National Security Part 1: Strength, Allies, Diplomacy

Well, this is often what it all comes down to for most people, right?  Who is going to actually keep our nation safe and secure?  Who will help us sleep at night and guard us from the terrors of the world?  Given that this is such a big issue, I am going to divide it into three parts and release it as three separate posts.  This post will focus on “Strength as a Nation, Standing with our Allies, and Diplomacy with our Rivals.”  Part 2 will focus on “Combating Terrorism and Keeping the Homeland Safe.”  Part 3 will focus on “Military & Defense.”

Strength as a Nation

First and foremost, we have to be a strong and prosperous nation or there isn’t much to protect.  This means having a strong infrastructure, a strong education system, and leading in innovation.  Ultimately, those things lead to a strong economy.  Here is a brief review of where Clinton & Trump stand as it relates to the economy, education, infrastructure, jobs, and manufacturing.

Economy	Clinton has been called the most fiscally conservative candidate with a net impact of close to zero for all her proposals. Clinton vows to raise the minimum wage, support Obama’s overtime rules, fight for equal pay, paid leave, and affordable childcare.  Clinton pledges tax cuts for profit-sharing businesses, closing corporate tax loopholes, and investment in infrastructure, clean energy, and scientific/medical research.	Trump says he will eliminate the federal debt with no official plan of how.  In reality, it has been projected that his massive tax cuts and proposals that he also doesn’t explain how to fund will result in an addition of 12.1 trillion dollars of debt by 2026 which is 129% of the GDP.
Early Childhood Education	Clinton plans to double investment in Early Head Start programs, and access to high quality preschool for every 4 year old in America.	Trump proposes absolutely nothing for early childhood education.
K-12 Education	Clinton believes in preparing, supporting, and paying every teacher like the future is in their hands.  She pledges funding for computer science instruction, rebuilding crumbling schools, and dismantling the school to prison pipeline.	Trump is committed to an end to Common Core.
Infrastructure	Clinton has a $275 billion dollar, 5 year plan to rebuild America’s infrastructure including repairing and expanding roads & bridges, expanding public transit, connecting all families to the internet by 2020, bringing free WiFi to public buildings and transportation, modernizing air travel, levees, dams, and wastewater systems.	Trump has no official plan other than a potentially trillion dollar plan creating 13 million jobs which he likens to FDR’s New Deal.
Jobs	Clinton’s policy proposals are predicted to create 10.4 million new jobs (3.2 million more than expected under current law) and GDP growth of 2.7% (up from 2.3% that is currently forecasted).  These predictions come from Moody’s Analytics, an independent third party source.	Moody’s predicts that Trump’s policy proposals will result in the loss of 3.5 million jobs, dropping home prices, a rise in unemployment to 7%, at least 10 trillion added to the national debt over the next decade, and a recession lasting longer than The Great Recession.
Manufacturing	Clinton proposes a $10 billion dollar investment in manufacturing, “Make It in America” partnerships, tax incentives to encourage investment in communities hit hard by manufacturing job losses, incentives to bring jobs back to the U.S., and increased apprenticeships and training programs to fill the skill gap.	Trump is notorious for manufacturing abroad, but threatens to impose tariffs and taxes on companies that do the same.

Standing with our Allies

The importance of having strong allies globally can not be underestimated.  The United States has formal diplomatic relationships with most nations with the exception of Bhutan, Iran, North Korea, Syria, and Taiwan.  Yes, that means that the United States has at least some sort of diplomacy (however strained) with nations such as Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, Iraq, and Egypt.

The strongest alliances come from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) also sometimes called the North Atlantic Alliance.  NATO forms a military alliance between 28 nations primarily in Europe and North America.  The organization stems from the North Atlantic Treaty signed on April 4, 1949.  Nations that are a part of NATO agree to a collective defense should one nation be attacked by a non-NATO nation.  The pledge has been invoked only one time:  NATO vowed to come to the defense of the United States after the September 11, 2001 attacks.

