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Jeff Sessions III'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.
Resigned

Jeff Sessions III has failed to provide voters with positions on key issues covered by the 2020 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 2020.

  • "He has opposed partial birth abortion and public funding for abortions." (votesmart.org)
  • Rated 100% by National Right to Life Committee. (justfacts.votesmart.org)
  • "Sessions has been a consistent supporter of pro-life policies. He is an original co-sponsor of the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003 and believes that sanctity of life begins at conception." (votesmart.org)
  • Rated 93% by National Tax Limitation Committee. (justfacts.votesmart.org)
  • "The American taxpayer already pays an enormous amount from each paycheck in taxes to the federal government. Sessions believes that your money is better spent at home by the people who earn it than by Washington bureaucrats. He believes that lower taxes are essential to spurring economic growth and keeping government small and efficient." (votesmart.org)
  • "I think Citizens United was a very important affirmation of a fundamental American liberty--enshrined in the First Amendment--that "Congress shall make no law" infringing the right to freedom of speech." (votesmart.org)
  • Rated 0% by Common Cause. (justfacts.votesmart.org)
  • "I supported Congress's work on the FAST Act, voting in favor of a long-term transportation bill when it was before the Committee on the Environment and Public Works, on which I serve, and during full consideration of the bill on the Senate floor. While this is not a perfect bill, it is an important piece of legislation that provides the certainty and consistency the American people need for long-term transportation projects. National and local leaders in communities across the nation can now make better plans for their infrastructure needs such as interstate roadways and bridges. The FAST Act will provide enhanced funding options for nationally significant projects as well as local projects. Additionally, the FAST Act contains environmental streamlining provisions, which will help Alabama and other states save time and money during the project review, permitting, and approval processes." (votesmart.org)
  • Voted in favor of HR 22 - Fixing America's Surface Transportation (FAST) Act. (votesmart.org)
  • Rated 93% by National Tax Limitation Committee. (justfacts.votesmart.org)
  • "I just had occasion to meet with the Finance Minister from Canada, and he told me they are bringing their corporate tax rate down to 15 percent or below. We are at 35 percent. We have the second highest corporate tax rate in the world. Wouldn't it be nice if we can tax more and get some more money? But as the Senator knows from his experience, if we have too high of tax rates, it drives investment out of America, drives jobs out of America, and companies are liable to want to move to Canada where they pay less taxes, creating jobs for them and not us." (votesmart.org)
  • "A recent study by Bjørn Lomborg's Copenhagen Consensus Center demonstrates that the higher prices and job losses resulting from green energy policies significantly outweigh any job creation. The costs of renewable energy are higher than standard forms of energy, so when they are mandated it means more economic inefficiency, higher manufacturing costs, and less disposable income for Americans. In summary, Dr. Chu, the president's plan worsens a desperate fiscal circumstance and fails to invest--by any honest measure--in our nation's energy future. America has vast, proven energy reserves and yet the president continues to lock those away in the pursuit of a failed green jobs stimulus that has produced neither the promised energy nor the promised jobs. Instead, the president's plan will produce increased spending, increased taxes, an increased reliance on foreign oil--and increased debt." (votesmart.org)
  • Rated 97% by American Energy Alliance. (justfacts.votesmart.org)
  • Signed a letter stating: "Despite concerns and after months of negotiation, Congress approved the extension of more than $600 billion in expiring tax provisions, including renewable energy provisions such as the solar Investment Tax Credit (ITC) and the wind Production Tax Credit (PTC). In December, a deliberate decision was made to omit certain credits like those for fuel cells, small wind turbines, and combined heat and power. This latest effort to hastily extend market-distorting tax policies is imprudent. Congress not only lacks critical information necessary to determine whether these credits are effective, but the information it does have suggests that some programs lack proper oversight. For example, in its May 2015 report examining federal support for the electricity generation projects, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that because the Internal Revenue Service does not collect project-level data for the ITC and PTC, "Congress cannot evaluate their effectiveness as it considers whether to reauthorize or extend them." What's more, in November, the Treasury Department revealed that as FY2015 claimants of the closely related Section 1603 cash grants, which can be received in lieu of the tax credits, have overstated the cost basis of their property or otherwise sought ineligible costs to the tune of $1.3 billion. It is past time to let these technologies stand on their own." (votesmart.org)
