The U.S. government has primary responsibilities: to protect the American people's rights,
freedom and security as provided in the Constitution. This element encompasses the protection
of civil rights such as freedom of speech and religion, giving each person protection under the
law, national defence, and the overall welfare of the public. Nevertheless, tensions may emerge
between security and individuals' rights when governments attempt to shield their people, as the
enhancement of the latter can be challenging utilizing the former. Some of these tensions must be
managed to reach equilibrium, and they can be delicate and need constant review.
One of the personal and real-life scenarios that exemplify this situation is airport security
measures. Influenced by the events of 9/11, screening became more intrusive to counter-
terrorism but raised considerable arguments on constitutional privacy rights (Etzioni et al.,
2003). On this particular issue, the major political parties have contrasting views. The Democrats
agree with stringent security measures coupled with some checks since they encourage the
profiling of terrorists and citizens but are against the profiling of other citizens based on their
color or ethnicity (Party Platform – Democrats, 2023). The Republican's primary concern is
security; therefore, they are more concerned with screening and monitoring the persons of
interest regardless of the cost of violating privacy rights; they support the authorities and security
agencies (Republican National Committee, 2026). Another example of a third party, the
Libertarian Party, stands against invasive screening as a state's encroachment on the Fourth
Amendment; the party supports the privatization of airport security (Libertarian Party, 2022).
These findings have informed the following deductions regarding the role of government
responsibilities in protecting rights. Therefore, it becomes evident that rights and security are not
harmonious and entail a balancing process. It is, thus, essential to realize that even friendly
policies can be dangerous regarding societal liberties. Furthermore, variances in priority in
political ideologies result in differing solutions across the ideological spectrum, further
demonstrating the challenges posed by these matters.
Solving such issues requires great efforts, including measuring decent ratios between rights and
security, avoiding polarized partisanship in searching for ethical policies, and giving adequate
protection to oppressed minorities while fortifying security measures. More rights for citizens
mean more potential risks for the government; thus, the government must protect both rights and
safety, which sets it up for inevitable conflicts with no apparent way out. This means that as
circumstances change, there is always a need to make adjustments time and again.