NATO has long been considered the central element in deterring attacks in Europe, especially on smaller countries.  Additionally, its alliance provides peace keeping, deters nuclear weapon usage, and advocates for human rights.

The Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan research center that public opinion and attitudes.  One of its sects tracks global attitudes toward the United States.  According to the Pew Research Center, “During the Bush era, opposition to U.S. foreign policy and rising anti-Americanism were widespread in many regions of the world, but Obama’s election in November 2008 led to a significant improvement in America’s global image.”

So, where do the presidential candidates stand with our allies and global attitudes?

Clinton:  Clinton has a proven track record in strengthening the essential partnerships of the United States from the Middle East and Asia to Europe and the Americas.  She calls NATO “one of the best investments that America has ever made.”  She will invest in partnerships with Latin America, Africa, and Asia.

Pew reported the following on August 16, 2016, “Of the two principal presidential candidates, Clinton is the better known outside the United States. Having served as US secretary of state from 2009 to early 2013, Clinton enjoys the confidence of many in both Europe and Asia to do the right thing in world affairs, according to a recent survey of 15 nations by the Pew Research Center.”

Trump:  Trump views NATO on the basis of economic benefit only.  He breaks rank from every Republican candidate before him by not automatically vowing to defend NATO allies if attacked.  When asked if he would defend U.S. allies from Russian invasion, he says he would have to look at the country’s contributions to the alliance before offering defense.  He has drawn a hard “America First” stance has earned him the title of the “first isolationist candidate” since World War II.  Pulling back from America’s allies will undoubtedly give rise to anti-American sentiment.  This is already starting to show as Pew reports on global attitudes: “ratings for Donald Trump are overwhelmingly negative. A median of just 9% trust the wealthy real estate developer to do the right thing in world affairs; 85% lack confidence in him.”

Diplomacy with our Rivals

Diplomacy requires patience, persistence, and long-term planning, but it is often the only way to avoid conflict.  There is ample evidence that diplomacy in foreign policy yields more long term gains than force.

Here is where the candidates stand in experience and intention with foreign policy diplomacy.

Clinton: Clinton has a wise but firm approach to diplomacy in order to prevent conflict.  As Secretary of State, Clinton dispatched senior aides for secret talks that ultimately led to international negotiations with Iran.  She convinced China and Russia to join the international coalition to put crippling sanctions on Iran that ultimately led them to the negotiation table effectively blocking their pathway to a nuclear weapon.  As president, she will vigorously enforce the nuclear agreement with Iran.  Clinton has also worked with leaders of Russia and China and the rest of the UN Security Council to impose nuclear sanctions against North Korea.

Clinton supports Obama’s initiatives to build stronger ties and diplomatic relations with Cuba.  She urges Congress to lift the embargo on Cuba while continuing to press for reforms there.

Clinton will stand up to Vladimir Putin along with our European allies to push back on Russian aggression on Europe.  She will hold China accountable in violations in cyberspace, on currency, human rights, trade, territorial disputes, and climate change.

Additionally, Clinton has extensive experience in foreign policy as Secretary of State where she championed the rights of women and girls around the world, negotiated a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, stood up for LGBT rights, renewed American diplomacy with Asia, took on HIV/AIDS globally, stood up to sex trafficking of women and children, and intervened in Saudi Arabia to stop child marriages. These are just a few of her extensive accomplishments while visiting 112 countries to restore America’s reputation around the world.  All this and more took place while she was overseeing 60,000+ people at 275 posts around the world.

Trump:  Trump recently attempted diplomacy for the first time by visiting Mexico’s President Nieto.  So, there’s that.

Aside from that, it is overwhelmingly clear that Trump values authoritarianism and has praised authoritarian and totalitarian rule in Russia, China, North Korea, and Turkey.  

To view National Security Part 2: Terrorism & ISIS, click here.
To view National Security Part 3: Military, click here.