Robert Montgomery Thomas' Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)
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Robert Montgomery Thomas has demonstrated Political Courage by telling citizens where he stands on the issues he may face if elected.
Massachusetts State Legislative Election 2012 Political Courage Test
| Pro-life | a) Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation? | ||
| Yes | b) Should abortions be illegal after the first trimester of pregnancy? | ||
| Yes | c) Should abortion be legal when the pregnancy resulted from incest or rape? | ||
| Yes | d) Should abortion be legal when the life of the woman is endangered? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support requiring parental notification before an abortion is performed on a minor? | ||
| Yes | f) Do you support requiring parental consent before an abortion is performed on a minor? | ||
| Yes | g) Do you support the prohibition of public funds for abortion procedures? | ||
| Yes | h) Do you support the prohibition of public funds for organizations that perform abortions? | ||
| i) Other or expanded principles: | |||
1) 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.2) 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.3) Budget Stabilization:Indicate which proposals you support (if any) for balancing Massachusetts's budget.
| Slightly Decrease | a) Education (higher) | ||
| Slightly Decrease | b) Education (K-12) | ||
| Slightly Decrease | c) Environment | ||
| Slightly Decrease | d) Health care | ||
| Slightly Increase | e) Law enforcement/corrections | ||
| Maintain Status | f) Transportation/infrastructure | ||
| Greatly Decrease | g) Welfare | ||
| h) Other or expanded categories: | |||
| Maintain Status | a) Alcohol taxes | ||
| Maintain Status | b) Cigarette taxes | ||
| Slightly Decrease | c) Corporate taxes | ||
| Greatly Decrease | d) Gas/Oil taxes | ||
| Slightly Decrease | e) Property taxes | ||
| Greatly Decrease | f) Sales taxes | ||
| Greatly Decrease | g) Income taxes (low-income families) | ||
| Slightly Decrease | h) Income taxes (mid-income families) | ||
| Maintain Status | i) Income taxes (high-income families) | ||
| j) Other or expanded categories: | |||
| No | a) Tapping into Massachusetts's "rainy day" fund | ||
| No | b) Increasing tuition rates at public universities | ||
| Yes | c) Reducing or eliminating public worker collective bargaining | ||
| Yes | d) Reducing state employee salaries AND/OR pensions | ||
| Yes | e) Instituting mandatory furloughs AND/OR layoffs for state employees | ||
| No | f) Reducing benefits for Medicaid recipients | ||
| As to Medicare benefit reduction: Unfair question - not specific enough. Gets a no for that reason. | |||
a) Do you support limits on the following types of contributions for state candidates?
| Yes | 1) Individual | ||
| Yes | 2) Political Action Committee | ||
| Yes | 3) Corporate | ||
| Yes | 4) Political Party | ||
| Yes | b) Should candidates for state office be encouraged to meet voluntary spending limits? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support requiring full and timely disclosure of campaign finance information? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support the use of an independent AND/OR bipartisan commission for redistricting? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support requiring a government-issued photo identification in order to vote at the polls? | ||
| OCPF per Interpretive Bulletin 88-01 allows unions to contribute up to $15,000 per calendar year in the aggregate for one or several candidates in excess of and plus the $500 "limit." Guess which party gets to take advantage of that sweet deal? | |||
| No | a) Do you support capital punishment for certain crimes? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support alternatives to incarceration for certain non-violent offenders, such as mandatory counseling or substance abuse treatment? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support decriminalizing the possession of small amounts of marijuana? | ||
| Yes | d) Should a minor accused of a violent crime be prosecuted as an adult? | ||
| Yes | e) Should a minor who sends sexually-explicit or nude photos by cell phone face criminal charges? | ||
| No | f) Do you support allowing for more judicial discretion in Massachusetts's "three strikes" law? | ||
| Yes | g) Do you support the enforcement of federal immigration laws by state and local police? | ||
| On capital punishment: The appeals process over a 10 or 12 year period costs taxpayers much more than incarceration for life without the possibility of parole. In the case of someone wrongly accused and convicted, an innocent person gets spared in the process. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support reducing government regulations on the private sector? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support increased state funding for job-training programs that re-train displaced workers? | ||
| No | c) Do you support expanding access to unemployment benefits? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support providing financial incentives to the private sector for the purpose of job creation? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support increased spending on infrastructure projects for the purpose of job creation? | ||
| Yes | f) Do you support providing direct financial assistance to homeowners facing foreclosure? | ||
