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Cliff Hutchison's Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)

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

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Cliff Hutchison has demonstrated Political Courage by telling citizens where he stands on the issues he may face if elected.

What is the Political Courage Test?

Oregon State Legislative Election 2012 Political Courage Test

Pro-life a) Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation?
Yes b) Should abortions be illegal after the first trimester of pregnancy?
No 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 the prohibition of public funds for abortion procedures?
Yes h) Do you support the prohibition of public funds for organizations that perform abortions?
I support the prohibition of public tax money for any tax-exempt organization. The scientific definition of "human life" includes a human in utero, the legal definition of a "person" has been used throughout history to exclude undesirable people, so therefore we must hold responsible those who end human lives, hide the evidence and lie to us.

1) State Spending:Using the key, 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.2) State Taxes:Using the key,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.3) Budget Stabilization:Indicate which proposals you support (if any) for balancing Oregon's budget.

Maintain Status a) Education (higher)
Maintain Status b) Education (K-12)
Maintain Status c) Environment
Maintain Status d) Health care
Greatly Decrease e) Law enforcement/corrections
Slightly Decrease f) Transportation/infrastructure
Maintain Status g) Welfare
Eliminate h) Other or expanded categories:
Maintain Status a) Alcohol taxes
Maintain Status b) Cigarette taxes
Maintain Status c) Corporate taxes
Maintain Status d) Gas/Oil taxes
Maintain Status e) Property taxes
Slightly Decrease f) Income taxes (low-income families)
Slightly Decrease g) Income taxes (mid-income families)
Slightly Decrease h) Income taxes (high-income families)
Eliminate i) Other or expanded categories:
Yes a) Tapping into Oregon's "rainy day" fund
b) Increasing tuition rates at public universities
c) Reducing or eliminating public worker collective bargaining
Yes d) Reducing state employee salaries AND/OR pensions
e) Instituting mandatory furloughs AND/OR layoffs for state employees
f) Reducing benefits for Medicaid recipients
Tax credit expenditures for any corporation; Any military equipment for state & local police; Any no-bid government contracts; Projects based entirely on CO2 reduction;
Estate taxes (the death tax); Other transfer taxes Any double taxation on the same transaction;
Lower incarceration costs by reducing sentencing on victimless crimes such as public decency, gambling, and consensual adult prostitution, and eliminating laws against possession of limited amounts of cannabis by adults over age 21.

a) Do you support limits on the following types of contributions for state candidates?

