Nancy Wade's Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)
Key
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Nancy Wade has provided voters with clear stances on key issues by responding to the 2014 Political Courage Test.
Illinois Congressional Election 2014 Political Courage Test
| Pro-choice | Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation? | ||
| As a woman I believe women must be free to make their own decisions about their healthcare, including reproductive health care. Contraception and abortion services should be free under universal healthcare through Medicare for all. | |||
| Yes | In order to balance the budget, do you support reducing defense spending? | ||
| Yes | In order to balance the budget, do you support an income tax increase on any tax bracket? | ||
| We should reduce the military budget by 30% over the next ten years. This should be possible by reducing our dependence on fossil fuels and thus the hold the fossil fuel industry has over our government and it's priorities. Most wars in which the U.S. is involved are conflicts over who will control fossil fuel resources and distribution. I advocate a highly progressive tax structure exempting those making $25,000 or less from federal income tax. The top brackets should be increased to 40%, with the same tax on earnings from investments as on earnings from wages for the top brackets. | |||
| Yes | Do you support the regulation of indirect campaign contributions from corporations and unions? | ||
| Green Party candidates do not take corporate or union contributions. I advocate publicly funded campaigns in which candidates would qualify for matching public money through demonstrating support by individual contributions in a limited range capping at $2,700. The number of individual contributions would count towards qualification, not the amount. | |||
| No | Do you support capital punishment for certain crimes? | ||
| I believe capital punishment is immoral. In addition, it is not possible to ensure that capital punishment is applied justly, fairly, or even accurately. It is more expensive than imprisonment and has no deterrent effect. | |||
| Yes | Do you support federal spending as a means of promoting economic growth? | ||
| Yes | Do you support lowering taxes as a way of promoting growth in the economy? | ||
| Yes | Do you support providing tax incentives to businesses for the purpose of job creation? | ||
| I support federal spending on our infrastructure to upgrade and convert it to green energy and conservation, as well as general upkeep. This would create jobs. I support exempting those who make $25,000 and less from income taxes. I do not support across-the-board reductions in income tax. I support tax incentives for green energy businesses, but not for all businesses. Green energy businesses must be encouraged in order to bring us into the green economy of the future. | |||
| No | Do you support requiring states to implement education reforms in order to be eligible for competitive federal grants? | ||
| The problem with our public schools is poverty. There is an overemphasis on accountability and testing when we should be looking at how we can better support teachers, disadvantaged students and their communities. Finland, for example, is widely admired for the high performance of its schools. The organizing principle for the Finnish school system is equity - providing a high-quality experience for all students. In addition, the status of teachers is honored rather than degraded as we are doing in the U.S. Raising the status of teachers costs relatively little, yet results in significant gains in student learning outcomes. | |||
| No | Do you support building the Keystone XL pipeline? | ||
| No | Do you support reducing restrictions on offshore energy production? | ||
| I support an immediate and decisive turn away from fossil fuels to green sources of energy. We must immediately end the subsidies for the fossil fuel industry and divert those funds to developing and implementing green energy. The future of the planet depends on it. | |||
| Yes | Do you believe that human activity is contributing to climate change? | ||
| Yes | Do you support the federal regulation of greenhouse gas emissions? | ||
| I support a revenue neutral carbon fee in order to significantly decrease and ultimately end dependence on fossil fuels which are creating the greenhouse gas emissions. A revenue neutral fee would not hurt consumers since it would be refunded to them in the form of tax credits. It would provide an incentive to choose other energy sources. | |||
| Yes | Do you support restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns? | ||
| I support closing the gun show background check loophole. I support a ban on assault weapons and ammunition. Like cars, guns are a potentially harmful tool that can kill and injure people. Therefore, as with cars, I believe gun owners should be licensed, including a background check, and have insurance to cover the possibility that they might injure or kill someone with their gun. | |||