| No | g) Do you support allowing bars and restaurants to offer daily or hourly discounts on alcoholic beverages? | ||
| No | h) Do you support extending the state's 5-cent deposit law to plastic water bottles and other non-carbonated beverages? | ||
| i) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support the national Common Core State Standards initiative? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support a merit pay system for teachers? | ||
| No | c) Is the tenure process for public school teachers producing effective teachers? | ||
| Yes | d) Should parents be allowed to use vouchers to send their children to any school? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support state funding for charter schools? | ||
| Yes | f) Do you support the state government providing college students with financial aid? | ||
| No | g) Should illegal immigrants who graduate from Massachusetts high schools be eligible for in-state tuition at public universities? | ||
| As to state government providing college students with financial aid, the students should be from the state in which the college is located and there should be some quid pro quo in that the student, upon graduation, will work in the state that provided the aid for a definitive period of time to help replenish the funds, through taxation or otherwise, so that other students may be helped later on. | |||
| No | a) Do you support state funding for the development of alternative energy? | ||
| No | b) Do you support state funding for the development of traditional domestic energy sources (e.g. coal, natural gas, oil)? | ||
| No | c) Do you support state funding for improvements to Massachusetts's energy infrastructure? | ||
| No | d) Do you support state funding for open space preservation? | ||
| No | e) Do you support enacting environmental regulations aimed at reducing the effects of climate change? | ||
| f) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| No | a) Do you support restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns? | ||
| Yes | b) Should background checks be required on gun sales between private citizens at gun shows? | ||
| Yes | c) Should citizens be allowed to carry concealed guns? | ||
| Yes | d) Should a license be required for gun possession? | ||
| As to license requirements: A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security... etc., etc. There are those among us who might use a licensed weapon to harm another person without justification. Once that happens, the license should be revoked for a time certain for the good of society. If a person acts so egregiously while in possession of a gun that said person could be considered dangerous, then his or her licence to own or carry should be permanently revoked. | |||
| No | a) Do you support a universally-accessible, publicly-administered health insurance option? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support expanding access to health care through commercial health insurance reform? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support interstate health insurance compacts? | ||
| No | d) Do you support requiring individuals to purchase health care insurance? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support monetary limits on damages that can be collected in malpractice lawsuits? | ||
| Yes | f) Do you support allowing doctors to prescribe marijuana to their patients for medicinal purposes? | ||
| Yes | g) Do you support the legalization of physician-assisted suicide for those with a terminal diagnosis and less than six months to live? | ||
| PAS is a complex issue. While I am pro-life when it comes to a fetus who cannot speak for its self, a sentient adult should have the right to determine for him or her self which avenue they want to use to finally achieve relief from pain and misery. There is no way that I should be involved in the decision making and there is no way that I should be able to disallow the terminally ill the right to his or her choice. | |||
| Yes | a) Should marriage only be between one man and one woman? | ||
| No | b) Should Massachusetts continue to grant marriage licenses to same-sex couples? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support the inclusion of sexual orientation in Massachusetts's anti-discrimination laws? | ||
| No | d) Do you support the inclusion of gender identity in Massachusetts's anti-discrimination laws? | ||
| Regarding marriage licenses for same-gender couples, the law was never changed as ordered by the Supreme Judicial Court, which had no authority to order either of the other co-equal branches of government to do anything. It is my opinion that all such "marriages" are invalid. Same-gender couples are entitled to whatever loving relationship they want in the privacy of their homes as do male-female couples, but the term marriage should be reserved for one man-one woman relationships. | |||
| I will prioritize the following issues: PUBLIC PENSIONS: Prevent fraud and excessive payouts to greedy politicians and their corrupt enablers. STATE INCOME AND SALES TAX REDUCTION: Roll back the sales tax from 6.25% to 5%. Roll back the state income tax level to 5%: Voted, guaranteed and ignored over and over again ? just another empty promise. TORT REFORM: Cap malpractice awards and legal fees to help reduce uncontrollable health care costs. STAND YOUR GROUND UPDATE TO THE CASTLE DOCTRINE LAW: Senate Bill 661 is missing important language and needs revising to be successful. |
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