Michael Northbird'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.
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.
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Michael Northbird has provided voters with clear stances on key issues by responding to the 2018 Political Courage Test.
Minnesota State Legislative Election 2018 Political Courage Test
| Pro-choice | a) Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation? | ||
| Yes | b) Should abortion be legal when the pregnancy resulted from incest or rape? | ||
| No | c) Do you support the prohibition of public funds for organizations that perform abortions? | ||
| Aside from the absurdity of unfairly regulating women in a form of sex discrimination (there are no laws regarding men and their bodies or health choices), anybody who truly cares about life should be just as concerned about having safe regulated facilities in order to save the lives of those who would seek abortion assistance regardless of it's legality, no different than the fact that we all know there are choices people make everyday that aren't necessarily considered legal and yet they choose them anyway. | |||
1) Budget Stabilization:Indicate which proposals you support (if any) for balancing Minnesota's budget.
| No | a) Reducing state employee salaries AND/OR pensions? | ||
| No | b) Instituting mandatory furloughs AND/OR layoffs for state employees? | ||
| No | c) Reducing benefits for Medicaid recipients? | ||
| No | d) An income tax increase on any tax bracket? | ||
| e) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support any limits on campaign contributions to state candidates? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support the regulation of indirect campaign contributions from corporations and unions? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support the use of an independent AND/OR bipartisan commission for redistricting? | ||
| No | d) Do you support requiring a government-issued photo identification in order to vote at the polls? | ||
| Minnesota voters already decided this. | |||
| No | a) Do you support capital punishment for certain crimes? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support the legalization of marijuana for recreational purposes? | ||
| No | c) Should a minor accused of a violent crime be prosecuted as an adult? | ||
| No | d) Do you support the enforcement of federal immigration laws by state and local police? | ||
| e) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support state government spending as a means of promoting economic growth? | ||
| No | b) Do you support lowering state taxes as a means of promoting economic growth? | ||
| No | c) Do you support reducing state government regulations on the private sector? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support expanding access to unemployment benefits? | ||
| No | e) Do you support requiring welfare applicants to pass a drug test in order to receive benefits? | ||
| Yes | f) Do you support an increase of the minimum wage of Minnesota? | ||
| g) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support adopting federal education standards in Minnesota? | ||
| No | b) Do you support state funding for charter schools? | ||
| Yes | c) Should immigrants unlawfully present in the United States who graduate from Minnesota high schools be eligible for in-state tuition at public universities? | ||
| d) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support state funding for the development of renewable energy (e.g. solar, wind, thermal)? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support state government regulations of greenhouse gas emissions? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support increasing state funding for clean drinking water initiatives? | ||
| Our future, and the future of the generations to come, depend on it. | |||
| No | a) Do you generally support gun-control legislation? | ||
| Yes | b) Should background checks be required on gun sales between private citizens at gun shows? | ||
| No | c) Should teachers be allowed to bring guns into the classroom? | ||
| Yes | d) Should a license be required for gun ownership? | ||
| a) I support gun-violence prevention, not gun-control legislation, including adding bump stocks to the list of trigger activators. b) The gun show "loophole" must be closed. c) Teachers are teachers, not law enforcement, and a majority of them oppose such absurdity. d) The license, much like a drivers license, must also be updated periodically and would include both handgun purchase and concealed-carry permitting as well all in one package. | |||
| Yes | a) Should the state government increase funding for treatment facilities to combat opioid abuse? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support Medicaid expansion through Minnesota's health care programs? | ||
| No | c) Do you support requiring individuals to purchase health care insurance? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support legislation that grants citizens the right to choose to die through euthanasia? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support eliminating religious exemptions for vaccinations? | ||
| Yes | f) Do you support requiring assisted-living facilities to be licensed by the state? | ||
| Yes | g) Do you support a state tax on all prescription opioids? | ||
| Regarding my answer to d), what I would support is allowing the people of the state to vote on the issue rather than just pushing legislation through. Regarding my answer to g), taxing prescription opioids would provide millions of dollars towards treatment and prevention programs and hold drug manufacturers and distributors accountable for it. In addition, I support protecting consumers and/or taxpayers from absorbing the costs/losses associated with the tax. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support the inclusion of sexual orientation in Minnesota's anti-discrimination laws? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support the inclusion of gender identity in Minnesota's anti-discrimination laws? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support greater efforts by Minnesota state government in closing the pay gap between men and women? | ||
| No | d) Do you support increasing penalties on protesters who obstruct traffic, freeways, or access to airports? | ||
| e) Other or expanded principles: | |||
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