| No | Do you support repealing the 2010 Affordable Care Act? | ||
| Many people have benefited from being able to get insurance coverage under the ACA. However, it is deeply flawed in that it leaves in place the insurance companies who do not deliver healthcare but only make a profit from its delivery. I advocate universal healthcare through Medicare for all. | |||
| No | Do you support requiring illegal immigrants to return to their country of origin before they are eligible for citizenship? | ||
| We must develop policies that are based upon a respect for human rights, justice, and fairness. It must be acknowledged that the trigger for the influx of immigrants in this country has been largely due to unfair US trade policies. Therefore, the undocumented immigrants who are already residing and working in the United States, and their families, should be granted a legal status which includes the chance to become U.S. citizens. Persons should be excluded from this process only if they present a clear and present danger to other members of our society. I support the DREAM Act. | |||
| Yes | Do you support same-sex marriage? | ||
| I am in support of equality in all areas of society for lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, transgender, and queer people. | |||
| 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 governments hostile to the United States from possessing a nuclear weapon? | ||
| If by targeting it is meant the extra-judicial killings of suspected terrorists, meaning those the U.S. perceives to be its enemies, then I am not in support of that. Nuclear weapons are an extreme danger both to the countries having them and to the countries they might wish to attack. No one comes out ahead in a nuclear war. Therefore, we should work to reduce and eliminate our own nuclear arsenal and those of our allies, as well as bring world non-military pressure against any government developing nuclear arms. | |||
| No | Do you support allowing individuals to divert a portion of their Social Security taxes into personal retirement accounts? | ||
| Social Security works. It, along with Medicare, is the most successful anti-poverty program in our history, having protected many millions of seniors from poverty. It works because all eligible workers pay into it. If funds are diverted away from the Social Security Trust Fund it would undermine Social Security. As we saw with the financial crash of 2007, when many people saw their market-based retirement nest eggs collapse, undermining Social Security would lead to far greater financial instability for seniors. | |||
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 Decrease | a) Agriculture | ||
| Slightly Increase | b) Arts | ||
| Greatly Decrease | c) Defense | ||
| Slightly Increase | d) Education | ||
| Greatly Increase | e) Environment | ||
| Greatly Decrease | f) Homeland Security | ||
| Maintain Status | g) International aid | ||
| Greatly Increase | h) Medical Research | ||
| Greatly Increase | i) Scientific Research | ||
| Slightly Increase | j) Space exploration | ||
| Slightly Increase | k) United Nations | ||
| Slightly Increase | l) Welfare | ||
| Greatly Increase | a) Capital gains taxes | ||
| Greatly Increase | b) Corporate taxes | ||
| Maintain Status | c) Excise taxes (alcohol) | ||
| Maintain Status | d) Excise taxes (cigarettes) | ||
| Greatly Increase | e) Excise taxes (transportation fuel) | ||
| Greatly Decrease | f) Income taxes (low-income families) | ||
| Maintain Status | g) Income taxes (middle-income families) | ||
| Greatly Increase | h) Income taxes (high-income families) | ||
| Greatly Increase | i) Inheritance taxes | ||
| Maintain Status | j) Payroll taxes | ||
| The military is the greatest drain on our tax dollars. We could and should reduce military spending by 30% over the next decade without compromising security. This, combined with a Financial Transactions Tax on Wall Street transactions and ending the subsidies on fossil fuels, would allow us to increase spending in areas vital to the well-being of people, such as medical and scientific research. | |||
| I support exempting those making $25,000 or more from income taxes. I support taxing capital gains at the same rate as income from working. I support a carbon use fee, but would make it revenue-neutral by giving tax credits. | |||
| Create Green Jobs by ending fossil fuel subsidies and investing in green energy. Free Higher Education. We currently spend $69 billion to subsidize loans and grants. We could consolidate this and make higher education free. Universal Healthcare through Medicare for All would get rid of the insurance middlemen and create a more efficient system that would dramatically decrease the cost of healthcare. A Financial Transactions Tax for Wall Street earning billions in revenue in Illinois alone and letting Wall Street pay its fair share. Pass a constitutional amendment that says corporations are not people and money is not speech. |
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