Michigan State Legislative Election 2012 Political Courage Test

Abortion & Reproductive

1. Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation?
- No Answer

2. Should abortions be illegal after the first trimester of pregnancy?
- No Answer

3. Should abortion be legal when the pregnancy resulted from incest or rape?
- No Answer

4. Should abortion be legal when the life of the woman is endangered?
- No Answer

5. Do you support requiring parental notification before an abortion is performed on a minor?
- No Answer

6. Do you support requiring parental consent before an abortion is performed on a minor?
- No Answer

7. Do you support the prohibition of public funds for abortion procedures?
- Yes

8. Do you support the prohibition of public funds for organizations that perform abortions?
- No Answer

9. Do you support increased licensing restrictions for abortion providers?
- No Answer

10. Other or expanded principles
- The government should not fund anything related to pregnancy (birth, abortion, or contraceptives); this will force people to be responsible. Insurers/employers shouldn't be forced to cover abortions, nor should medical workers be forced to perform them. This isn't the old Soviet Union; it's a free country where people's ethics are respected. The legality of abortion should not simply be decided by lawmakers because it is a religious issue: some religions support it and some oppose it. My proposal is to create legislation which allows God to prove whether he wants it.

Budget, Spending, & Tax

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.

1. Education (higher)
- Slightly Decrease

2. Education (K-12)
- Slightly Increase

3. Environment
- Slightly Decrease

4. Health care
- Slightly Decrease

5. Law enforcement/corrections
- Slightly Increase

6. Transportation/infrastructure
- Greatly Increase

7. Welfare
- Eliminate

8. Other or expanded categories
- I want to eliminate government handouts and welfare benefits. My three public investment priorities focus on safe communities, an effective education system, and a well-maintained transportation system. State governments which perform well in these three areas are generally considered effective even if they do not invest elsewhere; any state which fails in one of these three areas is generally considered ineffective. My environmental focus is to keep citizens safe, many "environmental" projects are wasteful. Health care and higher education should be the responsibility of individuals. Our focus should be ensuring individuals are employed suitably enough to afford it.

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.

1. Alcohol taxes
- Greatly Increase

2. Cigarette taxes
- Greatly Increase

3. Corporate taxes
- Slightly Decrease

4. Gas/Oil taxes
- Maintain Status

5. Property taxes
- Maintain Status

6. Sales taxes
- Maintain Status

7. Income taxes (low-income families)
- Eliminate

8. Income taxes (mid-income families)
- Eliminate

9. Income taxes (high-income families)
- Eliminate

10. Do you support requiring a two-thirds vote of the legislature in order to approve all future tax increases?
- No Answer

11. Other or expanded categories
- I want to reduce taxes for the average citizen by reducing/eliminating the income tax with its paperwork headaches and impose taxes on imports instead. For example, we can double (a) license renewal fees for cars assembled outside the USA and (b) the Secretary of State's fees on all recreational and off-road vehicles not made in the USA. Thorough inspections of imported goods--paid by importers--can be required to ensure they don't contain invasive species or harmful chemicals. (This will create jobs, protect our citizens, and reverse outsourcing). Harmful substances can be taxed exorbitantly; we can then discontinue treatment programs (saving money).

Budget Stabilization:

Indicate which proposals you support (if any) for balancing Michigan's budget.

1. Tapping into Michigan's "rainy day" fund
- No

2. Increasing tuition rates at public universities
- No Answer

3. Reducing or eliminating public worker collective bargaining
- No Answer

4. Reducing state employee salaries AND/OR pensions
- No Answer

5. Instituting mandatory furloughs AND/OR layoffs for state employees
- No Answer

6. Reducing benefits for Medicaid recipients
- Yes

7. Other or expanded principles
- I want to force the state and local governments to pay off their debts and then pass a constitutional amendment prohibiting them from incurring debt again. I also want to force state and local governments to prepay for essential services; this will ensure that lawmakers with bad budgeting skills cannot bully citizens with shutdowns/scare tactics. I want to eliminate government handouts like Medicaid. (Note: Medicare is different since people prepay for it; I support Medicare and oppose Medicaid.) I then want to replace it with a work program.

