America’s year of living dangerously as politics trump policy

If the US is distracted over the presidential election, its rivals could be tempted to take advantage and press to achieve long-sought objectives

Unlike most presidential elections in American history, this is one in which the differences between the two likely major party candidates far outweigh their similarities. File photo: AP

More than six dozen countries will hold elections this year, but none will be more consequential than the one scheduled for November in the United States. After all, what happens in the US invariably has outsize impact, given America’s economic, military, and diplomatic power and influence. 

Countries in both Europe and the Indo-Pacific count on the US to guarantee their security — a guarantee they have not had reason to question for three-quarters of a century.