  • Rated 6% by League of Conservation Voters. (justfacts.votesmart.org)
  • Signed a letter stating: "We write to express our concerns with your proposed rule for existing power plants emissions of greenhouse gases. Our primary concern is that the rule as proposed will result in significant electricity rate increases and additional energy costs for consumers. These costs will, as always, fall most heavily on the elderly, the poor, and those on fixed incomes. In addition, these costs will damage families, businesses, and local institutions such as hospitals and schools. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce recently unveiled a study indicating that a plan of this type would increase America's electricity bills, decrease a family's disposable income, and result in job losses." (votesmart.org)
  • Voted in favor of S J Res 23 - A Joint Resolution Providing for Congressional Disapproval Under Chapter 8 of Title 5, United States Code, of a Rule Submitted by the Environmental Protection Agency Relating to "Standards of Performance for Greenhouse Gas Emissions from New, Modified, and Reconstructed Stationary Sources: Electric Utility Generating Units". (votesmart.org)
  • "Jeff is a strong proponent of the constitutional right to keep and bear arms. He supports legislation that protects the rights of law-abiding citizens to own firearms. In fact, as part of the Supreme Court case on the 2nd Amendment, Senator Sessions signed a Friend of the Court brief urging the Court to strike down a Washington, DC ban on handguns. Senator Sessions respects the traditions that many Alabamians hold, and will continue to protect their rights in the Senate." (votesmart.org)
  • Rated 0% by Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence. (justfacts.votesmart.org)
  • "The proven method for saving the lives of innocent Americans is not disarming them. The proven method for saving the lives of innocent Americans is to arrest, prosecute, convict and jail criminal offenders, especially armed career criminals illegally using guns. This is the way to reduce gun violence." (votesmart.org)
  • "Mr. President, I support the reconciliation bill that is before us. It will do the job. It will end the Affordable Care Act that the American people rightly have opposed, and it will put us in a position to repeal this monstrosity of a 1,700-page bill that was jammed through Congress in the last hours before Christmas Eve in 2009." (votesmart.org)
  • Rated 20% by American Public Health Association. (justfacts.votesmart.org)
  • Rated 96% by NumbersUSA. (justfacts.votesmart.org)
  • "Sessions was a leading opponent to the flawed comprehensive immigration bill that was rejected by the America people last year. It failed because it lacked real enforcement, compromised our security, provided a pathway to citizenship for millions of illegal immigrants, and did not serve the national interest. The Senate bill would have granted amnesty to the entire illegal alien population, only sought to reduce illegality at the border by 13 percent and would cost the taxpayer $30 billion in just 10 years. Senator Sessions believes that Congress can and must do better." (votesmart.org)
  • Rated 87% by Center for Security Policy. (justfacts.votesmart.org)
  • Signed a letter stating: "As you are well aware, some hostile countries possess biological, chemical, and radiological weapons that have the potential to kill scores of Americans or allied citizens. Terrorist organizations actively seek the expertise to build their own weapons and steal material from countries that possess it. It would be exceedingly unwise to forgo the option of a nuclear strike against such enemies to end a conflict on terms favorable to the United States and our allies." (votesmart.org)
  • Signed a letter stating: "As you know, Congress has a long history of bipartisan cooperation on Iran policy. The Senate enjoys a broad consensus for continuing to increase the pressure on Iran, as evidenced by the bipartisan support for the Nuclear Weapon Free Iran Act of 2013 (S. 1881). We will continue to seek to impose additional pressure on Iran in the months ahead unless Tehran abandons its nuclear ambitions and pursues a genuinely constructive path in its relations with the world." (votesmart.org)
  • Rated 20% by Public Citizen. (justfacts.votesmart.org)
  • "The President is expected to sign the Trans-Pacific Partnership on February 4. It is a historic event. It cannot become law of the United States of America. It is detrimental to this economy." (votesmart.org)
  • "This new trade deal is so much better than NAFTA. Our President alone pushed this plan through, got it done, and this a great victory for America." (www.facebook.com)

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