Robert Pendleton's Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)
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Robert Pendleton has provided voters with clear stances on key issues by responding to the 2018 Political Courage Test.
California Congressional Election 2018 Political Courage Test
| Pro-choice | Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation? | ||
| I am a social progressive and I strongly support a woman's right to choose, but have reservations about late term abortions. The decision to have an abortion is difficult, and personal, and is best left to be made in private by a woman in consultation with her physician and closest confidants. The drawn out debate over abortion rights is an example of government regulations attempting to impinge upon our personal freedoms and it's a powerful reminder of why 50% of our congress men should be moderate congress women. | |||
| Yes | In order to balance the budget, do you support an income tax increase on any tax bracket? | ||
| Yes | In order to balance the budget, do you support reducing defense spending? | ||
| Yes, but only under very limited circumstances. I am a fiscal conservative. I support balanced budgets, but I recognize that doing so will require compromise, and I am not in favor of a balanced budget amendment. Deficit spending is one of the few economic tools nations have available to them in times of economic recessions, and in times of war. Were we to face the threat of a direct invasion or profound economic recession, deficit spending may be necessary as a temporary measure to ensure our economic or physical security. Implementing a truly fair flat-tax might raise taxes for some. | |||
| Yes | Do you support the regulation of indirect campaign contributions from corporations and unions? | ||
| Running for office as a third party candidate has made this very obvious to me. The Supreme Court Decision in Citizens United, allowing unrestricted campaign donations from corporations, while individuals are currently restricted to $2,700, will undoubtedly go down in history as the Supreme Court's greatest blunder since Dred Scott. | |||
| Yes | Do you support federal spending as a means of promoting economic growth? | ||
| Yes | Do you support lowering corporate taxes as a means of promoting economic growth? | ||
| Federal spending is a recognized means for stimulating economic growth, but it needs to be applied judiciously, and in the case of deficit spending, should be restricted to times of dire need, such as profound economic recession or war. The government is too bloated and redundant, and taxes are too high. For example, 30% of our work force is licensed by states. Why are there thousands of redundant state licensing boards? The Portability of our Professions Act, that I have proposed, would allow licensed professionals to work in any state, effectively eliminating 98% (49 of 50) of state licensing boards. | |||
| No | Do you support requiring states to adopt federal education standards? | ||
| I believe it is safe to say that I have more education than any other congressional candidate, ever. Education was my vehicle to prosperity and my fulfillment of the American Dream, so I am a stanch advocate for education. But I am a fiscal conservative, and I am opposed to federal regulation of education. Education occurs on a local level. Education is an economic market, and the skyrocketing price of education is a product of well meaning, but harmful government intervention. The relatively free availability of student loans has distorted the educational marketplace with the unintended consequence of skyrocketing costs. | |||
| Yes | Do you support government funding for the development of renewable energy (e.g. solar, wind, thermal)? | ||
| Yes | Do you support the federal regulation of greenhouse gas emissions? | ||
| Protection of it's citizens is one of Government's primary mandates, and protecting the quality of the air we breathe and the water we drink are fundamental roles for federal regulation. The challenge becomes in the crafting of regulation that steers our Nation in the right direction without becoming overly manipulative. To take a simple example for clarification, I think it is acceptable for the government to specify that restaurants should have fire extinguishing systems installed over their grills, but specifying how much they can charge for a meal would be going too far. More funding of scientific research is needed. | |||
| Yes | Do you generally support gun-control legislation? | ||
| I support our constitutional right to bear arms, with reasonable limits. Legislation to enact stricter screening processes for purchasing fire arms, raising the age limit for purchasing guns, and a prohibition of military style assault weapons are all reasonable compromises that do not contradict the spirit and intention of the second amendment. 70% of all violent deaths worldwide are due to murder, more than double the rate of death from war, and a disturbing proportion of these murders are committed with military style weapons. Lets get these weapons off of our streets. Even children can figure this one out. | |||
| Yes | Do you support repealing the 2010 Affordable Care Act ("Obamacare")? | ||
| Elimination of the "pre-existing condition" insurance exclusions, and allowing children to remain on their parents' insurance policies to age 26 were positive changes. However, as a practicing physician working with patients every day, Obamacare was a complete failure in every other way. Our physicians lost their catastrophic health insurance. Our employee insurance plan more than doubled in cost. Patient deductibles went way up, and patient co-pays were higher than what we had been previously charging. I support a free market based alternative with Medicare dollars deposited into personal HSA accounts, under your control, that you could pass-on to your heirs. | |||
| No | Do you support the construction of a wall along the Mexican border? | ||
| Yes | Do you support requiring immigrants who are unlawfully present to return to their country of origin before they are eligible for citizenship? | ||
| I believe in a merit based system of immigration. Let's determine what types of citizens we need the most, and allow those to come in, whether they be software engineers or farm workers. Let's strengthen our nation and our economy by giving priority to workers that we need most. Removing economic incentives like sanctuary cities and deporting immigrants while they await citizenship will do far more to stem the tide of illegal immigration than building a physical wall, and a "virtual wall" patrolled by drones could be deployed far quicker, and at a far lower cost, than a physical wall. | |||
| Yes | Do you support the legalization of marijuana for recreational purposes? | ||
| Federally, marijuana is classified as a schedule 1 controlled substance. According to our Federal Government, that means that marijuana is considered to be highly dangerous, with no medicinal use, and a high potential for abuse leading to severe psychological or physical dependence. None these assertions are true for marijuana ! Marijuana is far safer than alcohol, and marijuana regulation in this country needs to be changed. I support legislation to reclassify Marijuana under federal law; taxation of marijuana sales would bring a windfall of government revenue and free law enforcement to work on more urgent priorities. | |||
| Yes | Should the United States use military force in order to prevent governments hostile to the U.S. from possessing a nuclear weapon? | ||
| No | Do you support increased American intervention in Middle Eastern conflicts beyond air support? | ||
| Depending upon future circumstances, I might support increase intervention in the middle east, but currently I do not. The end game of international relations should always be world peace, with tolerance for the sovereign rights of nations. However, effective diplomacy depends upon leveraging US military superiority, and summarily backing away from military engagement emboldens our enemies. Acts of aggression like the expansion of Russia into Ukraine, and the proliferation of nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons of mass destruction are less likely when the US shows a willingness to retaliate using military force. | |||
| Empower MODERATES and REFORM CONGRESS with TERM LIMITS and elimination of gerrymandering. 50% of our congress-men should be moderate congress-WOMEN. Only socially progressive, fiscally conservative moderates can truly reach across the aisle, find compromise, and unleash congressional gridlock. Prioritize Federal Spending based upon Science and Reason. Our air, our water, and our coastline are under attack. Hunger and Homelessness are problems that need higher priority. Shrink government, increasing personal and economic freedoms. Health care saving using the power of free markets: empower patients to be consumers by depositing Medicare dollars into health savings accounts that the patient owns. |
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