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Christopher Cole's Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)

Key

Official Position: Candidate addressed this issue directly by taking the Political Courage Test.
Inferred Position: Candidate refused to address this issue, but Vote Smart inferred this issue based on the candidate's public record, including statements, voting record, and special interest group endorsements.
Unknown Position: Candidate refused to address this issue, or we could not infer an answer for this candidate despite exhaustive research of their public record.
Additional Information: Click on this icon to reveal more information about this candidate's position, from their answers or Vote Smart's research.
Other or Expanded Principles & Legislative Priorities are entered exactly as candidates submit them. Vote Smart does not edit for misspelled words, punctuation or grammar.

Christopher Cole has failed to provide voters with positions on key issues covered by the 2020 Political Courage Test, despite repeated requests from Vote Smart and voters like you.

What is the Political Courage Test?
This candidate has responded to a Political Courage Test in a previous election. As a continued effort to provide the American public with factual information on candidates running for public office, these archived responses are made available here.

North Carolina Congressional Election 2008 Political Courage Test

The Political Courage Test asks candidates which items they will support if elected. It does not ask them to indicate which items they will oppose. Through extensive research of public polling data, we discovered that voters are more concerned with what candidates would support when elected to office, not what they oppose. If a candidate does not select a response to any part or all of any question, it does not necessarily indicate that the candidate is opposed to that particular item.

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding abortion.

a) Abortions should always be illegal.
b) Abortions should always be legal.
c) Abortions should be legal only within the first trimester.
d) Abortions should be legal when the pregnancy resulted from incest or rape.
e) Abortions should be legal when the life of the woman is endangered.
f) Dilation and extraction or "partial-birth" abortion procedures should be legal.
g) Medicare, Medicaid, and federal subsidies should be prohibited from being used on abortion procedures.
Abortion and any public funds used for it are not properly within the jurisdiction of the federal government. I would oppose any congressional effort to promote, ban, restrict, or finance abortions

Indicate what federal funding levels (#1-6) you support for the following general categories. Select one number per category, you can use a number more than once.1) Budget Priorities2) Defense Spending3) TaxesIndicate what federal tax levels (#1-6) you support for the following general categories. Select one number per category, you can use a number more than once.Family Income TaxesOther TaxesDeductions/Credits

Eliminate a) Agriculture
Eliminate b) Arts
Greatly Decrease c) Defense
Eliminate d) Education
Eliminate e) Environment
Eliminate f) FEMA
Greatly Decrease g) Homeland security
Eliminate h) International aid
Greatly Decrease i) Law enforcement (Federal)
Eliminate j) Law enforcement (State)
Eliminate k) Medical research
Eliminate l) National parks
Eliminate m) Public health services
Eliminate n) Scientific research
Eliminate o) Space exploration programs
Maintain Status p) Transportation and highway infrastructure
Eliminate q) United Nations
Eliminate r) Welfare
s) Other or expanded categories
Maintain Status a) Armed forces personnel training
Maintain Status b) Intelligence operations
Greatly Decrease c) Military hardware
Maintain Status d) Modernization of weaponry and equipment
Maintain Status e) National missile defense
Slightly Increase f) Pay for active duty personnel
Eliminate g) Programs to improve troop retention rates
Slightly Decrease h) Research and development of new weapons
Maintain Status i) Troop and equipment readiness
Eliminate a) Less than $12,000
Eliminate b) $12,001-$40,000
Eliminate c) $40,001-$100,000
Eliminate d) $100,001-$180,000
Eliminate e) $180,001-$350,000
Eliminate f) $350,001 and above
Maintain Status a) Alcohol taxes
Maintain Status b) Capital gains taxes
Maintain Status c) Cigarette taxes
Maintain Status d) Corporate taxes
Maintain Status e) Gasoline taxes
Maintain Status f) Inheritance taxes
a) Charitable contribution deduction
b) Child tax credit
c) Earned income tax credit
d) Medical expense deduction
e) Mortgage deduction
f) Student loan credit
Yes 4) Do you support the permanent repeal of the federal estate tax?
Yes 5) Do you support requiring the federal budget to be balanced each year?
Eliminate - I would support the withdrawal of all peacetime military bases overseas.
I support eliminating personal income tax
Maintain Status - maintain while phasing out income tax, then eliminate
Eliminate - with the elimination of income tax, deductions become meaningless
I support, at a minimum, capping all federal expenditures, until other revenues have grown to replace personal income tax. If no reductions were enacted, the process would require a maximum of fifteen years

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding campaign finance and government reform.

