Richard Rajkovich's Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)
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Richard Rajkovich has demonstrated Political Courage by telling citizens where he stands on the issues he may face if elected.
Michigan 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? | ||
| No | h) Do you support the prohibition of public funds for organizations that perform abortions? | ||
| No | i) Do you support increased licensing restrictions for abortion providers? | ||
| C. Baby conceived in rape difficult; possibilities w/adoption but if abortion is legal for anyone by law it should legal for victims of incest/rape. E & F - Can minor make mature decision? - may abort out of fear not knowing she'll have parents' support. Medical history may be an issue. G. Planned Parenthood's abortion financing separate from health program which I support for public funding, PP provides needed service for low-income public. i. Current licensing procedures have been legal for years and appear to work; with no extreme claims perhaps new restrictions are a political tactic. | |||
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 Michigan's budget.
| Maintain Status | a) Education (higher) | ||
| Greatly Increase | b) Education (K-12) | ||
| Maintain Status | c) Environment | ||
| Maintain Status | d) Health care | ||
| Slightly Increase | e) Law enforcement/corrections | ||
| Greatly Increase | f) Transportation/infrastructure | ||
| Maintain Status | g) Welfare | ||
| h) Other or expanded categories: | |||
| Greatly Increase | a) Alcohol taxes | ||
| Greatly Increase | b) Cigarette taxes | ||
| Greatly Increase | c) Corporate taxes | ||
| Maintain Status | d) Gas/Oil taxes | ||
| Maintain Status | e) Property taxes | ||
| Slightly Increase | f) Sales taxes | ||
| Slightly Decrease | g) Income taxes (low-income families) | ||
| Slightly Increase | h) Income taxes (mid-income families) | ||
| Greatly Increase | i) Income taxes (high-income families) | ||
| No | j) Do you support requiring a two-thirds vote of the legislature in order to approve all future tax increases? | ||
| k) Other or expanded categories: | |||
| No | a) Tapping into Michigan's "rainy day" fund | ||
| No | b) Increasing tuition rates at public universities | ||
| No | c) Reducing or eliminating public worker collective bargaining | ||
| No | d) Reducing state employee salaries AND/OR pensions | ||
| No | e) Instituting mandatory furloughs AND/OR layoffs for state employees | ||
| No | f) Reducing benefits for Medicaid recipients | ||
| g) Other or expanded principles: | |||
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 | ||
| No | 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? | ||
| No | e) Do you support requiring a government-issued photo identification in order to vote at the polls? | ||
| No | f) Do you support Michigan's emergency manager law? | ||
| g) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| 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? | ||
| No | d) Should a minor accused of a violent crime be prosecuted as an adult? | ||
| No | e) Should a minor who sends sexually-explicit or nude photos by cell phone face criminal charges? | ||
| Yes | f) Do you support the enforcement of federal immigration laws by state and local police? | ||
| g) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| No | 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? | ||
| Yes | 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? | ||
| No | f) Do you support providing direct financial assistance to homeowners facing foreclosure? | ||
| Yes | g) Do you support a constitutional amendment affirming a right to collective bargaining in Michigan? | ||
| Yes | h) Do you support construction of a new bridge across the Detroit River to Canada? | ||
| No | i) Should Michigan allow more casinos? | ||
| Re casinos. It is my understanding that after years of negotiation agreement was reached and too, that the casinos "owners" of that agreemnt have done their diligence, kept up their part & gone beyond the agreement. Even prepaid monies agreed upon to the state coffers. Only if both parties to the agreement have no objection to reopening the contracted agreement should there be discussion of changing the original agreement parameters. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support the national Common Core State Standards initiative? | ||
| No | b) Do you support a merit pay system for teachers? | ||
| Yes | c) Is the tenure process for public school teachers producing effective teachers? | ||
| No | d) Do you support replacing pension plans for new teachers with 401(k)-style retirement plans? | ||
| No | e) Should parents be allowed to use vouchers to send their children to any school? | ||
| No | f) Do you support state funding for charter schools? | ||
| Yes | g) Do you support the state government providing college students with financial aid? | ||
| Yes | h) Should illegal immigrants who graduate from Michigan high schools be eligible for in-state tuition at public universities? | ||
| C. Tenure protects teachers from improper dismissal. IF the system does the job there are vehicles to dismiss ineffective teachers. A. Somewhat. I am concerned that it is loaded too heavy on "knowledge". A push into "higher order thinking skills" is needed. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support state funding for the development of alternative energy? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support state funding for the development of traditional domestic energy sources (e.g. coal, natural gas, oil)? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support state funding for improvements to Michigan's energy infrastructure? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support state funding for open space preservation? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support enacting environmental regulations aimed at reducing the effects of climate change? | ||
| f) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| Yes | 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? | ||
| D. License should be required for multi-clip/high volume round ammunition guns & clips. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support a universally-accessible, publicly-administered health insurance option? | ||
| No | b) Do you support expanding access to health care through commercial health insurance reform? | ||
| No | c) Do you support interstate health insurance compacts? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support requiring individuals to purchase health care insurance? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support establishing a state-run health insurance exchange? | ||
| Yes | f) Do you support monetary limits on damages that can be collected in malpractice lawsuits? | ||
| Yes | g) Do you support allowing doctors to prescribe marijuana to their patients for medicinal purposes? | ||
| h) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| No | a) Should marriage only be between one man and one woman? | ||
| Yes | b) Should same-sex couples be allowed to form civil unions? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support the inclusion of sexual orientation in Michigan's anti-discrimination laws? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support the inclusion of gender identity in Michigan's anti-discrimination laws? | ||
| Question "D": Intention of my Yes answer. If I read the question correctly, discrimination based on gender is not acceptable. | |||
| To restore communication: discussion, reason and consensus to the legislative process in the State House. Without this we do not have a democratic legislative process. Reasonable discussion will develop products that have agreement and acceptance. Re legislation: Restore funding to K-12 education, protect collective bargaining as a right and resolve voter rights/registration/ID issues. |
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