Time: "Hillary Clinton and the Democrats’ National Security Problem"

[Attorney in Texas]

link; excerpt:

Not a single question about national security. Several times Clinton tried to steer her answers toward the topic, but the crowd resisted–and it occurred to me that Clinton was actually taking a risk with the Democratic base when she talked about what had to be done to defeat ISIS. The latest poll shows her trailing Bernie Sanders 50-40% in New Hampshire.

What were the questions about? Genetically modified food. Climate change. Gun control. Whether Exxon Mobil suppressed information about carbon pollution. Voting rights. Mental health. Student loans. Immigration (pro-family preservation, not border control). Preserving social security and Medicare. Taking care of veterans (with the implicit assumption that veterans are victims of the military-industrial complex).

Dear Secretary Clinton:

We are not scared of Daesh. We know that we're 187 times more likely to starve to death in America than be killed by terrorism, we're over three times more likely to be killed by lightening strikes than by a terrorist, and our odds of being killed by a falling asteroid are about the same as our odds of being killed by a terrorist.

You are thinking of Republicans who curl up into a shivering fetal ball at the threat of terrorism. We're Democrats, and we're not afraid.

Now, let's talk about that starvation statistic.

[ibegurpard]

1. love this!

Her tone-deaf pandering on this is not going to help her. If she wants to fight Republicans on their own fear-mongering turf she loses.

[arcane1]

2. Stoking mortal fears in order to gain votes. It's not just for republicans.

And it won't work on ME!

[ibegurpard]

3. absolutely

Despite my MANY problems with Obama I do admire him for his refusal to give in and pander to the fear-mongering on this. It's a rare glimpse of the president I had hoped I was voting for.

[Attorney in Texas]

4. Every time I hear a right-wing pundit saying that Trump is strong on terrorism and Obama is weak, it

makes me want to put my foot through the television.

Having a temper tantrum is not a show of strength (and if it were, Ted Cruz woudl be leading in the polls). Threatening to bomb is not a show of strength (and if it were, Kim Jong-un would be the strongest leader in the world and not an impotent mosquito to be ignored or thoughtlessly swatted away). The xenophobic panic attack that spills out at every Trump campaign stop is not strong leadership.

Obama's refusal to cower and change our domestic policies in fear of a barely existent Daesh threat is the type of leadership I was voting for in 2008 and 2012.