Robert Saunders III's Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)
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Georgia Congressional Election 2010 Political Courage Test
| Pro-life | a) Do you consider yourself pro-choice or pro-life? | ||
| No | 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) Should federal subsidies be prohibited from being used for abortion procedures? | ||
| Abortion is currently legal, however I do not approve of abortion. In my opinion it should not be legal; the rights of the unborn child are being violated. | |||
1) SpendingIndicate what federal funding levels (#1-6) you support for the following general categories. Select one number per category- you can use a number more than once.2) 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.
| Greatly Increase | a) Agriculture | ||
| Slightly Increase | b) Arts | ||
| Slightly Increase | c) Defense | ||
| Maintain Status | 1) Intelligence operations | ||
| Maintain Status | 2) Military hardware | ||
| Maintain Status | 3) National missile defense | ||
| Greatly Increase | 4) Salary and benefits for active duty personnel | ||
| Slightly Increase | 5) Programs to improve troop retention rates | ||
| Slightly Increase | 6) Research and development of new weapons | ||
| Greatly Increase | d) Education | ||
| Greatly Increase | e) Environment | ||
| Eliminate | f) Homeland security | ||
| Greatly Decrease | g) International aid | ||
| Greatly Increase | h) Medical research | ||
| Greatly Increase | i) Scientific research | ||
| Maintain Status | j) Space exploration | ||
| Maintain Status | k) United Nations | ||
| Greatly Decrease | l) Welfare | ||
| Greatly Increase | m) Other or expanded categories | ||
| Maintain Status | a) Alcohol taxes | ||
| Greatly Decrease | b) Capital gains taxes | ||
| Maintain Status | c) Cigarette taxes | ||
| Maintain Status | d) Corporate taxes | ||
| Maintain Status | e) Gasoline taxes | ||
| Greatly Decrease | f) Income taxes (low-income families) | ||
| Greatly Decrease | g) Income taxes (middle-income families) | ||
| Maintain Status | h) Income taxes (high-income families) | ||
| i) Other or expanded categories | |||
| Yes | 3) Do you support the elimination of the federal estate tax? | ||
| No | 4) Do you support requiring the federal budget to be balanced each year? | ||
| Yes | 5) Do you support using government funds in an effort to stimulate and improve the economy? | ||
| 6) Other or expanded principles | |||
| Energy independence. Renewable Energy Development should be invested in so we can greatly reduce the dependence on foreign oil which potentially funds terrorism. | |||
| No | a) Do you support privatizing elements of Social Security? | ||
| No | b) Do you support reducing government regulations on the private sector? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support increasing the federal minimum wage? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support the ability of workers to unionize? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support federal funding for job-training programs that retrain displaced workers? | ||
| We need to create more jobs for our citizens. We need to bring back textile mills to Georgia. We need to invest in renewable energy development which will create more jobs and encourage competition. | |||
| No | a) Do you support increasing the amount individuals are permitted to contribute to federal campaigns? | ||
| Yes | b) Should Congress regulate indirect campaign contributions from corporations and unions? | ||
| No | c) Do you support removing all contribution limits on federal campaigns? | ||
| Yes | d) Should candidates for federal office be encouraged to meet voluntary spending limits? | ||
| No | e) Do you support giving the President the power of the line item veto for items concerning appropriations? | ||
| No | f) Do you support limiting the President's ability to define how legislation is applied through the use of signing statements? | ||
| g) Other or expanded principles | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support capital punishment for certain crimes? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support programs that provide prison inmates with vocational and job-related training and job-placement assistance when released? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support programs that provide prison inmates with substance abuse treatment? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support reduced prison sentences for non-violent offenders? | ||
| No | e) Do you support mandatory prison sentences for selling illegal drugs? | ||
| Prison sentences should be decided by a judge and jury not by Federal law. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support federal education standards and testing requirements for K-12 students? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support federal funding for universal pre-K programs? | ||
| No | c) Do you support federal funding for charter schools? | ||
| No | d) Do you support federal funding for K-12 school vouchers? | ||
| e) Do you support the federal government providing college students with financial aid? | |||
| Public school education should be improved and tied to jobs upon graduation. Students should receive meaningful job training that leads to a well paying job upon graduation. The economy will rebound when more people are making good money and have health care that is affordable. | |||
