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A new poll by Democracy Corps and Third Way warns that Democrats are losing ground to Republicans in the fight over national security. So they tried out a few talking points to see what would make people feel better about the party. How about “proven FBI interrogation techniques worked on the Christmas bomber”? That was OK but not great. “Obama has raised America’s standing in the world”? Eh. “Civilian courts do a great job of convicting terrorists faster and better”? Eh again. “Obama’s actually doing the same stuff as George Bush”? That had a negative effect.

So what did work? Answer: using predator drones to kick ass on al-Qaeda and the Taliban, which made people a stunning 50 points more confident in the Democrats. Draw your own conclusions.

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BEFORE YOU CLICK AWAY!

“Lying.” “Disgusting.” “Scum.” “Slime.” “Corrupt.” “Enemy of the people.” Donald Trump has always made clear what he thinks of journalists. And it’s plain now that his administration intends to do everything it can to stop journalists from reporting things they don’t like—which is most things that are true.

No one gets to tell Mother Jones what to publish or not publish, because no one owns our fiercely independent newsroom. But that also means we need to directly raise the resources it takes to keep our journalism alive. There’s only one way for that to happen, and it’s readers like you stepping up. Please help with a donation today if you can—even a few bucks will make a real difference. A monthly gift would be incredible.

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