President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama visit Fort Stewart. (White House photo)
Jessica Marmor Shaw, Marketwatch: Is America’s military the No. 1 fighting force in the world — or not?
For the first time in decades, Americans are evenly divided when asked if the U.S. has the No. 1 military in the world.
A recent Gallup poll found that only 49% of Americans believe the U.S. has the best military — that’s the lowest percent recorded in the 23 years Gallup has been asking this question, and significantly lower than the 59% who said the U.S. is No. 1 one year ago, in February 2015.
And this is important to people: The Gallup poll found about two-thirds of Americans say the U.S. should be the No. 1 military in the world.
That only half of the population believes the U.S. is No. 1 might seem crazy given the size and scope of America’s military.
Take military spending, the most obvious indicator of a nation’s power. The U.S. spent over $600 billion on its military in 2014, outspending its closest rival, China, by nearly $400 billion, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. The next seven countries on the list — China, Russia, Saudi Arabia, France, the U.K., India and Germany — spent about $600 billion combined in 2014.
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WNU Editor: The U.S. military is still the No. 1 fighting force in the world .... but it is also true that the world is catching-up.