The weekend's bomb attacks in New York and New Jersey will resonate with Donald Trump's core support - but it's too early to gauge the effect on the wider electorate.
That's according to Dr. Brian Klaas, a fellow in global politics at the London School of Economics, who spoke to talkRADIO this afternoon.
"I think it's too early to say [whether this will help Trump] clearly," he told Julia Hartley-Brewer. "For Donald Trump's die-hard supporters, absolutely. This is their narrative - the Muslim comes into America and conducts a terror attack.
"Hillary Clinton's followers see her as a viable alternative to deal with terror attacks. When it comes to that fact, Donald Trump is a bit [of an] unhinged candidate, but the question of presidential elections always comes down to independence.
"It's so simplistic for Donald Trump to suggest a closing of the borders, but Hillary Clinton points out this plays into what Islamic State want. There are extremists within the country as well - the question is how do we deal with them?
"When national security becomes more prominent, are people going to want to have a more steady hand [Clinton] or more aggressive hand [Trump] in a moment of fear?"
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