New Jersey Gubernatorial Election 2017 Political Courage Test

Abortion & Reproductive

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

2. Should abortion be legal when the pregnancy resulted from incest or rape?
- Yes

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

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

5. Other or expanded principles
- I believe a woman has the right to control her own body.

Budget, Spending, & Tax

1. Reducing state employee salaries AND/OR pensions
- No

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

3. Reducing benefits for Medicaid recipients
- No

4. An income tax increase on any tax bracket
- Yes

5. Other or expanded principles
- New Jersey only has 7 income tax brackets. Someone making millions of dollars pays the same percentage as someone making $500,000. That's not fair. Those making more need to pay their fair share toward the common good. For me however, one key priority for the state's economy is taking wasteful spending out of healthcare by going to a single-payer Medicare for All healthcare plan. This would go a long way toward saving public pensions as pensions and health insurance are lumped together. It would also save towns money (according to studies) which could help lower property tax rates.

Campaign Finance & Government Reform

1. Individual
- Yes

2. Political Action Committee
- Yes

3. Corporate
- Yes

4. Political Party
- Yes

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

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

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?
- No

1. Other or expanded principles
- I believe we need a level playing field. In NJ, the two party duopoly works hard to prevent independent voices in politics. Campaign finance reform would go along way to ending corruption in the state. We also need to look at Ranked Choice Voting in order to allay fears that a vote for a third party can benefit the party a voter opposes most strongly. Media time could be limited to equal time to any candidates that meet requirements to have ballot access.

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?
- Yes

4. Should a minor accused of a violent crime be prosecuted as an adult?
- No

5. Do you support the enforcement of federal immigration laws by state and local police?
- No

6. Do you support delaying the seizure of assets by law enforcement officials until after a conviction?
- Yes

7. Other or expanded principles
- NJ has the highest racial disparity in the US when it comes to sentencing and incarceration. I would eliminate mandatory minimums. I also believe prisoner re-hab and re-entry should begin on day one of a sentence. Prisoners should make a decent wage if they work while in jail so they can support their family on the outside and they should never be deprived of the right to vote. I am also a strong supporter of police being from or at least looking like the communities they police and independent investigations should always be used when police violence is suspected.

Economic

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

2. Do you support lowering taxes as a means of promoting economic growth?
- No

3. Do you support reducing government regulations on the private sector?
- No

4. Do you support expanding access to unemployment benefits?
- Yes

5. Do you support requiring welfare applicants to pass a drug test in order to receive benefits?
- No

6. Do you support an increase of the minimum wage?
- Yes

7. Do you support legalized state-sponsored sports betting in New Jersey?
- Yes

8. Do you support a tax on short-term housing rentals in New Jersey?
- No

9. Other or expanded principles
- At the center of my economic proposal are: 1) the savings for the state, towns, businesses and individuals, from Medicare for All, by taking the insurance companies out of our heath provision this will result in savings. 2) new tax brackets on people making more than $500,000 annually. State's like Caifornia already have as many as 13 tax brackets. The rich should pay their fair share. and 3) the creation of a public bank. A public bank would be able to lend money to the state and local governments for job-creating infrastructure projects.

Education

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

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

3. Should immigrants unlawfully present in the United States who graduate from New Jersey high schools be eligible for in-state tuition at public universities in New Jersey?
- Yes

4. Other or expanded principles
- Just to clarify regarding charter schools. I believe we should have a moratorium on new charter schools and bring existing charter schools under the mandate of local boards o education if they wish to receive state funding. In Nj we have an apartheid education system. This needs to change. Part of changing this is making sure affordable housing is available in all of our towns. We also need to treat the well being of children integrally so that they are healthy, safe and know where they will sleep at night. This will improve their abilities to learn

Environment & Energy

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

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

3. Do you support government regulations of greenhouse gas emissions?
- Yes

4. Other or expanded principles
- We must halt pipelines and all investment in fossil fuels while aggressively promoting renewable energy. We must renovate our transit system to be more green and prioritize prosecuting polluters effecting our cities as they are usually where pollution has the highest impact. Additionally we need urgent measures to make drinking water in NJ safe for our children, particularly in regard to lead.

Gun

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

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?
- Yes

5. Other or expanded principles
- While I support gun control I believe people of color face attacks of every sort against them and that until there are deep reforms to the criminal justice system, some communities see arming themselves as the only way to defend against racist violence.

Health

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

2. Do you support Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act ("Obamacare")?
- No

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

4. Do you support allowing doctors to prescribe marijuana to their patients for medicinal purposes?
- Yes

5. Other or expanded principles
- Insurance has no place in our healthcare system. We need universal medicare for all. It will save costs and improve care for all who live in New Jersey. If Congress does not have the courage to do so nationally then we will do it in our state.

Social

1. Do you support same-sex marriage?
- Yes

2. Do you support the inclusion of sexual orientation in New Jersey's anti-discrimination laws?
- Yes

3. Do you support the inclusion of gender identity in New Jersey's anti-discrimination laws?
- Yes

4. Other or expanded principles
- No Answer

Legislative Priorities

In the following area, 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.
- My platform is called the Last Are First. I believe a society is only as healthy as those who have been left out. NJ is a wealthy state but our wealth is not aimed at including those at the bottom. I would work to re-distribute resources to where they are most needed