Bill Ostrander's Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)
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Bill Ostrander has failed to provide voters with positions on key issues covered by the 2018 Political Courage Test, despite repeated requests from Vote Smart and voters like you.
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.
California Congressional Election 2016 Political Courage Test
| Yes | In order to balance the budget, do you support reducing defense spending? | ||
| Yes | In order to balance the budget, do you support an income tax increase on any tax bracket? | ||
| Tax increases targeted at the wealthy will be fairer than imposing new taxes on the middle class. A tax increase on the rich would not cost jobs. And, taxing the rich will benefit the economy. | |||
| Yes | Do you support the regulation of indirect campaign contributions from corporations and unions? | ||
| I am deeply committed to reforming our campaign finance system. In order to free our elected representatives from being trapped in this dynamic, we must change our system so that money is not the primary driver of elections. Without campaign finance reform, we do not have a true representative democracy. | |||
| No | Do you support capital punishment for certain crimes? | ||
| Yes | Do you support alternatives to incarceration for certain non-violent offenders such as mandatory counseling or substance abuse treatment? | ||
| No | Do you support mandatory minimum sentences for non-violent drug offenders? | ||
| Both liberals and conservatives now agree that the "war on drugs" was a failure. More jail time may result in less crime. but the costs are too high. Harsh punishments often catch street-corner dealers, not drug kingpins. The drug war's foremost legacy is a skyrocketing prison population; the number of drug offenders in federal prisons has increased 21 times since 1980. | |||
| Yes | Do you support federal spending as a means of promoting economic growth? | ||
| Yes | Do you support lowering taxes as a means of promoting economic growth? | ||
| Yes | Do you support providing tax incentives to businesses for the purpose of job creation? | ||
| Close the loophole that allows US residents and corporations to avoid paying taxes by depositing their money in the Cayman Islands, Bermuda, and other tax havens. The wealthiest will pay their fair share of taxes, but the tax rate would be around the same as during the Eisenhower era, which was 90%. As Warren Buffet reminds us, billionaires pay an effective tax rate lower than nurses or truck drivers which makes no sense at all. There has to be real tax reform. and the wealthiest and large corporations will pay what they owe. | |||
| No | Do you support requiring states to implement education reforms in order to be eligible for competitive federal grants? | ||
| While I support the president's initiative to increase Pell Grants, I do not believe tying them or other grants to education reform is fair to students and educators. | |||
| No | Do you support building the Keystone XL pipeline? | ||
| Yes | Do you support funding for the development of renewable energy (e.g. solar, wind, thermal)? | ||
| Yes | Do you support increased regulations on the hydraulic fracturing ("fracking") industry? | ||
| Fracking has prove to increase the level of methane and can result in seismic events. | |||
| Yes | Do you believe that human activity is contributing to climate change? | ||
| Yes | Do you support the federal regulation of greenhouse gas emissions? | ||
| I am committed to sustainable solutions to protect our environment and grow our economy but i realize that it will take all of us acting together to address the challenge of climate change and seize our clean-energy future. | |||
| Yes | Do you generally support gun-control legislation? | ||
| I support comprehensive licensing laws and universal background checks help ensure responsible gun ownership. The most comprehensive laws require all gun owners to possess a license and regularly renew it. Licensing laws are one method for closing the "private sale loophole" and ensuring that every person who purchases or possesses a gun has undergone a background check. Other states close the private sale loophole by requiring a background check at the point of sale of a firearm. Training and testing requirements in licensing laws ensure that gun owners understand firearms laws, and know how to safely store and handle firearms. | |||
| No | Do you support repealing the 2010 Affordable Care Act ("Obamacare")? | ||
| Republicans have attempted to repeal the ACA abut 65 times. It's time to address the real concerns of health insurance companies bailing out of participation in the state exchanges as well as continuing to negotiate or force cheaper medications and other health care costs. | |||
| No | Do you support requiring illegal immigrants to return to their country of origin before they are eligible for citizenship? | ||
| The 11 million undocumented immigrants currently living in the United States collectively paid $11.64 billion in state and local taxes. Their combined nationwide, state an local tax contributions could increase by $805 million under full implementation of the administration's 2012 and 2014 executive actions and by $2.1 billion under comprehensive immigration reform. The data show undocumented immigrants greatly contribute to our nation's economy, not just in labor but also with tax dollars. | |||
| Yes | Do you support same-sex marriage? | ||
| More than 23 countries have legalized same-sex marriage and yet, 31 US state constitutional amendments banning legal recognition of same-sex unions have been adopted. The Supreme Court is deadlocked on the issue and only groundswell of public support will put pressure on to assure gender equality. | |||
| No | Do you support targeting suspected terrorists outside of official theaters of conflict? | ||
| Yes | Should the U.S use military force in order to prevent governments hostile to the United States from possessing a nuclear weapon? | ||
| No | Do you support allowing individuals to divert a portion of their Social Security taxes into personal retirement accounts? | ||
SpendingIndicate what federal spending levels (#1-6) you support for the following general categories. Select one number per category; you can use a number more than once.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.
| Slightly Increase | a) Agriculture | ||
| Greatly Increase | b) Arts | ||
| Maintain Status | c) Defense | ||
| Greatly Increase | d) Education | ||
| Slightly Increase | e) Environment | ||
| Greatly Decrease | f) Homeland Security | ||
| Slightly Increase | g) International aid | ||
| Greatly Increase | h) Medical Research | ||
| Greatly Increase | i) Scientific Research | ||
| Greatly Increase | j) Space exploration | ||
| Slightly Increase | k) United Nations | ||
| Greatly Increase | l) Welfare | ||
| m) Other or expanded categories | |||
| Greatly Increase | a) Capital gains taxes | ||
| Slightly Increase | b) Corporate taxes | ||
| Slightly Decrease | c) Small business taxes | ||
| Maintain Status | d) Excise taxes (alcohol) | ||
| Slightly Increase | e) Excise taxes (cigarettes) | ||
| Slightly Decrease | f) Excise taxes (transportation fuel) | ||
| Greatly Decrease | g) Income taxes (low-income families) | ||
| Greatly Decrease | h) Income taxes (middle-income families) | ||
| Maintain Status | i) Income taxes (high-income families) | ||
| Greatly Increase | j) Inheritance taxes | ||
| Maintain Status | k) Payroll taxes | ||
| l) Other or expanded categories | |||
| 1. Campaign Finance Reform: I am deeply committed ti reforming our campaign finance system. We need to reduce financial influence, level the playing field so candidates can compete equitably for public office and foster greater citizen participation in political process. 2. Agriculture's Role in Fighting Climate Change: Agriculture creates more than 20 percent of our carbon footprint and approximately 35 percent of the planets greenhouse gas emissions. We must address the sources of agriculture-related carbon emissions [...] 3. Student Debt and National Service: I propose a coordinated national civil service program. |
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