X a) Support increasing the amount individuals are permitted to contribute to federal campaigns.
b) Prohibit Political Action Committee (PAC) contributions to candidates for federal office.
X c) Allow unregulated soft money campaign contributions to political parties or committees.
X d) Remove all contribution limits on federal campaigns and parties.
e) Support prohibiting ads containing candidates' name that are paid for by third parties from airing 60 days before a primary and 30 days before a general federal election.
X f) Support instant run-off voting (IRV).
g) Support designating Election Day as a national holiday.
h) Support giving the President the power of the line item veto for items concerning appropriations.
X i) Support limiting the President's use of signing statements in order to prevent an alternative interpretation of the bill.
X j) Support a federal shield law to protect reporter-source privilege.
k) Other or expanded principles

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding crime.

a) Support the use of the death penalty for federal crimes.
b) Eliminate the use of the death penalty for federal crimes.
c) Support programs to provide prison inmates with vocational and job-related skills and job-placement assistance when released.
d) Support programs to provide prison inmates with drug and alcohol addiction treatment.
e) Reduce prison sentences for those who commit non-violent crimes.
f) Support mandatory jail sentences for selling illegal drugs.
g) Support strict penalties for internet crime (e.g. hacking, identity theft, worms/viruses).
h) Require that crimes based on sexual orientation be prosecuted as federal hate crimes.
The federal government has no constitutional jurisdiction over crime (except treason and crimes in the military)

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding education.

a) Support the federal government funding universal pre-K programs.
b) Allow parents to use vouchers to send their children to any public school.
c) Allow parents to use vouchers to send their children to any private or religious school.
d) Allow teachers and professionals to receive federal funding to establish charter or magnet schools.
e) Increase funding for the Pell Grant program.
f) Decrease interest rates of Stafford Loans.
g) Support federal tax incentives to help families save for college.
h) Ban university financial aid officers from owning stock in or accepting gifts from student loan lenders.
i) Require universities to disclose financial relationships with lenders.
j) Support federal education standards and testing requirements for K-12 students (No Child Left Behind).
X k) Eliminate all federal education standards and testing requirements for K-12 students (No Child Left Behind).
the federal government has no constitutional authority to regulate or finance education. I would support the abolition of the Department of Education, along with all federal regulations and subsidies.

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding employment.

a) Increase funding for national job-training programs that retrain displaced workers or teach skills needed in today’s job market.
X b) Reduce government regulation of the private sector.
c) Encourage employers to offer child care services, flex-time scheduling, comp-time, and unpaid leave for family emergencies.
d) Increase the federal minimum wage.
e) Support the right of workers to unionize.
X f) Eliminate all federal programs designed to reduce unemployment.
g) Include sexual orientation in federal anti-discrimination laws.
h) Include gender identity in federal anti-discrimination laws.
The federal government has a policy of maintaining a minimum level of unemployment, ostensibly to fight inflation. The elimination of that policy would make everything else unnecessary.

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding the environment and energy.

a) Strengthen the regulation and enforcement of the Clean Water Act.
b) Strengthen the regulation and enforcement of the Clean Air Act.
c) Support increased development of traditional energy resources (e.g. coal, natural gas, oil).
d) Strengthen emission controls on all gasoline and diesel-powered engines, including cars, trucks, and sport utility vehicles.
e) Strengthen fuel efficiency standards on all gasoline and diesel-powered engines, including cars, trucks, and sport utility vehicles.
X f) Support domestic oil exploration in areas that are currently restricted.
g) Encourage further development and use of alternative fuels.
h) Support the use of ethanol as an alternative fuel.
i) Support research and development of nuclear reactors as an alternative energy source.
j) Allow energy producers to trade pollution credits under "cap and trade" laws.
k) Support international mandatory emission targets to limit global warming.
l) Support international voluntary emission targets to limit global warming.
I support the abolition of the Department of Energy and all federal "one size fits all" energy policies. The citizens of the respective states and localities can determine the best solutions to their particular needs.

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding guns.On (c) and (d), indicate what levels (#1-6) you support for the following categories.

a) Allow individuals to carry concealed guns.
b) Ban the sale, ownership or possession of handguns except by law enforcement and other government officials.
Greatly Decrease c) Enforcement of existing restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns.
Greatly Decrease d) Restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns.
I oppose the regulation of weapon purchase or possession of peaceable individuals

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding health.

a) Implement a universal healthcare program to guarantee coverage to all Americans, regardless of income.
b) Expand eligibility for tax-free medical savings accounts.
c) Allow the importation of prescription drugs into the United States.
d) Support expanding prescription drug coverage under Medicare.
e) Offer tax credits to individuals and small businesses to offset the cost of insurance coverage.
f) Support expanding child healthcare programs.
X g) Providing healthcare is not a responsibility of the federal government.
the elimination of the personal income tax would greatly expand the ability of working people to provide their own healthcare, rather than depending on government

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding immigration.

a) Decrease the number of legal immigrants allowed into the country.
b) Establish English as the official national language.
c) Support a temporary worker program.
d) Support harsher financial punishments for those who knowingly employ illegal immigrants.
e) Support amnesty for illegal immigrants already working in the United States.
X f) Illegal immigrants should have to return to their countries of origin before being considered for citizenship.
g) Illegal immigrants should be given a pathway to citizenship.
X h) Support merit-based visas over family-based visas.
illegal immigration is a form of black market in labor; if we eliminate the restrictions on low-end labor, such as the minimum wage and the ban on piece work, we will eliminate the economic incentives that created the black market.

