Michigan State Legislative Election 2014 Political Courage Test

Abortion & Reproductive

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

2. Should abortions be illegal after the first trimester of pregnancy?
- Yes

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

4. Should abortion be legal when the life of the woman is endangered?
- Yes

5. Do you support requiring parental notification before an abortion is performed on a minor?
- Yes

6. Do you support requiring parental consent before an abortion is performed on a minor?
- Yes

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?
- Yes

9. Other or expanded principles
- No Answer

Budget, Spending, & Tax

1. Education (higher)
- Maintain Status

2. Education (K-12)
- Slightly Increase

3. Environment
- Maintain Status

4. Health care
- Slightly Decrease

5. Law enforcement/corrections
- Slightly Increase

6. Transportation/infrastructure
- Slightly Increase

7. Welfare
- Greatly Decrease

8. Other or expanded categories
- We have the opportunity to decrease expenditures on Medicaid while improving the quality of care received by Medicaid enrollees by implementing my Patient-Centered Care Solution (See MorninginMichigan.com). This solution features Direct Primary Care Services coupled with a wraparound High Deductible Health Plan. Our current $12B Medicaid budget could be reduced by almost $7B freeing up $3B in state funds for other priorities (60% of Medicaid budget comes from federal government). This approach has been implemented successfully already in the State of Washington.

1. Alcohol taxes
- Maintain Status

2. Cigarette taxes
- Maintain Status

3. Corporate taxes
- Maintain Status

4. Gas/Oil taxes
- Maintain Status

5. Property taxes
- Slightly Decrease

6. Sales taxes
- Slightly Increase

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

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

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

10. Other or expanded principles
- The key to effective tax reform is spending reform. Tax increases should always be the LAST option pursued. All too often, they are the first option pursued. The size of government needs to be constrained to those responsibilities explicitly delineated by citizens in the U.S. and Michigan Constitutions. Furthermore, we need to make sure that our tax code applies equally to all citizens so that we remain consistent with Article I Section I of the Michigan Constitution.

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

2. Increasing tuition rates at public universities
- No

3. Reducing or eliminating public worker collective bargaining
- Yes

4. Reducing state employee salaries AND/OR pensions
- Yes

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

6. Reducing benefits for Medicaid recipients
- No

7. Other or expanded principles
- Michigan spends $1.5B on healthcare for its current employees and retirees. By adopting a Direct Primary Care-based health plan, we could free up 20% of this appropriation ($300M) for other budget priorities or return to the taxpayers in the form of tax cuts.

8. Do you support providing financial assistance to Detroit's city pension system from the State of Michigan's "rainy day" fund?
- No

Campaign Finance & Government Reform

1. Individual
- Yes

2. Political Action Committee
- Yes

3. Corporate
- Yes

4. Political Party
- Yes

5. Should candidates for state office be encouraged to meet voluntary spending limits?
- No

6. Do you support requiring full and timely disclosure of campaign finance information?
- Yes

7. Do you support the use of an independent AND/OR bipartisan commission for redistricting?
- No

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

1. Other or expanded principles
- I agree with the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that associates campaign financial resources with freedom of speech. In the environment of extreme media bias in which we find ourselves today, it would be an infringement of the democratic process to restrict access to voters by constraining financial contributions. Furthermore, we need to provide reasonable protections for financial contributors from politically motivated retributions against their source of livelihood.

Crime & Public Safety

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

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 legalizing 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
- No Answer

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

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 government spending as a means of promoting economic growth?
- No

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

7. Do you support an increase of the minimum wage?
- No

8. Other or expanded principles
- The most effective workforce development programs are those implemented by employers looking for specific skills for new or existing employees. Government interference between employers and training organizations such as colleges and universities should be minimized or eliminated.

Education

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

2. Do you support a merit pay system for teachers?
- Yes

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

4. Should parents be allowed to use vouchers to send their children to any school?
- Yes

5. Do you support state funding for charter schools?
- Yes

6. Do you support the state government providing college students with financial aid?
- Yes

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

8. Other or expanded principles
- Charter schools are Public School Academies. They are simply public schools with a unique governance structure. Our state government already provides college students with financial aid in the form of state funding for public universities.

Environment & Energy

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

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

3. Do you support state funding for improvements to Michigan's energy infrastructure?
- Yes

4. Do you support state funding for open space preservation?
- Yes

5. Do you support government regulations of greenhouse gas emissions?
- No

6. Other or expanded principles
- I view our energy infrastructure as a similar priority to our transportation infrastructure. I would prefer private sector investments and operations wherever possible, but improvements such as substations are often implemented to benefit an entire community not simply a single customer.

Gun

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

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

5. Other or expanded principles
- Our background check laws should be consistent independent of point of sale. The only exception to this rule would be family member transfers of ownership.

Health

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

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

3. Do you support interstate health insurance compacts?
- Yes

4. Do you support Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act?
- No

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

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?
- Yes

8. Other or expanded principles
- My Patient-Centered Care Solution (See MorninginMichigan.com) has been developed as an alternative to the so-called Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare). By returning to free market principles, we truly can lower the cost of healthcare, expand access to that care, and improve the quality of care.

Social

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

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
- Civil unions are supported only in context of a contract agreement between two individuals. It would have no force of law beyond that carried by any other contractual agreement.

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.
- Priority 1-Job Growth: By growing the number of jobs, we grow our tax base and decrease the number of people requiring government assistance.Priority 2-Education: We need to improve the quality of our education system and restore its focus on the development of good citizens.Priority 3-Healthcare: The implementation of a free market healthcare system would lower costs, expand access to care, improve care and fuel economic growth.Priority 4-Roads: We already spend 53% more per mile than the national average. We need to ensure that this money is spent more effectively.