In his September 5, 2006 speech to Military Officers Association of America, President George Bush revealed al Qaeda's goal to create a wedge between the American people and their government.
No thoughtful voter can question that the American People are not more divided in October 2018 than when al Qaeda declared war on the United States on August 23, 1996, to the delight of our enemies.
The importance of dividing us as a nation was emphasized by retired Navy admiral William H. McRaven in his August 16, 2018 open letter to President Trump which included the following remarks regarding President Trump's leadership: "Through your actions, you have embarrassed us in the eyes of our children, humiliated us on the world stage and, worst of all, divided us as a nation."
Evidence of a wedge between the American people and their government is best depicted by issues where a super-majority (60%) or more of those polled favor changes that the leadership one of our political parties more than the other chooses to resist. Seven issues where the GOP has chosen to resist change that a super-majority favor are:
1. Citizens United. A May 2018 study from the University of Maryland and nonpartisan research group Voice of the People found that Three-fourths of survey respondents -- including 66 percent of Republicans and 85 percent of Democrats -- back a constitutional amendment outlawing Citizens United. The study also indicates that most Americans -- 88 percent overall -- want to reduce the influence large campaign donors wield over lawmakers at a time when a single congressional election may cost tens of millions of dollars.
2. Gerrymandering. According to a 2013 Harris poll cited by the Brennan Center for Justice, 7 in 10 Americans believe that "those who stand to benefit from drawing electoral lines should not have a say in the way those lines are drawn." This includes 74% of Republicans and 73% of Democrats.
3. Minimum Wage. According to a Spring 2018 poll conducted by GOP pollster Frank Luntz's firm LuntzGlobal on behalf of the National Restaurant Association found that 71 percent of people surveyed support raising the minimum wage to at least $10 an hour, even if it means higher menu prices.
4. Medicare for All. The vast majority of Americans, 70 percent, now support Medicare-for-all, otherwise known as single-payer health care, according to an August 2018 Reuters survey. That includes 85 percent of Democrats and 52 percent of Republicans. Only 20 percent of Americans say they outright oppose the idea.
5. Merrick Garland Senatorial Confirmation Hearing to the SCOTUS. Following President Barack Obama's nomination of Merrick Garland to fill the open seat on the Supreme Court, a CNN/ORC poll found that two-thirds of Americans wanted the Senate to hold confirmation hearings on his candidacy.
6. Stricter Gun Laws. Data from Gallup's October 2018 survey shows sixty-one percent of Americans favor stricter laws on the sale of firearms, down modestly from March, when 67% said this shortly after the Parkland, Florida, school shooting on Feb. 14.
7. Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) of 2017. By a 2-to-1 margin--61 percent to 30 percent--respondents said the law benefits "large corporations and rich Americans" over "middle class families," according to the survey, which was completed on Sept. 2, 2018 by the GOP firm Public Opinion Strategies and obtained by Bloomberg News. Even though the TCJA title refers to Jobs, no quantification of the number of jobs to be created could be found in the TCJA's CONFERENCE REPORT.
Conclusion:
Many U.S. voters believe there are hundreds, if not thousands of issues, that divide Americans, yet if the aforementioned seven were resolved in favor of the super-majority of voters; the wedge between the American people and their government would be significantly reduced and the achievement al Qaeda's political goal would be reduced, accordingly.
4
3
3
