| Full Name: | Jonathan 'Jon' T.E. Courtney |
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| Gender: | Male |
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| Family: | Married; 3 Children: Andrea, Andrew, Adam; 3 Step Children |
| Birth Date: | 07/16/1966 |
| Home City: | Springvale, ME |
Jonathan 'Jon' T.E. Courtney
Jonathan 'Jon' T.E. Courtney's Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)
Project Vote Smart does not permit the use of its name or programs in any campaign activity, including advertising, debates, and speeches.
Jonathan Courtney refused to tell citizens where he stands on any of the issues addressed in the 2012 Political Courage Test, despite repeated requests from Vote Smart, national media, and prominent political leaders.
What is the Political Courage Test?
Issue Positions
In response to the increasing unwillingness of candidates to answer issue questions, Project Vote Smart has researched Presidential and Congressional candidates' public ecords to determine candidates' likely responses on certain key issues. These issue positions, from the year 2012, are provided below as a courtesy to voters.
| Pro-life |  |
Abortion: Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation? |  |
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| Unknown Position |  |
Afghanistan: Do you support United States' combat operations in Afghanistan? | |
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| Unknown Position | |
Budget: In order to balance the budget, do you support reducing defense spending? | |
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| No | |
Budget: In order to balance the budget, do you support an income tax increase on any tax bracket? | |
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| No | |
Economy: Do you support federal spending as a means of promoting economic growth? | |
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| Unknown Position | |
Economy: Do you support providing tax incentives to businesses for the purpose of job creation? | |
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| Unknown Position | |
Education: Do you support requiring states to implement education reforms in order to be eligible for competitive federal grants? | |
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| Unknown Position | |
Energy: Do you support reducing restrictions on offshore energy production? | |
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Environment: Do you support the federal regulation of greenhouse gas emissions? | |
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| No | |
Guns: Do you support restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns? | |
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| Yes | |
Health Care: Do you support repealing the 2010 Affordable Care Act? | |
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Immigration: Do you support requiring illegal immigrants to return to their country of origin before they are eligible for citizenship? | |
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| No | |
Marriage: Do you support same-sex marriage? | |
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| Unknown Position | |
National Security: Do you support targeting suspected terrorists outside of official theaters of conflict? | |
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| Unknown Position | |
Social Security: Do you support allowing individuals to divert a portion of their Social Security taxes into personal retirement accounts? | |
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Key
Official Position: Candidate had the Political Courage to address this issue directly.
Inferred Position: Candidate refused to address this issue directly, but Project Vote Smart inferred this issue position based on the candidate's public statements, voting record, and evaluations from special interest groups.
Unknown Position: Candidate refused to address this issue.
Project Vote Smart's Research: Click on this icon to reveal more information about this candidate's position.
Other or Expanded Principles & Legislative Priorities are entered exactly as the candidate has submitted it. Project Vote Smart does not edit for misspelled words, punctuation or grammar.
Maine State Legislative Election 2010 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.
Pro-life | a) Do you consider yourself pro-choice or pro-life? |
| b) Should abortion be legal only within the first trimester of pregnancy? |
| Yes | c) Should abortion be legal when the pregnancy resulted from incest or rape? |
| Yes | d) Should abortion be legal when the life of the woman is endangered? |
| Yes | e) Do you support requiring parental notification before an abortion is performed on a minor? |
| Yes | f) Do you support requiring parental consent before an abortion is performed on a minor? |
| Yes | g) Do you support sexual education programs that include information on abstinence, contraceptives, and HIV/STD prevention methods? |
| h) Do you support abstinence-only sexual education programs? |
| i) Other or expanded principles |
1) State Spending | |
Indicate what state funding levels (#1-6) you support for the following general categories. Select one level per category; you may use a number more than once. | |
| Maintain Status | a) Education (higher) |
| Maintain Status | b) Education (K-12) |
| Maintain Status | c) Environment |
| Maintain Status | d) Health care |
| Maintain Status | e) Law enforcement |
| Slightly Increase | f) Transportation and highway infrastructure |
| Slightly Decrease | g) Welfare |
| h) Other or expanded categories | |
We need to make sure that Government lives within its means. We can only maintain status if we have a strong vibrant economy. |
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2) State Taxes | |
Indicate what state tax levels (#1-6) you support for the following general categories. Select one level per category; you may use a number more than once. | |
| Maintain Status | a) Alcohol taxes |
| Maintain Status | b) Cigarette taxes |
| Maintain Status | c) Corporate taxes |
| Maintain Status | d) Gasoline taxes |
| Slightly Decrease | e) Property taxes |
| Maintain Status | f) Sales taxes |
| Eliminate | g) Income taxes (low-income families) |
| Slightly Decrease | h) Income taxes (middle-income families) |
| Slightly Decrease | i) Income taxes (high-income families) |
| j) Other or expanded categories | |
I have put forward Common Sense Solutions to reduce the income tax burden by directing future state revenue growth to reducing the income tax without expanding the sales tax to services. If we do this now, when the economy rebounds we can makeMaine much more competetive. |
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3) Budget Stabilization | |