Campaign Finance & Government Reform

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

1. Individual
- No Answer

2. Political Action Committee
- No Answer

3. Corporate
- No Answer

4. Political Party
- No Answer

5. Should candidates for state office be encouraged to meet voluntary spending limits?
- Yes

6. Do you support requiring full and timely disclosure of campaign finance information?
- No Answer

7. Do you support the use of an independent AND/OR bipartisan commission for redistricting?
- Yes

8. Do you support requiring a government-issued photo identification in order to vote at the polls?
- Yes

9. Do you support Michigan's emergency manager law?
- No Answer

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

1. Other or expanded principles
- I support a 50% tax on political contributions; this will greatly reduce Big Money's influence on elections. This will be much more effective than red tape! Only citizens should vote, but two situations are stalling the photo ID issue: some seniors and recent movers can't get identification. Fixing our processing system to resolve these matters quickly will fix this. I want to force local governments to fully pay off their debts and then prepay for essential services; emergency managers will no longer be necessary.

Crime & Public Safety

1. Do you support capital punishment for certain crimes?
- Yes

2. Do you support alternatives to incarceration for certain non-violent offenders, such as mandatory counseling or substance abuse treatment?
- Yes

3. Do you support decriminalizing the possession of small amounts of marijuana?
- No

4. Should a minor accused of a violent crime be prosecuted as an adult?
- Yes

5. Should a minor who sends sexually-explicit or nude photos by cell phone face criminal charges?
- Yes

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

7. Other or expanded principles
- We should impose large fines rather than jail sentences whenever it is safe to do so. The state makes money by imposing fines; it loses money when it puts people in jail. It costs Michigan taxpayers about $100 a day for each criminal in jail. If criminals are too dangerous to simply fine, they should be given no more than 90 days to correct their conduct; if they do not want to correct their conduct, it's unfair to taxpayers to keep these criminals alive. I want to eliminate the law's protections for criminals--a better strategy than "Stand Your Ground" laws.

Economic

1. Do you support reducing government regulations on the private sector?
- Yes

2. Do you support increased state funding for job-training programs that re-train displaced workers?
- No Answer

3. Do you support expanding access to unemployment benefits?
- No

4. Do you support providing financial incentives to the private sector for the purpose of job creation?
- No

5. Do you support increased spending on infrastructure projects for the purpose of job creation?
- Yes

6. Do you support providing direct financial assistance to homeowners facing foreclosure?
- No

7. Do you support a constitutional amendment affirming a right to collective bargaining in Michigan?
- Yes

8. Do you support construction of a new bridge across the Detroit River to Canada?
- No

9. Should Michigan allow more casinos?
- No

10. Other or expanded principles
- I want to eliminate joblessness by replacing welfare and unemployment benefits with a work program which can not only pay for itself but also generate revenue for the state of Michigan. I oppose government subsidies and handouts; they are unfair to taxpayers.

Education

1. Do you support the national Common Core State Standards initiative?
- No Answer

2. Do you support a merit pay system for teachers?
- No Answer

3. Is the tenure process for public school teachers producing effective teachers?
- No Answer

4. Do you support replacing pension plans for new teachers with 401(k)-style retirement plans?
- No Answer

5. Should parents be allowed to use vouchers to send their children to any school?
- No Answer

6. Do you support state funding for charter schools?
- No Answer

7. Do you support the state government providing college students with financial aid?
- No

8. Should illegal immigrants who graduate from Michigan high schools be eligible for in-state tuition at public universities?
- No

9. Other or expanded principles
- Stanford University recently conducted a study comparing students at charter schools to students at traditional public schools. It found that only 17% of charter schools did significantly better than traditional public schools. 37% actually did worse! Although some charter schools may certainly perform better than traditional public schools (and it is important to find out why and apply the findings to the traditional public schools), it appears that it is not the norm. Mere conversion to charter schools will not solve our problems.