International AidIndicate which principles you support (if any) regarding international aid.International PolicyIndicate which principles you support (if any) regarding international policy.International TradeIndicate which principles you support (if any) regarding international trade.

a) Support the United States granting aid to countries when extraordinary circumstances cause disaster and threaten civilian lives.
b) Support the United States granting aid to countries when it is in the security interests of the United States.
c) Eliminate United States aid for any nation with documented human rights abuses.
X d) Aid granted by the United States should be scaled back and eventually eliminated.
No a) Should the United States continue to provide leadership in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process?
Yes b) Should the United States support the creation of a Palestinian state?
No c) Should the United States impose greater international sanctions on Iran if it continues to defy United Nations mandates?
No d) Should the United States support the Lebanese government against insurgent forces?
No e) Should the United States maintain its troop levels in Iraq?
Yes f) Should the United States withdraw its troops from Iraq?
No h) Should the United States apply greater economic and diplomatic sanctions against North Korea if it fails to abide by its agreement to suspend its nuclear program?
Undecided i) Should the United States increase financial support for Afghanistan?
Undecided j) Should the United States increase military support for Afghanistan?
Yes k) Should the United States trade nuclear fuel to India for civilian purposes?
Yes l) Should the United States decrease financial support for Pakistan?
Yes m) Should the United States decrease military support for Pakistan?
No n) Should the United States be involved in bringing an end to the violence in Darfur, Sudan?
No o) Should the United States be involved in bringing an end to the violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo?
No p) Should the United States provide economic and military support to the Transitional Government of Somalia?
No q) Should the United States use sanctions to encourage the government of Zimbabwe to end its human rights abuses?
Yes r) Should the United States support the creation of an independent nation of Kosovo?
No a) Do you support the United States imposing economic sanctions on China?
No b) Do you support the United States imposing trade sanctions on Venezuela?
No c) Do you support the United States involvement in free trade agreements?
No d) Do you support the United States involvement in intergovernmental organizations dedicated to trade?
US residents pay taxes for government services. It is immoral to divert those funds to foreign governments. International charities can provide a voluntary conduit for foreign aid.
I advocate a non-interventionist foreign policy. The Iraq war is an especially egregious imperialist war, regardless of whether Iraqis benefit.
In maintaining a non-interventionist foreign policy, I would advocate for the self-determination for all, as well as self-responsibility for all.
I support a policy of free trade, not managed trade, even when it is unilateral.

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding national security.

No a) Do you support using military tribunals to try suspected terrorists when ordinary civilian courts are deemed inappropriate or impractical?
No b) Should law enforcement agencies have greater discretion to monitor domestic communications, to prevent future terrorist attacks?
No c) Should the United States hold foreign states accountable for terrorists who operate in their country?
No d) Should the federal government increase funding to states and cities for homeland security?
No e) Do you support pre-emptive military strikes against countries deemed to be a threat to United States national security?
No f) Do you support the creation of a federal identification card system?
No g) Do you support long-term use of National Guard troops to supplement the armed forces in assignments overseas?
Yes h) Should the United States expand its missile defense shield?
A non-interventionist foreign policy would vastly reduce international tensions.

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding social issues.

Yes a) Should same-sex couples be allowed to marry?
No b) Do you support a federal constitutional amendment defining marriage as between a man and a woman?
No c) Do you support federal funding for research on existing embryonic stem cell lines?
No d) Do you support federal funding to create lines of stem cells from new embryos?
No e) Should the federal government consider race and gender in government contracting decisions?
No f) Should the federal government continue affirmative action programs?
No g) Should the federal government regulate internet gambling?
While I support the right of consenting adults to contract whatever relationships they choose, I would oppose any effort to use federal law to impose that policy on the states. Immigration law must be changed to acknowledge legal same-sex relationships.

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding Social Security.

a) Allow workers to invest a portion of their payroll tax in private accounts that they manage themselves.
b) Ensure the viability of Social Security by increasing the payroll tax.
c) Decrease benefits paid to retirees.
d) Support proportional increases of Social Security benefits based on the cost of living index.
e) Raise the retirement age for individual eligibility to receive full Social Security benefits.
purchase annuities for current or near-recipients, then privatize the system.

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding welfare and poverty.

a) Require welfare recipients to spend at least 40 hours a week in a combination of work and training programs.
b) Continue to give states and local governments flexibility in and responsibility for welfare programs through federal block grants.
c) Support housing assistance for welfare recipients.
X d) Abolish all federal welfare programs.
Federal welfare programs do not aid the poor; they merely create and finance the welfare bureaucracy. Ending the income tax would leave capital in the free market which would create jobs and increase incomes. We must create wealth, not shuffle it around.
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.

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