Indicate which proposals you support (if any) for balancing Maine's budget. | |
| a) Tapping into Maine's "rainy day" fund |
| No | b) Issuing the early release of certain non-violent offenders |
| No | c) Increasing tuition rates at public universities |
| d) Instituting mandatory furloughs and layoffs for state employees |
| e) Reducing benefits for Medicaid recipients |
| Yes | f) Privatizing certain government services |
| g) Other or expanded principles | |
We must change the culture of state government so every department is engaged in job creation and not an impediment to economic growth. We must have ecomomic growth in order to help those who are truly in need. |
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| Yes | a) Do you support limits on the number of terms for Maine governors? |
| Yes | b) Do you support limits on the number of terms for Maine state legislators? |
c) Do you support limits on the following types of contributions to candidates for state government? | |
| Yes | 1) Individual |
| Yes | 2) Political Action Committee |
| Yes | 3) Corporate |
| Yes | 4) Political Party |
| Yes | d) Should candidates for state office be encouraged to meet voluntary spending limits? |
| Yes | e) Do you support requiring full and timely disclosure of campaign finance information? |
| f) Other or expanded principles |
| a) Do you support capital punishment for certain crimes? |
| b) Do you support alternatives to incarceration for certain non-violent offenders, such as mandatory counseling or substance abuse treatment? |
| No | c) Should the possession of small amounts of marijuana be decriminalized? |
| d) Should a minor accused of a violent crime be prosecuted as an adult? |
| Yes | e) Should a minor who sends sexually-explicit or nude photos by cell phone face criminal charges? |
| No | f) Do you support allowing sex offenders to petition for removal from the sex offender registry? |
| Yes | g) Do you support the enforcement of federal immigration laws by state and local police? |
| h) Other or expanded principles |
| Yes | a) Do you support reducing government regulations on the private sector? |
| Yes | b) Do you support increased state funding for job-training programs that re-train displaced workers? |
| c) Do you support expanding access to unemployment benefits? |
| d) Do you support providing financial incentives to the private sector for the purpose of job creation? |
| e) Do you support increased spending on infrastructure projects for the purpose of job creation? |
| f) Do you support providing direct financial assistance to homeowners facing foreclosure? |
| g) Other or expanded principles | |
If state dollars are invested there must be a clear return on investment. Each proposal must be evaluated on its individual merits. |
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| Yes | a) Do you support national education standards? |
| b) Do you support requiring public schools to administer high school exit exams? |
| Yes | c) Do you support using a merit pay system for teachers? |
| Yes | d) Do you support state funding for charter schools? |
| Yes | e) Do you support the state government providing college students with financial aid? |
| No | f) Should illegal immigrants who graduate from Maine high schools be eligible for in-state tuition at public universities? |
| g) Other or expanded principles |
| Yes | a) Do you support state funding for the development of alternative energy? |
| Yes | b) Do you support state funding for the development of traditional domestic energy sources (e.g. coal, natural gas, oil)? |
| Yes | c) Do you support providing financial incentives to farms that produce biofuel crops? |
| Yes | d) Do you support state funding for improvements to Maine's energy infrastructure? |
| Yes | e) Do you support state funding for open space preservation? |
| f) Do you support enacting environmental regulations aimed at reducing the effects of climate change? |
| g) Other or expanded principles | |
We must be sure that if state dollars are invested that we can be sure of a strong return on investment in the near future. |
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| No | a) Do you support restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns? |
| No | b) Do you support requiring background checks on gun sales between private citizens at gun shows? |
| Yes | c) Do you support allowing individuals to carry concealed guns? |
| No | d) Do you support requiring a license for gun possession? |
| e) Other or expanded principles | |
I support the Second Amendment. |
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| No | a) Do you support a universally-accessible, publicly-administered health insurance option? |
| Yes | b) Do you support expanding access to health care through commercial health insurance reform? |
| c) Do you support interstate health insurance compacts? |
| d) Should individuals be required to purchase health care insurance? |
| e) Do you support monetary limits on damages that can be collected in malpractice lawsuits? |
| No | f) Do you support placing health warnings on cellular phones? |
| No | g) Do you support legalizing physician-assisted suicide in Maine? |
| No | h) Do you support allowing doctors to prescribe marijuana to their patients for medicinal purposes? |
| i) Other or expanded principles |
| Yes | a) Should marriage only be between one man and one woman? |
| b) Should Maine allow same-sex couples to form domestic partnerships? |
| c) Do you support state funding for stem cell research? |
| No | d) Do you support state funding for embryonic stem cell research? |
| No | e) Do you support the state's use of affirmative action? |
| No | f) Do you support the inclusion of sexual orientation in Maine's anti-discrimination laws? |
| No | g) Do you support the inclusion of gender identity in Maine's anti-discrimination laws? |
| h) Other or expanded principles |
| Please explain in a total of 100 words or less, your top two or three priorities if elected. If they require additional funding for implementation, please explain how you would obtain this funding. | |
I am looking forward to continuing to offer Common Sense Solutions for our state. I believe if we can reduce our tax burden we will create an environment where we will fulfill our commitment to our Seniors and create opportunity for our Children. These times require a new type of leadership where elected officials roll up our sleeves, work together to create jobs, prioritize spending and reduce the tax burden for the hard working people of Maine. When we do this, we can often times come up with better solutions than either side thought possible. |
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