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Thomas Bliley, Jr.'s Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)

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What is the Political Courage Test?
This candidate has responded to a Political Courage Test in a previous election. As a continued effort to provide the American public with factual information on candidates running for public office, these archived responses are made available here.

Congressional Election 1992 National Political Awareness Test

The Political Courage Test asks candidates which items they will support if elected. It does not ask them to indicate which items they will oppose. Through extensive research of public polling data, we discovered that voters are more concerned with what candidates would support when elected to office, not what they oppose. If a candidate does not select a response to any part or all of any question, it does not necessarily indicate that the candidate is opposed to that particular item.

1. Which of the following tax measures, if any, will you support if elected to the Congress in 1992?

X Reducing the capital gains tax rate on profits from the sale of stocks, bonds and real estate.
X Permitting tax-free withdrawals from IRAs in limited circumstances.
X Providing some kind of middle-class tax break.
Increasing the income taxes of those with incomes over $100,000.
X Providing a tax credit for first-time home buyers.
X Repealing luxury taxes on limited items.
X Providing a temporary investment tax credit.
Other

Please evaluate the following general program areas and indicate the level of federal funding that you will support if you are elected to Congress.

Keep Spending The Same Health Care
Keep Spending The Same Unemployment
Keep Spending The Same AIDS Research
Keep Spending The Same Environment
Decrease Spending Defense
Keep Spending The Same Education
Increase Spending National Debt Payments
Keep Spending The Same Drugs

If you are elected to Congress, how will you confront the issue of the national debt?

X Reduce governmental defense spending.
X Reduce governmental domestic spending.
Raise personal income taxes for all citizens.
Raise personal income taxes for citizens with incomes over $100,000.
Raise corporate taxes.
Do nothing at the present time.
Other

Which of the following measures designed to address the issue of unemployment do you support or oppose?

Don't Know Extending unemployment compensation further.
Strongly Support Federal support of job retraining programs.
Strongly Support Federal grants to states for creating jobs in inner cities.
Strongly Support Mandating workfare for welfare recipients.
Strongly Support Minimizing governmental intervention and letting the market take a more natural course.
Support Federal investment in America's infrastructure.
Other

Which of the following policies, if any, should be pursued by the federal government in the area of the United States/Japenese trade?

Restricting the overall volume of goods entering the United States from Japan.
Imposing tariffs on goods entering the United States from Japan.
Requiring Japan to eliminate its trade surplus with the United States over a period of five years.
X Requiring reciprocal trade agreements between the United States and Japan based on equal dollar values.
Imposing no restrictions on trade between the United States and Japan.
Other

Which of the following defense proposals do you support or oppose?

Support Reduction of the number of American military troops.
Support Continued funding of the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI).

Do you consider the fact that many Americans do not have health insurance to be a problem, and if so, please note which of the following proposals you favor?

Elimination of private insurance in favor of a program administered and paid for by the federal government and run by the states, similar to the health care system in Canada.
X Offering tax incentives to all small employers in return for guaranteed health insurance coverage of all employees and their families.
Implementation of a "play or pay" program where employers must enroll their employees and families in a basic health plan or contribute to a public fund that will provide health care for everyone without coverage.
Creation of a fund designed to provide health insurance to the unemployed and supported by additional tax levies on large employers.
X A system of tax credits and vouchers to provide health insurance for the working poor and people of moderate income.
No reform necessary at this time.
Other

If elected to Congress, which of the following proposals designed to change our nations' public education system will you support?

Increased federal funding.
X Increased state and local funding.
X Improved teacher recruitment and training.
X National curricula and standards.
X Smaller classes.
X Increased national testing.
X A "choice" or "vouchers" program.
No major changes are necessary at this time.
Other

If elected to Congress, how will you confront the War on Drugs?"

X Provide federal funds to educate people about the dangers of drugs.
X Provide federal funds to help drug addicts overcome their addictions.
X Work with foreign governments to stop the export of drugs to this country.
X Impose mandatory federal jail sentences for drug dealers.
X Impose mandatory federal jail sentences for drug users.
Legalize the possession and use of drugs.
Other

What is your opinion on the following environmental proposals?

Strongly Support Opening the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil exploration.
Strongly Support Amending the Clean Water Act's section on wetlands to provide landowners with greater rights.
Don't Know Reauthorization of The Endangered Species Act in its current form.

Please indicate which of the following positions you support or oppose.

Strongly Support Parental or spousal notification prior to permitting an abortion.
Oppose Abortion should be illegal in all circumstances.
Oppose Federally funded abortions should be permitted.
Strongly Oppose Women should be able to get abortions if they want no matter what the reason.
Strongly Support Abortion should be legal only in limited circumstances, for example, when the life of the mother is endangered or in the case of rape or incest.

Which of the following anti-crime measures do you support or oppose?

Support Expansion of the number of federal crimes punishable by death.
Don't Know A mandatory waiting period before the purchase of a handgun.
Support Increased federal spending for state and local police programs.
Don't Know A ban on the sale and possession of assault-style semiautomatic weapons.
Support A limitation on habeas corpus appeals for death row inmates.
Other

['Whare are your two top priorities if elected to the Congress?']

Reducing the Federal budget deficit. The deficit will crowd out future dollars necessary for investment & will pass our excesses of today onto our future generatons. The best way to get control of this deficit is to pass a Constitutional amendment that mandates a balanced budget will be submitted by the president and then passed by the Congress. This amendment should include language making it difficult for the Congress to raise tax revenues to accomplish this, and it should also include language that says a certain percentage of all tax receipts...
Create an ever-growing job base in America. I believe that a gov't should get off of the private sector's back so that businesses can create jobs. Necessary tools for this is a regulatory moratorium, free trade & capital gains tax relief. During the 1980's, more than 20 million jobs were created because gov't took a 'laissez-faire' approach to the private sector. If we can recapture that approach, enacting only the most useful regulations, I believe business can proceed to repeat that performance. Regarding free trade, America is the morld's largest.....

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