Environment & Energy

1. Do you support state funding for the development of alternative energy?
- No Answer

2. Do you support state funding for the development of traditional domestic energy sources (e.g. coal, natural gas, oil)?
- No Answer

3. Do you support state funding for improvements to Michigan's energy infrastructure?
- No Answer

4. Do you support state funding for open space preservation?
- No

5. Do you support enacting environmental regulations aimed at reducing the effects of climate change?
- No

6. Other or expanded principles
- I'm in favor of alternative energy, but it needs to be cost-effective; we should not spend resources on alternative energy projects unless they are actually viable. Tesla's electric cars seem promising. Hydroelectric and wind power usually pay for themselves. Solar power is not ideal in all situations, but in some places it is cost-effective. Solar generation facilities in outer space and tethered wind turbines in the jet stream probably won't provide a return on investment.Although I would support the use of alternative energy sources as state representative, I do not want to support projects which cannot pay for themselves.

Gun

1. Do you support restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns?
- No Answer

2. Should background checks be required on gun sales between private citizens at gun shows?
- Yes

3. Should citizens be allowed to carry concealed guns?
- Yes

4. Should a license be required for gun possession?
- No Answer

5. Other or expanded principles
- Gun control is generally a two-sided argument, but both sides agree that guns should be kept away from individuals who shouldn't have them. The current background check system is not good enough: data from criminal convictions is not being entered into the system in a timely manner or is not being entered at all. Our first priority should be getting our background check systems working properly. I would also support the addition of other related information into the system (arrest history, etc.) which might not disqualify someone from purchasing a gun but would allow conscientious gun sellers to exercise discretion.

Health

1. Do you support a universally-accessible, publicly-administered health insurance option?
- No Answer

2. Do you support expanding access to health care through commercial health insurance reform?
- Yes

3. Do you support interstate health insurance compacts?
- No Answer

4. Do you support requiring individuals to purchase health care insurance?
- No Answer

5. Do you support establishing a state-run health insurance exchange?
- No Answer

6. Do you support monetary limits on damages that can be collected in malpractice lawsuits?
- Yes

7. Do you support allowing doctors to prescribe marijuana to their patients for medicinal purposes?
- No

8. Other or expanded principles
- Although it is not appropriate to say that people have a "right" to healthcare, it is still a good idea that people have healthcare nonetheless. Before we can really take any serious action without hurting the economy in the process, it is important to make sure foreign countries which are inconsiderate of their people's well-being (such as China) cannot use it as an opportunity to drive American firms out of business. As state representative, I will demand that American firms be first provided with a business environment which will allow them to afford these health costs.

Social

1. Should marriage only be between one man and one woman?
- Yes

2. Should same-sex couples be allowed to form civil unions?
- Yes

3. Do you support the inclusion of sexual orientation in Michigan's anti-discrimination laws?
- No

4. Do you support the inclusion of gender identity in Michigan's anti-discrimination laws?
- No

5. Other or expanded principles
- "Marriage" is a contractual agreement/partnership which only functions fully between a man and a woman. As a deontological libertarian, it's wrong for me to prohibit other civil unions, but ethical perspectives of adoption agencies, etc. should be respected. Although I agree that the ability to have different sexual orientations should not be opposed, this is a matter where the ethical perspectives of others must be considered and respected. If a few employers object to hiring certain people for moral reasons, what right do I have to force them to go against their moral convictions?

Legislative Priorities

In the following area, on an attached page, or via e-mail, 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.
- 1. Rearrange the tax system to benefit the average citizen (not importers)2. Enable workers to make a real living without government subsidies3. Eliminate joblessness by replacing welfare and unemployment benefits with a work program Will reduce/eliminate income tax and tax imports using increased Secretary of State fees and other strategies. Will increase minimum wage for companies with 10+ employees. Will eliminate welfare programs; will create work program which produces marketable manufactured goods which do not compete with existing Michigan producers. These strategies will eliminate involuntary poverty and a primary motivator for crime.