Therese Ford's Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)
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Therese Ford has demonstrated Political Courage by telling citizens where she stands on the issues she may face if elected.
Alabama Congressional Election 2012 Political Courage Test
| Pro-choice | Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation? | ||
| Women do not need male-dominated legislative bodies (government!) getting between them and their doctors. | |||
| No | Do you support United States' combat operations in Afghanistan? | ||
| Yes | Do you support a timetable for withdrawal from Afghanistan? | ||
| Both the Iraq & Afghanistan wars were ill-conceived It appears that the Bush Adm. believed their own marketing from their own study groups. | |||
Indicate which proposals you support (if any) for balancing the federal budget.In order to balance the budget,
| Yes | do you support reducing defense spending? | ||
| Yes | do you support an income tax increase on any tax bracket? | ||
| No | do you support reducing Medicaid spending? | ||
| No | do you support reducing Medicare spending? | ||
| No | Is balancing the budget a legislative priority? | ||
| Jobs should be the legislative priority right now. Defense spending cuts should NOT be on the men & women in the military and their benefits. Military contracts should be reviewed -- $17,000 drip pans? | |||
| Yes | Do you support the regulation of indirect campaign contributions from corporations and unions? | ||
| Currently the FEC is disfunctional and cannot get a majority vote on anything. The IRS should be beefed up so that it can investigate the abuses of the 501 (c) (4). | |||
| No | Do you support capital punishment for certain crimes? | ||
| Capital punishment is inhumane and mistakes cannot be undone. Life w/o parole is a less expensive approach. Keep in mind that life w/ the possibility of parole has protected us from Charles Manson for decades. | |||
| Yes | Do you support federal spending as a means of promoting economic growth? | ||
| Yes | Do you support providing tax incentives to businesses for the purpose of job creation? | ||
| Yes | Do you support spending on infrastructure projects for the purpose of job creation? | ||
| Yes | Do you support the temporary extension of unemployment benefits? | ||
| No | Do you support the 2010 temporary extension of tax relief? | ||
| I support incentives if the business actually creates or fills job positions. This is an effective approach at the state level- that's how Alabama got Mercedes, et al. But, businesses won't hire unless there is an increased demand for goods & services. | |||
| No | Do you support requiring states to implement education reforms in order to be eligible for competitive federal grants? | ||
| Alabama has always under-funded public education. Many people talk about "reforms" when they mean charters, vouchers, more standardized tests and teacher evaluations. Alabama needs federal grants. | |||
| No | Do you support reducing restrictions on offshore energy production? | ||
| More off shore energy production will NOT decrease pump prices. It is going to take Alabama's gulf coast years to recover from the BP oil spill. | |||
| Yes | Do you believe that human activity is contributing to climate change? | ||
| Yes | Do you support the federal regulation of greenhouse gas emissions? | ||
| I also support investments in alternative and renewable energy sources. I support high speed rail projects to create jobs, expand job opportunities and reduce fossil fuel emissions. | |||
| Yes | Do you support restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns? | ||
| States already restrict purchasing, carrying, permits, etc. I have no problem w/gun ownership for self-protection, recreation, hunting... But, there is absolutely no reason to think that the 2nd Amend is the only one of the Bill of Rights that cannot be abridged in anyway. | |||
| No | Do you support repealing the 2010 Affordable Care Act? | ||
| Yes | Should individuals be required to purchase health insurance, as mandated in the 2010 Affordable Care Act? | ||
| As long as the U.S. has a private insurance healthcare system then the mandate makes economic sense. The people I have talked w/ who do not have health ins. is not because they don't want it; it is because they can't afford it or they have pre-existing condition. | |||
| No | Do you support requiring illegal immigrants to return to their country of origin before they are eligible for citizenship? | ||
| Yes | Do you support allowing illegal immigrants, who were brought to the United States as minors, to pursue citizenship without returning to their country of origin? | ||
| No | Do you support the enforcement of federal immigration law by state and local police? | ||
| Immigration reform is needed at the federal level. Immigration reform will probably have to be passed and implemented on a piece meal basis. | |||
| Yes | Do you support same-sex marriage? | ||
| This is not an issue that can be determined on a state by state basis over the long haul. | |||
| Yes | Do you support targeting suspected terrorists outside of official theaters of conflict? | ||
| No | Should the U.S use military force in order to prevent Iran from possessing a nuclear weapon? | ||
| The Iranian Army is larger and more disciplined than the Iraqi Army. My biggest concern is that Isreal will start something that they can't finish. Targeting suspected terrorists is going on indefinitely. Technological advancements are the main push. And, everybody is using technology. | |||
| No | Do you support allowing individuals to divert a portion of their Social Security taxes into personal retirement accounts? | ||
| There is no reason to believe that personal retirement accounts would provide better returns than Social Security. This is just a plan to allow Wall Street to collect various fees for investing SS. | |||
SpendingIndicate what federal spending levels (#1-6) you support for the following general categories. Select one number per category; you can use a number more than once.TaxesIndicate what federal tax levels (#1-6) you support for the following general categories. Select one number per category; you can use a number more than once.
| Slightly Increase | a) Agriculture | ||
| Maintain Status | b) Arts | ||
| Maintain Status | c) Defense | ||
| Greatly Increase | d) Education | ||
| Slightly Increase | e) Environment | ||
| Slightly Increase | f) Homeland Security | ||
| Maintain Status | g) International aid | ||
| Greatly Increase | h) Medical Research | ||
| Greatly Increase | i) Scientific Research | ||
| Maintain Status | j) Space exploration | ||
| Maintain Status | k) United Nations | ||
| Greatly Increase | l) Welfare | ||
| Greatly Increase | a) Capital gains taxes | ||
| Slightly Increase | b) Corporate taxes | ||
| Slightly Increase | c) Excise taxes (alcohol) | ||
| Greatly Increase | d) Excise taxes (cigarettes) | ||
| Slightly Increase | e) Excise taxes (transportation fuel) | ||
| Slightly Decrease | f) Income taxes (low-income families) | ||
| Maintain Status | g) Income taxes (middle-income families) | ||
| Greatly Increase | h) Income taxes (high-income families) | ||
| Slightly Increase | i) Inheritance taxes | ||
| Slightly Increase | j) Payroll taxes | ||
| Homeland security includes FEMA and disaster aid should not be on the chopping block. If by welfare, you mean training programs, foodstamps, WIC, | |||
| [b) Corporate taxes ] or close loopholes [j) Payroll taxes ] back to 6.8 Inheritance taxes were part of the Bush tax cuts. The exemption amount will go to $1 millon in 2013 if Congress can't compromise on the Bush tax cuts extension. I won't be effected by this at all but I think a $3.5 million exemption would work. | |||
| Create jobs! start with infrastructure bill. Pass it and the surtax on income over $1 million to pay for it. Preserve Medicare and Social Security. For Social Security raise the income cap. Don't use chained Consumer Price Index! Medicare will need more attention. The ACA addresses Medicare costs so fund ACA and evaluate the costs. Education & Student loans: Public education in AL needs more funding. A higher percentage is appropriated to K-12 leaving higher ed to increase tuition & fees. Charters and vouchers will just take more money out of public education and subsidize private business. Even though this... |
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