Who is better qualified to serve as America's next Commander in Chief?
NBC News and the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America present a historic event Wednesday: The Commander-in-Chief Forum live from New York City.
Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, the Republican nominee, take the stage at 8 p.m. ET at the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum to field questions on national security, military affairs and veterans issues.
Veterans make up nearly 10 percent of the population in Alaska and Montana, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. In more populous states like California and New York, vets make up a smaller percentage of the population, at less than 5 percent. In Texas, veterans make up about 6 percent of the population.
"As we've seen in our most recent wars — we need service members who bring critical thinking, language and cultural competencies, and relationship building skills to the fight as much, if not more, than brute strength," said Kristen Rouse, an #Armyveteran who served three tours of duty in #Afghanistan. "It takes strong teams of diverse players, including both men and women—to accomplish the mission."
Sixty-one percent of military and veteran voters disapprove of President Obama's job performance, according to the latest NBC News|SurveyMonkey Weekly Election Tracking Poll. Thirty-nine percent of military and veteran voters approve of the president.
Among all voters, 51 percent approve of his performance as president, compared to 48 percent who disapprove.
A new poll from the Pew Research Center shows a deep partisan divide in how the public assesses the threat of a major terrorist attack in the United States.
Fifty-eight percent of Republicans say terror groups are even more able to launch a major strike against the U.S. than they were at the time of the 9/11 attacks, according to the survey. But only 31 percent of Democrats and 34 percent of independents agree.
The divide isn't new. Democrats worried more about terror attacks than their Republican counterparts back during George W. Bush's presidency.
But Republican concern about an impending attack has jumped 18 percentage points since just 2013. The latest Pew survey marks the first time that a majority in either party believed that terror groups are more poised than in 2011 to launch a major strike inside the country.
Rachel Maddow shows how the push for the Commander-in-chief Forum has caused both the Hillary Clinton campaign and the Donald Trump campaign to turn their focus to military and veterans' issues.
