Andrew Bakker'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.
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Andrew Bakker has provided voters with clear stances on key issues by responding to the 2015 Political Courage Test.
Virginia State Legislative Election 2015 Political Courage Test
| Pro-choice | a) Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation? | ||
| No | 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? | ||
| No | e) Do you support requiring parental notification before an abortion is performed on a minor? | ||
| No | f) Do you support requiring parental consent before an abortion is performed on a minor? | ||
| No | 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? | ||
| i) Other or expanded principles: | |||
1) Budget Stabilization:Indicate which proposals you support (if any) for balancing Virginia's budget.2) 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.3) 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.
| Yes | a) Tapping into Virginia's "rainy day" fund | ||
| Yes | b) Decreasing funding for public universities | ||
| Yes | c) Reducing state employee salaries AND/OR pensions | ||
| Yes | d) Instituting mandatory furloughs AND/OR layoffs for state employees | ||
| Yes | e) Reducing benefits for Medicaid recipients | ||
| Greatly Decrease | a) Education (higher) | ||
| Greatly Decrease | b) Education (K-12) | ||
| Greatly Decrease | c) Environment | ||
| Greatly Decrease | d) Health care | ||
| Greatly Decrease | e) Law enforcement/corrections | ||
| Greatly Decrease | f) Transportation/infrastructure | ||
| Greatly Decrease | g) Welfare | ||
| h) Other or expanded categories: | |||
| Greatly Decrease | a) Alcohol taxes | ||
| Greatly Decrease | b) Cigarette taxes | ||
| Greatly Decrease | c) Corporate taxes | ||
| Greatly Decrease | d) Small business taxes | ||
| Greatly Decrease | e) Gas/Oil taxes | ||
| Greatly Decrease | f) Property taxes | ||
| Greatly Decrease | g) Sales taxes | ||
| Eliminate | h) Income taxes (low-income families) | ||
| Eliminate | i) Income taxes (mid-income families) | ||
| Eliminate | j) Income taxes (high-income families) | ||
| k) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| It is with some reluctance that I choose the Yes answer to the question of reducing benefits to Medicaid recipients. Much of the debate around this issue is viciously personal and partisan, and often imbued with a covert or overt racism. I believe that Medicaid recipients are good people trying to provide the best care for their families. I also believe that Medicaid, like all other government programs, is beset by waste and cronyism, and I believe that there reductions to be made that could improve the financial standing of our commonwealth. | |||
a) Do you support limits on the following types of contributions for state candidates?
| No | 1) Individual | ||
| No | 2) Political Action Committee | ||
| No | 3) Corporate | ||
| No | 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? | ||
| f) 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 legalizing the possession of small amounts of marijuana? | ||
| No | d) Should a minor accused of a violent crime be prosecuted as an adult? | ||
| No | e) Do you support the enforcement of federal immigration laws by state and local police? | ||
| f) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| No | a) Do you support government spending as a means of promoting economic growth? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support lowering taxes as a means of promoting economic growth? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support reducing government regulations on the private sector? | ||
| No | d) Do you support increased state funding for job-training programs that re-train displaced workers? | ||
| No | e) Do you support expanding access to unemployment benefits? | ||
| No | f) Do you support providing financial incentives to the private sector for the purpose of job creation? | ||
| No | g) Do you support providing direct financial assistance to homeowners facing foreclosure? | ||
| No | h) Do you support an increase of the minimum wage? | ||
| i) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| No | 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? | ||
| No | f) Do you support the state government providing college students with financial aid? | ||
| Yes | g) Should illegal immigrants who graduate from Virginia high schools be eligible for in-state tuition at public universities? | ||
| The issue we face in regards to higher education is not access to financial aid but rising costs. | |||
| No | a) Do you support state funding for the development of renewable energy (e.g. solar, wind, thermal)? | ||
| 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 Virginia's energy infrastructure? | ||
| No | d) Do you support state funding for open space preservation? | ||
| No | e) Do you support government regulations of greenhouse gas emissions? | ||
| No | f) Do you support increased regulations of the hydraulic fracturing ("fracking") industry? | ||
| g) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| No | a) Do you generally support gun-control legislation? | ||
| No | 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? | ||
| No | d) Should a license be required for gun possession? | ||
| e) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| No | 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? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support interstate health insurance compacts? | ||
| No | d) Do you support Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act ("Obamacare")? | ||
| No | e) Do you support requiring individuals to purchase health care insurance? | ||
| No | 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? | ||
| Again, I'm disgusted by the state of the current debate surrounding Medicaid and the Obamacare expansion in particular. I'm unconvinced that Medicaid expansion at the state level is significantly worse than any other government program. My primary concern is cutting spending and Medicaid expansion as it has been put forth represents an increase in spending at the state level. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support same-sex marriage? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support the inclusion of sexual orientation in Virginia's anti-discrimination laws? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support the inclusion of gender identity in Virginia's anti-discrimination laws? | ||
| d) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| My top priority if elected is to legalize cannabis in the commonwealth of Virginia. It is long past time for our state government to stop wasting taxpayer money on locking up nonviolent productive citizens for their use of a plant that is less dangerous than alcohol. People with chronic diseases are being denied access to their medicine and forced to live in fear every day. Cannabis legalization means new industry an increased jobs. It means real benefits to the lives of Virginians and it will be my focus as a legislator. Second priority will be eliminating the state income tax. |
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