No 1) Individual
No 2) Political Action Committee
3) Corporate
No 4) Political Party
No b) Should candidates for state office be encouraged to meet voluntary spending limits?
No c) Do you support requiring full and timely disclosure of campaign finance information?
Yes d) Do you support the use of an independent AND/OR bipartisan commission for redistricting?
Yes e) Do you support requiring a government-issued photo identification in order to vote at the polls?
Like many types of regulation, campaign finance limits are well-intended, but usually result in making campaigns more difficult for less experienced political challengers who face a steep learning curve with everything, while experienced incumbent politicians only need to learn a few changes each time & can easily find ways around the limits.
No a) Do you support capital punishment for certain crimes?
Yes b) Do you support alternatives to incarceration for certain non-violent offenders, such as mandatory counseling or substance abuse treatment?
Yes c) Do you support decriminalizing the possession of small amounts of marijuana?
No d) Should a minor accused of a violent crime be prosecuted as an adult?
No e) Should a minor who sends sexually-explicit or nude photos by cell phone face criminal charges?
No f) Do you support the enforcement of federal immigration laws by state and local police?
No g) Should illegal immigrants be able to obtain a special Oregon driver's license?
Minor's are not adults, but violent crime requires greater consequences, possibly including parents or guardians being held partially responsible if there was negligence. (Restrictions against responsible parenting also need to be modified.) The Constitution's "uniform rule of naturalization" clause delegates immigration under federal control.
Yes a) Do you support reducing government regulations on the private sector?
No b) Do you support increased state funding for job-training programs that re-train displaced workers?
No c) Do you support expanding access to unemployment benefits?
No d) Do you support providing financial incentives to the private sector for the purpose of job creation?
No e) Do you support increased spending on infrastructure projects for the purpose of job creation?
No f) Do you support providing direct financial assistance to homeowners facing foreclosure?
No g) Do you support eliminating corporate kicker checks?
Stop the tax credits and loan programs that still encourage people into unaffordable homes so our economy can recover. Stop throwing money away & let them rent like me & many of us do. Why should we be forced to pay their mortgage? Unused tax money should return to corporations and individuals who it was taken from.
No a) Do you support the national Common Core State Standards initiative?
Yes b) Do you support a merit pay system for teachers?
No c) Is the tenure process for public school teachers producing effective teachers?
No d) Should parents be allowed to use vouchers to send their children to any school?
No e) Do you support state funding for charter schools?
Yes f) Do you support the state government providing college students with financial aid?
Yes g) Should illegal immigrants who graduate from Oregon high schools be eligible for in-state tuition at public universities?
Expand options for parents, administrators & teachers, but use tax credits to be more fair & responsible because only parents who pay that much in taxes should choose. Need-based Oregon college grants are the only kind of financial aid that I could support, since I earned my own college science degree with help from state grants like that.
No a) Do you support state funding for the development of alternative energy?
No b) Do you support state funding for the development of traditional domestic energy sources (e.g. coal, natural gas, oil)?
No c) Do you support state funding for improvements to Oregon's energy infrastructure?
No d) Do you support state funding for open space preservation?
No e) Do you support enacting environmental regulations aimed at reducing the effects of climate change?
End all energy welfare and tax credits to restore real market incentives. No new funding of infrastructure or open space projects until existing bonds are 50% paid. Until climatologists from both sides publicly debate CO2's contribution to climate change, I can't support any regulations or public spending based on the CO2 theory.
Yes a) Do you support restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns?
No b) Should background checks be required on gun sales between private citizens at gun shows?
Yes c) Should citizens be allowed to carry concealed guns?
No d) Should a license be required for gun possession?
Innocent people must be allowed the sufficient means to personally defend themselves or the right to self-defense is meaningless. Gun free zones (like schools, malls, & movie theaters) leave only decent people of conscience disarmed and vulnerable. I support restrictions only for convicted felons and the most mentally disabled people.
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 efforts to channel Medicaid and other publicly funded health programs into "Coordinated Care Organizations"?
Yes d) Do you support interstate health insurance compacts?
No e) Do you support requiring individuals to purchase health care insurance?
Yes f) Do you support monetary limits on damages that can be collected in malpractice lawsuits?
Yes g) Do you support allowing doctors to prescribe marijuana to their patients for medicinal purposes?
CCOs were created in a rush without adding tort reform, insurance across state lines and medical savings accounts. Artificial restrictions and outright prohibitions on medicine has cut supply and increased costs, & tax incentives for employee-based insurance has distorted the market for decades. We must restore a real market in medicine.
a) Should marriage only be between one man and one woman?
b) Should same-sex couples be allowed to form civil unions?
No c) Do you support the inclusion of sexual orientation in Oregon's anti-discrimination laws?
No d) Do you support the inclusion of gender identity in Oregon's anti-discrimination laws?
Marriage is a contractual agreement between adults and should be handled as such by the courts, rather than though manipulations by the Legislature. End state issuance of marriage licenses. Even well-intended laws that reinforce group identity work against true equality, which is the liberty of every individual person.
Bring the Oregon National Guard home from unconstitutional police actions by passing a bill like HB 2556, introduced in 2009 but has yet to get a floor vote or even a hearing in the Senate. Simplify the taxcode by removing as many corporate tax credits as possible, while lowering marginal rates to compensate, resulting in no net tax increase overall. In case of a budget problem, reduce spending on prisons, corporations, contracts and energy schemes. Pass an Industrial Hemp bill that allows licensed businesses and farms to grow and process hemp for use in food, fuel and fiber products.

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