here.
A Quick Guide to the Presidential Candidates’ Stand on: The Economy
Bernie Sanders
Sanders’ national security philosophy, aptly titled “War and Peace” on his campaign website, relies heavily on the use of diplomats to settle international disputes. He says that while protecting the United States will always be his No. 1 priority, he believes that “we must seek diplomatic solutions before resorting to military action.”
He was vehemently against the Iraq War—though he did vote to authorize military strikes after the Taliban offered support to Osama bin Laden—but he urged both President Obama and President Bush to withdraw troops from Afghanistan.
Like Clinton, he believes strongly in keeping nuclear weapons out of the hands of Iran, and while he wants to work with other allies to defeat ISIS, he also wants to devote energy to addressing the root causes of radicalization. Lastly, he wants to banish torture as a form of American policy, close Guantanamo Bay and put an end to the bulk collection of phone records.
Read more here.
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