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Dave Westlake IV's Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)

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Wisconsin 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?
No c) Should abortion be legal when the pregnancy resulted from incest or rape?
No 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?
f) Other or expanded principles

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.

Slightly Decrease a) Agriculture
Eliminate b) Arts
Maintain Status c) Defense
Maintain Status 1) Intelligence operations
Slightly Decrease 2) Military hardware
Maintain Status 3) National missile defense
Slightly Increase 4) Salary and benefits for active duty personnel
Maintain Status 5) Programs to improve troop retention rates
Maintain Status 6) Research and development of new weapons
Eliminate d) Education
Slightly Decrease e) Environment
Maintain Status f) Homeland security
Greatly Decrease g) International aid
Maintain Status h) Medical research
Slightly Decrease i) Scientific research
Maintain Status j) Space exploration
Eliminate k) United Nations
Greatly Decrease l) Welfare
Greatly Decrease a) Alcohol taxes
Eliminate b) Capital gains taxes
Greatly Decrease c) Cigarette taxes
Greatly Decrease d) Corporate taxes
Slightly Decrease e) Gasoline taxes
Eliminate f) Income taxes (low-income families)
Eliminate g) Income taxes (middle-income families)
Eliminate h) Income taxes (high-income families)
Yes 3) Do you support the elimination of the federal estate tax?
Yes 4) Do you support requiring the federal budget to be balanced each year?
No 5) Do you support using government funds in an effort to stimulate and improve the economy?
6) Other or expanded principles
I would eliminate the Department of Education because I believe that it is a states issue, not a Federal issue.
Eliminate all income taxes and implement a consumption based tax system.
Yes a) Do you support privatizing elements of Social Security?
Yes b) Do you support reducing government regulations on the private sector?
No 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?
I support federal funding for job-training in lieu of welfare programs.
Yes 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?
Yes e) Do you support giving the President the power of the line item veto for items concerning appropriations?
Yes f) Do you support limiting the President's ability to define how legislation is applied through the use of signing statements?
Corporations and unions should not be able to use money from employees and members to support a candidate. Candidates for federal office should be encourage to meet voluntary spending limits but not required.
No 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?
Yes e) Do you support mandatory prison sentences for selling illegal drugs?
f) Other or expanded principles
No a) Do you support federal education standards and testing requirements for K-12 students?
No 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?
No e) Do you support the federal government providing college students with financial aid?
I support eliminating the Department of Education. Education should be dealt with on a state, not federal level.
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?
No d) Do you support strengthening fuel efficiency standards on all gasoline and diesel-powered engines, including cars, trucks, and sport utility vehicles?
Yes e) Do you support domestic oil exploration in federally-protected areas?
No f) Do you support federal funding for the development of alternative energy?
Yes g) Do you support the development of nuclear reactors?
h) Other or expanded principles
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?
e) Other or expanded principles
No 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?
Yes 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?
f) Other or expanded principles
No a) Do you support a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants?
No 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?
e) Other or expanded principles
Yes a) Do you support United States military action in Afghanistan?
Yes b) Do you support increasing military assistance for Afghanistan?
Yes c) Do you support increasing economic development assistance for Afghanistan?
Yes 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?
Yes i) Do you support the United States' involvement in free trade agreements?
h) I support withdrawal from Iraq and Afghanistan after either a victory (we need to decide we are going to win and take the necessary actions to achieve that goal) or if we decide we aren't going pursue victory, we need to get the troops out of there as soon as possible.
Yes a) Should marriage only be between one man and one woman?
Yes b) Do you support allowing openly-gay men and women to serve in the United States military?
No c) Do you support federal funding for embryonic stem cell research?
Yes d) Should the federal government end affirmative action programs?
e) Other or expanded principles
My top priorities would be strengthening our economy and solving our unemployment problem by reducing government spending and changing our tax system to a consumption-based. I would also focus on ending illegal immigration by enforcing the current laws we have in place and securing the border. These would not require additional funding, but reallocation of current funds.

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