Michigan Congressional Election 2012 Political Courage Test

Abortion

1. Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation?
- Pro-life

2. Other or expanded principles
- No Answer

Afghanistan

1. Do you support United States' combat operations in Afghanistan?
- Yes

2. Do you support a timetable for withdrawal from Afghanistan?
- No

3. Other or expanded principles
- No Answer

Budget

1. do you support reducing defense spending?
- Yes

2. do you support an income tax increase on any tax bracket?
- No

3. do you support reducing Medicaid spending?
- No

4. do you support reducing Medicare spending?
- No

5. Is balancing the budget a legislative priority?
- Yes

6. Other or expanded principles
- Entitlement programs should be reformed and downsized. However, senior citizens currently receiving benefits should not have to suffer the consequences of bloated government. We need to reform programs so that our children are not burdened with the immense debt that our federal government is accumulating more of every day.

Campaign Finance

1. Do you support the regulation of indirect campaign contributions from corporations and unions?
- Yes

2. Other or expanded principles
- No Answer

Capital Punishment

1. Do you support capital punishment for certain crimes?
- No

2. Other or expanded principles
- No Answer

Economy

1. Do you support federal spending as a means of promoting economic growth?
- No

2. Do you support providing tax incentives to businesses for the purpose of job creation?
- Yes

3. Do you support spending on infrastructure projects for the purpose of job creation?
- No

4. Do you support the temporary extension of unemployment benefits?
- No

5. Do you support the 2010 temporary extension of tax relief?
- Yes

6. Other or expanded principles
- The federal government needs to cut spending, balance the budget, and create a favorable business environment for job creation. The government should not be picking winners and losers. They should structure the tax code so that all businesses have incentive to create jobs.

Education

1. Do you support requiring states to implement education reforms in order to be eligible for competitive federal grants?
- No

2. Other or expanded principles
- I believe that every student deserves the highest quality education in the world.The key to ensuring this occurs in the 14th District, is returning the decision-making power to the state and local level. Improving education is the first step in maintaining economic competitiveness around the globe. My goal is to reduce burdensome regulatory hurdles at the federal level to allow state and local governments, and most importantly parents, the opportunity to craft education plans that best suit the needs of their children and the community.

Energy

1. Do you support reducing restrictions on offshore energy production?
- Yes

2. Other or expanded principles
- We need both short and long term solutions to accomplish our overall goal of energy independence. In the short term we need to allow companies to safely drill in the United States and ensure that the oil and fossil fuels found here are used by the American people. As oil prices and dependency on foreign oil fall, more focus can be put on improving alternative energy.

Environment

1. Do you believe that human activity is contributing to climate change?
- No

2. Do you support the federal regulation of greenhouse gas emissions?
- No

3. Other or expanded principles
- Having spent more than four decades in this great state, I can emphatically say that Michigan should be the 8th wonder of the world. We have the largest concentration of freshwater in the world, along with some of the nations most beautiful scenery and enjoyable recreational activities. I am committed to utilizing the amazing natural resources God has gifted us with, as a responsible steward. As your Congressman, I will keep the beauty of Michigan and the 14th District in mind when voting on and advising my colleagues on environmental policies.

Guns

1. Do you support restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns?
- Yes

2. Other or expanded principles
- I am a firm advocate for the individual right to keep and bear arms as guaranteed by the Second Amendment of the Constitution. However, I am in favor of some restrictions to keep firearms out of the wrong hands.

Health Care

1. Do you support repealing the 2010 Affordable Care Act?
- Yes

2. Should individuals be required to purchase health insurance, as mandated in the 2010 Affordable Care Act?
- No

3. Other or expanded principles
- Access to healthcare is important, particularly following a period where a lot of Michigan and the 14th District were out of work and lacked health insurance. Over-arching healthcare legislation, such as Obamacare, is NOT the answer to the nations problem. The appropriate way to improve our healthcare system is through common sense solutions, not big government power-grabs. As your Congressman, I will work with colleagues who have experience in the healthcare profession to ensure that reform happens, and it happens the correct way.

Immigration

1. Do you support requiring illegal immigrants to return to their country of origin before they are eligible for citizenship?
- No

2. Do you support allowing illegal immigrants, who were brought to the United States as minors, to pursue citizenship without returning to their country of origin?
- Yes

3. Do you support the enforcement of federal immigration law by state and local police?
- Yes

4. Other or expanded principles
- No Answer

Marriage

1. Do you support same-sex marriage?
- No

2. Other or expanded principles
- I am in favor of Civil Unions with same status.

National Security

1. Do you support targeting suspected terrorists outside of official theaters of conflict?
- Yes

2. Should the U.S use military force in order to prevent Iran from possessing a nuclear weapon?
- Yes

3. Other or expanded principles
- No Answer

Social Security

1. Do you support allowing individuals to divert a portion of their Social Security taxes into personal retirement accounts?
- No

2. Other or expanded principles
- I believe social security should not be part of the budget. A possible alternative could be government savings bonds.

Spending and Taxes

1. Agriculture
- Slightly Decrease

2. Arts
- Slightly Decrease

3. Defense
- Slightly Decrease

4. Education
- Slightly Decrease

5. Environment
- Slightly Decrease

6. Homeland Security
- Slightly Decrease

7. International aid
- Slightly Decrease

8. Medical Research
- Slightly Decrease

9. Scientific Research
- Slightly Decrease

10. Space exploration
- Slightly Decrease

11. United Nations
- Eliminate

12. Welfare
- Slightly Decrease

13. Other or expanded categories
- Greatly Decrease

1. Capital gains taxes
- Maintain Status

2. Corporate taxes
- Slightly Decrease

3. Excise taxes (alcohol)
- Slightly Decrease

4. Excise taxes (cigarettes)
- Slightly Decrease

5. Excise taxes (transportation fuel)
- Slightly Decrease

6. Income taxes (low-income families)
- Slightly Decrease

7. Income taxes (middle-income families)
- Slightly Decrease

8. Income taxes (high-income families)
- Slightly Decrease

9. Inheritance taxes
- Eliminate

10. Payroll taxes
- Slightly Decrease

11. Other or expanded categories
- No Answer

Administrative Priorities

Please explain in a total of 100 words or less, your top two or three priorities if elected. If they require additional funding for implementation, please explain how you would obtain this funding.
- First, we need to bring manufacturing jobs back to Michigan by eliminating NAFTA. Second, we need to reduce corporate tax rates to incentivize job creation. Third, we need to educate our communities to promote family values.