Michael Cavlan's Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)
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Michael Cavlan has demonstrated Political Courage by telling citizens where he stands on the issues he may face if elected.
Minnesota Congressional Election 2012 Political Courage Test
| Pro-choice | Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation? | ||
| I was raised Catholic and I am personally pro-life and have been in that position and that was my own personal choice. The government should not be involved in this issue. It should be between the woman, the potential father, the Doctor and their Creator. No one else has the right to interject their own personal beliefs into this very personal decision. Yes- I do hold that the potential father should have a say in this decision. | |||
| No | Do you support United States' combat operations in Afghanistan? | ||
| Yes | Do you support a timetable for withdrawal from Afghanistan? | ||
| This is a political courage test. I hod that the issue is not does a candidate have courage or not. History has shown us that selected officials do not. The war issue makes this crystal clear. I put forward the position that it is the voters- especially those who claim to support peace and justice need to stop voting for and supporting politicians who talk peace with their lips but support war with their actions. In other words, if any politician says they oppose wars but then vote for the war funding- they in fact support war. | |||
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? | ||
| Yes | Is balancing the budget a legislative priority? | ||
| Yes | Do you support the regulation of indirect campaign contributions from corporations and unions? | ||
| This issue of the corporate corruption of our democracy is my main issue. From it springs every other issue we face. I will fight to have Citizens United overturned. However- again it is up to the voters to really decide this issue. I put forward the position that the only real effective way to get big corporate money out of politics lies with us. By stop supporting it and stop voting for it. This must be done by being honest on the complete bi-partisan nature of this corruption. | |||
| No | Do you support capital punishment for certain crimes? | ||
| Capital Punishment is immoral and wrong. The state should never be able to have this power. | |||
| 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? | ||
| We need to look at how we got out of the last depression. By promoting public works. | |||
| No | Do you support requiring states to implement education reforms in order to be eligible for competitive federal grants? | ||
| The No Child Left Behind is a fraud and has only aided in the further corporatization of the schools and aided the military in recruitment. It was introduced by the Democratic Party leadership | |||
| No | Do you support reducing restrictions on offshore energy production? | ||
| President Obama reduced regulation on off shore oil drilling and shortly after we had the BP oil disaster. If we have not learned from that, we never will. Please refer to the bi-partisan corporate corruption being at the root of all of our problems. | |||
| Yes | Do you believe that human activity is contributing to climate change? | ||
| Yes | Do you support the federal regulation of greenhouse gas emissions? | ||
| If we continue on our current path, including supporting and voting for politicians who are corrupted by corporate money then the lives of our children and grandchildren will be at risk. It is that real and that serious. Again- I remind you. The entire political process is corrupt and it is bi-partisan. | |||
| No | Do you support restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns? | ||
| I am a hunter. Having said this, the second amendment of the Constitution is not there to protect hunters right. It is there to protect the First Amendment. Which is under very serious attack. Make of that what you will. | |||
| No | Do you support repealing the 2010 Affordable Care Act? | ||
| No | Should individuals be required to purchase health insurance, as mandated in the 2010 Affordable Care Act? | ||
| The so called Obamacare Bill is so wrong in so many ways. It is a give a way to the insurance companies. Again- refer to my statement about the corporate corruption of our democracy and most selected officials. As a Registered Nurse- I will fight for the only real Affordable Health Care Act. Universal Single Payer | |||
| 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? | ||
| The issue of undocumented immigration will never be seriously addressed until the root cause of it is faced up to. I will fight for the repeal of NAFTA, CAFTA, GATT and every other immoral trade policy. This may sound repetitive but- please refer to my statement about the corporate corruption of selected officials being the root cause of most, if not all of our problems today. | |||
| Yes | Do you support same-sex marriage? | ||
| Absolutely. Now for the real political courage test. Does the gay community support the rights of others? For example- will the gay community support the rights of immigrants and others being attacked? Will they come out in open opposition to the rotten Real ID Act? For that matter- where is the gay communities outrage about the treatment of Bradley Manning? Who is gay it should be noted. For solidarity to work we have to understand- it must be a two way street. All progressive and social justice activists need to learn this lesson. | |||
| No | 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 so called War On Terror is and has been a fraud perpetuated on the American people from the start. Sadly, that fraud was pushed by a bi-partisan Congress and by the "mainstream" corporate media. Repetition makes a point. Please refer to my statement about the corporate corruption of the selected officials being at the root of all of our problems. | |||
| Yes | Do you support allowing individuals to divert a portion of their Social Security taxes into personal retirement accounts? | ||
| If people want to make that choice, they should be able to. No matter how silly that choice may be. | |||
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 | ||
| Greatly Increase | b) Arts | ||
| Greatly Decrease | c) Defense | ||
| Greatly Increase | d) Education | ||
| Greatly Increase | e) Environment | ||
| Greatly Decrease | f) Homeland Security | ||
| Greatly Decrease | g) International aid | ||
| Maintain Status | h) Medical Research | ||
| Slightly Increase | i) Scientific Research | ||
| Slightly Increase | j) Space exploration | ||
| Maintain Status | k) United Nations | ||
| Greatly Increase | l) Welfare | ||
| Greatly Increase | m) Other or expanded categories | ||
| Greatly Increase | a) Capital gains taxes | ||
| Greatly Increase | b) Corporate taxes | ||
| Slightly Increase | c) Excise taxes (alcohol) | ||
| Slightly Increase | d) Excise taxes (cigarettes) | ||
| Slightly Increase | e) Excise taxes (transportation fuel) | ||
| Eliminate | f) Income taxes (low-income families) | ||
| Maintain Status | g) Income taxes (middle-income families) | ||
| Greatly Increase | h) Income taxes (high-income families) | ||
| Maintain Status | i) Inheritance taxes | ||
| Maintain Status | j) Payroll taxes | ||
| Maintain Status | k) Other or expanded categories | ||
| Investigations into current or past wrong doings by selected officials. | |||
| Open to suggestions on revenue flows. | |||
| Campaign Finance Reform- For Real- Not just as words to pander to unhappy citizens. I hold this to be the biggest threat to our democracy. Elimination of the Diebold- Triad- ES&S Voting machines from elections. The integrity of the ballot box has been damaged enough. Single Payer Heath Care- Have a citizens panel on ways to implement it. Unlike the Baucus Hearings, I will throw out the corporate lobbyists, not the Doctors and Nurses. Remember- Courage begins with you. Not your current selected officials. |
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