| No | a) Do you support enacting environmental regulations aimed at reducing the effects of climate change? | ||
| No | b) Do you support international emissions targets aimed at reducing the effects of climate change? | ||
| No | c) Do you support allowing energy producers to trade carbon credits under a "cap and trade" system? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support strengthening fuel efficiency standards on all gasoline and diesel-powered engines, including cars, trucks, and sport utility vehicles? | ||
| No | e) Do you support domestic oil exploration in federally-protected areas? | ||
| Yes | f) Do you support federal funding for the development of alternative energy? | ||
| No | g) Do you support the development of nuclear reactors? | ||
| We need to develop green energy and eliminate dangerous mining operations. Blowing the tops off of mountains to extract coal is unconscionable and damaging to water supplies. Nuclear energy has too much potential for catastrophic accidents or sabotage; furthermore, nuclear waste is not something we should continue to create. We need to develop safe clean renewable energy. Solar power is a resource that should be harnessed to the full extent possible. | |||
| No | a) Do you support restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you believe that the Second Amendment guarantees the right of individual citizens to own guns? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support allowing individuals to carry concealed guns? | ||
| No | d) Do you support a ban on assault rifles? | ||
| The right to bear arms is a fundamental right. Individuals that use a firearm in a violent manner to rob or harm life or destroy property should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support a publicly-administered health insurance option? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support expanding access to health care through commercial health insurance reform? | ||
| Yes | c) Should the federal government expand eligibility for tax-free medical savings accounts? | ||
| No | d) Do you support monetary limits on damages that can be collected in malpractice lawsuits? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support relaxing regulations on the importation of prescription drugs? | ||
| Insurance companies and prescription drug companies are driving up costs. Some Americans have better insurance plans than others; why is this acceptable? Doctors should be well paid without a doubt. Insurance companies should not be allowed to reap astronomical profits by denying health-care to insured. | |||
| No | a) Do you support a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support decreasing the number of legal immigrants allowed into the country? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support establishing English as the official national language? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support the enforcement of federal immigration laws by state and local police? | ||
| Employers that encourage illegal immigration or hire illegal immigrants should be prosecuted or fined according to the laws on the books. If the federal government is unable or unwilling to enforce federal law this may endanger citizens in certain states and cities; therefore, the citizens should be protected by the law enforcement personnel in their locale. | |||
| No | a) Do you support United States military action in Afghanistan? | ||
| No | b) Do you support increasing military assistance for Afghanistan? | ||
| No | c) Do you support increasing economic development assistance for Afghanistan? | ||
| No | d) Should the United States continue to strike suspected terrorist targets in Pakistan? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support granting aid to countries when it is in the security interests of the United States? | ||
| No | f) Should the United States support the creation of a Palestinian state? | ||
| Yes | g) Do you support increasing sanctions on Iran if it continues to defy United Nations mandates? | ||
| Yes | h) Do you support the withdrawal of United States troops from Iraq? | ||
| No | i) Do you support the United States' involvement in free trade agreements? | ||
| Free trade is harming America. Our economy is in disarray due to unemployment and underemployment that can be attributed to free trade practices. We should look at all of our foreign aid and determine if it is necessary. We have problems in America; we must take care of Americans first. | |||
| Bring jobs to Georgia. Improve education. Increase energy independence. I will tie jobs and education to energy independence by creating incentives for companies to team with educational institutions to create an educated workforce that will be able to fill jobs created by the companies. I will use tax dollars to invest in the future of America that is energy independence by encouraging growth of companies focusing on clean renewable energy. We have tremendous biomass potential in the 3rd district of Georgia. This biomass potential should be maximized. Tax revenue created by these high paying jobs will pay for initial investment. |
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