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Sam Gaskins' 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.

Sam Gaskins has provided voters with clear stances on key issues by responding to the 2016 Political Courage Test.

What is the Political Courage Test?

Kentucky Congressional Election 2016 Political Courage Test

Pro-choice Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation?
In order to balance the budget, do you support reducing defense spending?
Unknown Position In order to balance the budget, do you support an income tax increase on any tax bracket?
Yes Do you support the regulation of indirect campaign contributions from corporations and unions?
Yes 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?
Yes Do you support federal spending as a means of promoting economic growth?
Yes Do you support providing tax incentives to businesses for the purpose of job creation?
Unknown Position Do you support lowering taxes as a means of promoting economic growth?
Unknown Position Do you generally support requiring states to adopt federal education standards?
Yes Do you support building the Keystone XL pipeline?
Yes Do you support government funding for the development of renewable energy (e.g. solar, wind, thermal)?
Yes Do you support increased regulations on the hydraulic fracturing ("fracking") industry?
Do you believe that human activity is contributing to climate change?
Yes Do you support the federal regulation of greenhouse gas emissions?
Yes Do you generally support gun-control legislation?
I support the laws that are already on the books. Common sense must prevail in legislation to protect lawful and responsible owners.
No Do you support repealing the 2010 Affordable Care Act ("Obamacare")?
The ACA does need to be amended to go after the cost of healthcare versus augmenting the cost with federal funds.
No Do you support requiring immigrants who are unlawfully present to return to their country of origin before they are eligible for citizenship?
Yes Do you support same-sex marriage?
Beings the United States was founded on religious freedom, the religious argument needs to be taken out of the debate. Once the religious argument is removed there is not any secular reason for a prohibition against same sex marriage.
Should the U.S use military force in order to prevent governments hostile to the United States from possessing a nuclear weapon?
Unknown Position Do you support increased American intervention in Iraq and Syria beyond air support?
Yes Do you support allowing individuals to divert a portion of their Social Security taxes into personal retirement accounts?
If it is a personal choice, a person should have that right to opt out of Social Security. With that being said, if a person does opt out, they will give up the retirement protection Social Security provides.

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.

a) Agriculture
b) Arts
c) Defense
d) Education
e) Environment
f) Homeland Security
g) International aid
h) Medical Research
i) Scientific Research
j) Space exploration
k) United Nations
l) Welfare
m) Other or expanded categories
a) Capital gains taxes
b) Corporate taxes
c) Small business taxes
d) Excise taxes (alcohol)
e) Excise taxes (cigarettes)
f) Excise taxes (transportation fuel)
g) Income taxes (low-income families)
h) Income taxes (middle-income families)
i) Income taxes (high-income families)
j) Inheritance taxes
k) Payroll taxes
l) Other or expanded categories
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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