It’s a loaded phrase, harkening back to the 1960s, when Republican presidential candidates Barry Goldwater and Richard Nixon adopted it during the campaigns of 1964 and 1968, respectively. The expression was perceived as carrying racial connotations — a dog whistle to white voters amid civil rights protests — so Trump’s resurrection of the language could further erode his standing with minority voters.
“I don’t know of many African Americans and Latinos who heard Mr. Trump’s words and did not recoil at the thought that we’re returning to an era we thought was behind us,” Rep. Emmanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.), former head of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC), said Wednesday.

But, some conservatives think Trump’s message will prove effective in an election year when violent crime is churning headlines and voters are anxious about the threat of terrorist attacks…

With that in mind, some political experts suggested Trump’s “law-and-order” push is another indication that the billionaire businessman sees the surest route to the White House in energizing the white, male, working-class voters who largely constitute his base, rather than shifting his general-election message to appeal to minorities and women.