Missouri Congressional Election 2018 Political Courage Test

Abortion

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

2. Other or expanded principles
- Roe v. Wade established this as a fundamental right for women. Compassionate civil societies do not strip fundamental rights away from its citizens and turn women and their doctors into criminals. Compassionate and civil societies strive to reduce unwanted pregnancies by introducing real sex education in schools and making childcare available and affordable. They also work to tear down the bureaucratic barriers to foster care and adoption.

Budget

1. In order to balance the budget, do you support an income tax increase on any tax bracket?
- Yes

2. In order to balance the budget, do you support reducing defense spending?
- Yes

3. Other or expanded principles
- We have to raise revenue in order to deal with our exploding deficits, our expanding debt, and our aging population. The middle class has been taken advantage of enough. I will not support any rise in payroll taxes or raising income taxes that hurt working class Americans. We need a capital gains tax that is AT LEAST as high as the income tax. We also should raise the top income tax brackets. Why should CEOs and hedge fund managers making 10s of millions be paying the same essential tax rate as an educated professional making 100s of thousands?

Campaign Finance

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

2. Other or expanded principles
- I support a massive overhaul of our entire campaign finance system. This is the centerpiece of my campaign. Money in elections is out of control. We need to severely limit the amount that money is allowed to corrupt the process. This can be done with changes in federal election law - and, if necessary, an amendment to the Constitution that reverses the disastrous effects of the Citizens United decision. We need to seriously look into a public financing system for federal candidates similar to the systems we see on the state/local level.

Economy

1. Do you support federal spending as a means of promoting economic growth?
- Yes

2. Do you support lowering corporate taxes as a means of promoting economic growth?
- Yes

3. Other or expanded principles
- The devil is in the detail. We need to approach this on a case by case basis. Some industries are crucial for national security and for the future or American economic vitality. Often, these industries need financial stimulus. I am not against government promoting such industry through tax cuts and other incentives. But we are a consumer economy. And that means that we should strive above everything else to do more for consumers - particularly the middle class. That is primarily where tax cuts should be directed.

Education

1. Do you support requiring states to adopt federal education standards?
- Yes

2. Other or expanded principles
- This is not our grandparents' America. We need to compete with an economically united Europe and a capitalist China. That requires full participation in the global economy and that demands an educated work force. The federal government needs to do more for education. In particular, the Federal government should do more to improve the quality of teachers - especially in at risk inner city school district. That can only be done if we significantly improve teacher salaries - thus attracting our best and brightest out of college.

Energy & Environment

1. Do you support government funding for the development of renewable energy (e.g. solar, wind, thermal)?
- Yes

2. Do you support the federal regulation of greenhouse gas emissions?
- Yes

3. Other or expanded principles
- Our national policy on climate change is embarrassingly weak. It?s also an international embarrassment. Congress needs to wake up and take seriously the overwhelming consensus of the scientific community and do more regarding our contribution to global warming. It also needs to take the Pentagon?s report on climate change to heart. We need to recommit ourselves to environmental protection. This includes resurrecting the Environmental Protection Agency and re-assuming our leading role in global environmental policy. Congress can do more to encourage renewable energy initiatives across the country. A great example of such a program is Missouri?s ?Renewable Energy Initiative.?

Guns

1. Do you generally support gun-control legislation?
- Yes

2. Other or expanded principles
- We need to level the playing field in Congress if we ever want sane common-sense gun regulations. And right now the NRA makes this impossible with their inflated power over significant numbers of our elected officials.We need a recommitment to common sense gun laws. And common sense demands that we be more vigilant of violent and irresponsible people wanting to own guns. It also demands that gun owners be required to take competence and safety training. Military style weapons should only be allowed in the military.

Health Care

1. Do you support repealing the 2010 Affordable Care Act ("Obamacare")?
- No

2. Other or expanded principles
- We have an insanely inefficient health-care system in America. We need universal coverage not just because it?s the right thing to do, but also because it?s the smart thing to do. The federal government must commit itself to providing a public option for health care insurance that provides all Americans with a basic level of quality health care. We can learn a tremendous amount from the experiences of other countries. Australia and Switzerland provide great examples of hybrid systems where the public and private sectors can work together to provide quality universal health care coverage.

Immigration

1. Do you support the construction of a wall along the Mexican border?
- No

2. Do you support requiring immigrants who are unlawfully present to return to their country of origin before they are eligible for citizenship?
- Yes

3. Other or expanded principles
- Nothing demands compromise more than immigration policy. We often fail here because we refuse to listen to the other side. Effective immigration policy must balance the need to protect our borders, our communities, and our economy with the understanding that a nation of immigrants cannot turn its back on those looking to achieve the American dream. The U.S. Senate forged an excellent bi-partisan compromise in 2013. Unfortunately, the House refused to even consider it. We need a comprehensive immigration law that finds a workable compromise between these two competing immigration philosophies.

Marijuana

1. Do you support the legalization of marijuana for recreational purposes?
- Yes

2. Other or expanded principles
- I am for states allowing the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes. I am also in favor of allowing states the right to allow the regulated use of marijuana for recreational use. The problem is with Congress? refusal to update the Controlled Substances Act. Federal executive agencies can potentially criminalize behavior perfectly legal under state law. Without Congressional action, Americans are under the whim of changing executive orders and Justice Department policy. The federal government?s obsession with marijuana diverts needed government resources away from the real drug problem in America ? the opioid epidemic.

National Security

1. Should the United States use military force in order to prevent governments hostile to the U.S. from possessing a nuclear weapon?
- Yes

2. Do you support increased American intervention in Middle Eastern conflicts beyond air support?
- Yes

3. Other or expanded principles
- Thanks to Donald Trump and his puppets in Congress, America is slowly but surely relinquishing its role as a global leader. Congress thinks we can lead the world from the sidelines. They?re wrong. The vacuum at the top that America will leave will not remain a vacuum for long. To prevent a united Europe and an ever increasingly powerful China from dominating world affairs, America must recommit itself to acting as a responsible leader politically, economically, and culturally. That means a recommitment to soft-power and active involvement in international institutions like the United Nations and the World Trade Organization.

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.
- Congress is broken. And it cannot fix itself. The only way to fix Congress is to elect reformers. That is why my campaign has made campaign finance, election, and ethics reforms priorities. My other priorities include education reform and healthcare reform. To end the cycle of poverty we need better schools. And that means better teachers. That can only happen with an increased federal commitment to public education ? especially teacher recruitment. Our healthcare system is unsustainable. We spend more but get less in return. We need a system that?s efficient and fair. What we have now is neither.