National Security & Veterans Affairs

Joe Biden (D)

• Increase the defense budget
• Supports keeping some troops deployed
• Government should gain access to "backdoors" in encryption to have an upper-hand in security matters
• Strengthen national security against tech threats and hacking

Michael Bloomberg (D)

• Worked with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to combat veteran homelessness as mayor

Pete Buttigieg (D)

• Increase the defense budget
• Supports keeping some troops deployed
• Believes the PATRIOT Act undermined American freedoms
• White supremacy is a national security threat
• Invest $2 billion over 10 years in programs that counter hate-based ideology
• Ensure expanded and equitable disaster preparedness and relief
• Create a modern public health data system to provide an early warning, down to the neighborhood level, of health threats from the effects of things like climate change and infectious diseases

Tulsi Gabbard (D)

• Decrease the defense budget
• Supports bringing troops back to US
• Stop the U.S. government from using taxpayer dollars to support groups who are working with ISIS to overthrow the Syrian government
• Believes the largest national security threat to the U.S. is nuclear war

Amy Klobuchar (D)

• Increase the defense budget
• Supports keeping some troops deployed
• Generally voted security over privacy
• Supports an increase in funding for cybersecurity
• Bring cyber-security expertise into the Defense Department immediately
• Fight ISIS internet recruiting without indicting Islam
• Believes the largest national security threat to the U.S. is Iran
• Invest in the Veterans Health Administration

Bernie Sanders (D)

• Decrease the defense budget
• Supports bringing troops back to US
• Generally against war and believes it should be used as a last resort
• Does not support the wars in the Middle East
• Focus on reducing homelessness among veterans

Tom Steyer (D)

• Rebuild American national security relationships

Donald Trump (R)

• Increase military spending
• Create a sixth branch of armed services, called the Space Force
• Keep PATRIOT Act in place

Joe Walsh (R)

• Supports bringing U.S. troops home from Afghanistan
• Believes that no one in the Taliban should be allowed on U.S. soil

Elizabeth Warren (D)

• Decrease the defense budget
• Supports bringing troops back to US from Afghanistan immediately
• Eliminate corruption in military contracting
• Improve military housing for families living at bases
• Plan for service members, veterans, and military families:
• Direct the DOD to expand resume and career coaching opportunities for military personnel considering transition
• Encourage veteran entrepreneurship by creating a new program to allow veterans to cash out their GI education benefits for a small business loan
• Invest in programs to connect transitioning service members with federally-recognized apprenticeship opportunities and good, union jobs
• Cut veteran suicides in half within her first term
• Eliminate the initial claims and appeals backlog of veterans waiting for benefits

Bill Weld (R)

• Supports cutting military spending by 20%
• Believes nuclear proliferation is the number one threat to national security