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Pat Toomey's Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)

Key


Official Position: Candidate addressed this issue directly by taking the Political Courage Test.

Inferred Position: Candidate refused to address this issue, but Vote Smart inferred this issue based on the candidate's public record, including statements, voting record, and special interest group endorsements.

Unknown Position: Candidate refused to address this issue, or we could not infer an answer for this candidate despite exhaustive research of their public record.

Additional Information: Click on this icon to reveal more information about this candidate's position, from their answers or Vote Smart's research.

Other or Expanded Principles & Legislative Priorities are entered exactly as candidates submit them. Vote Smart does not edit for misspelled words, punctuation or grammar.

Pat Toomey has refused to provide voters with positions on key issues covered by the 2016 Political Courage Test, despite repeated requests from Vote Smart and voters like you.

What is the Political Courage Test?

Issue Positions

For Presidential and Congressional candidates who refuse to provide voters with their positions, Vote Smart has researched their public records to determine their likely responses. These issue positions are from 2016.

  • “Senator Pat Toomey is prolife and believes that all children should be welcomed into the world and protected by its laws.” (votesmart.org)
  • Rated 100% by National Right to Life Committee (votesmart.org)
  • Voted in favor of H.R.36 “Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act” (votesmart.org)
  • “Rather than more tax hikes, Pat believes that our tax system is broken and needs to be overhauled. He supports closing special-interest loopholes and lowering rates for all Americans.” (votesmart.org)
  • Voted in favor of S.Amdt.2573 “Tax Hike Prevention Act of 2012” (votesmart.org)
  • Despite exhaustive research, Vote Smart was unable to find information about this candidate's position.
  • “Pat is a leader in establishing the ban on wasteful earmarks and has introduced the bipartisan Earmark Elimination Act to abolish the practice once and for all. In the past, lawmakers regularly raided taxpayer pockets for parochial pork projects like a cowboy poetry festival, a teapot museum in North Carolina, and the infamous "Bridge to Nowhere" in Alaska.” (votesmart.org)
  • "Unfortunately, this budget deal fails to address our overspending problem - in fact, it makes the problem worse by increasing spending. It also suspends the debt limit and allows Washington to continue piling up more red ink without addressing the gross fiscal mismanagement that causes the need for more borrowing in the first place. Our nation's growing debt is costing us jobs and economic growth today, and it is an unfair burden to pass on to our children and grandchildren.” (votesmart.org)
  • “Rather than more tax hikes, Pat believes that our tax system is broken and needs to be overhauled. He supports closing special-interest loopholes and lowering rates for all Americans.” (votesmart.org)
  • S.Amdt.1465 “Temporary Payroll Tax Cut Extension” (votesmart.org)
  • Despite exhaustive research, Vote Smart was unable to find information about this candidate's position.
  • “Senator Toomey is a supporter of the Keystone Pipeline, and helped to pass bipartisan legislation out of the Senate to approve the pipeline in 2015.” (votesmart.org)
  • Voted in favor of S.Amdt.1537 “Approving the Keystone XL Pipeline Project” (votesmart.org)
  • Despite exhaustive research, Vote Smart was unable to find information about this candidate's position.
  • “Independent studies have found that this would cost the country millions of jobs, but in an industrial state like Pennsylvania, the cap-and-trade tax would be even more harmful than elsewhere. Our state's coal, natural gas and manufacturing industries would be especially hard hit.” (votesmart.org)
  • "The War on Coal continues. Coal is a domestically sourced, low-cost form of energy which helps sustain jobs for Pennsylvania and beyond. Over the decades, coal-fired plants also have gone to impressive lengths to reduce emissions. Nevertheless, the Obama administration continues to implement policies that will make energy more expensive for hard-working Pennsylvanians while destroying good, family-sustaining jobs.” (votesmart.org)
  • "Today's vote shows that a bipartisan, balanced proposal that will stop terrorists from buying guns legally has the support of a majority of the Senate. I am disappointed, however, that this effort did not result in passage of the Collins proposal. It is a bipartisan compromise that will not only help keep Americans safe from terrorism, but it will also help ensure that law-abiding Americans do not wrongfully lose their Second Amendment rights.” (votesmart.org)
  • Voted in favor of S.Amdt.715 “Public Safety and Second Amendment Rights Protection Act” (votesmart.org)
  • “The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (P.L. 111-148) imposes onerous new mandates and regulations that will have numerous unintended consequences, some of which we have already begun to see. It's bad for patients, it's bad for doctors, and it's bad for our economy. Additionally, it threatens to put serious strains on our nation's long-term fiscal outlook. It is for these reasons that Senator Toomey is an original cosponsor of the ObamaCare Repeal Act.” (votesmart.org)
  • Voted in favor of H.R.3762 “Restoring Americans' Healthcare Freedom Reconciliation Act of 2015” (votesmart.org)
  • Despite exhaustive research, Vote Smart was unable to find information about this candidate's position.
  • “Pat also believes the tradition of marriage is sacred and is best defined as between a man and a woman. As a congressman, Pat voted to protect the institution of marriage in many ways.” (votesmart.org)
  • Rated 0% by the Human Rights Campaign (votesmart.org)
  • Despite exhaustive research, Vote Smart was unable to find information about this candidate's position.
  • “Senior citizens all across America, including my parents, depend on Social Security checks, and they have earned those benefits by virtue of the contributions they made into that system, in many cases, for many decades.” (votesmart.org)

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