Kyle Tisdel's Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)
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Kyle Tisdel has provided voters with clear stances on key issues by responding to the 2020 Political Courage Test.
New Mexico Congressional Election 2020 Political Courage Test
| Pro-choice | Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation? | ||
| I believe in a woman's autonomy over her body, period. This is an incredibly personal choice, and our government has no role in legislating that choice away. Limitations or bans on abortion only serve the make it more dangerous, the impact of which is disproportionately experienced by the poor and vulnerable. | |||
| Yes | In order to balance the budget, do you support an income tax increase on any tax bracket? | ||
| Yes | Do you support expanding federal funding to support entitlement programs such as Social Security and Medicare? | ||
| I am not a budget hawk, and believe in modern monetary theory and the notion that there are a number of tools to keep inflation in check. Moreover, our government always seems to find the money to wage war, but budget concerns only seem to arise when it comes to improving our safety net and taking care of people. Neoliberal policies of deregulation and free markets have dramatically increased inequity and undermined our democracy. Our wealthiest people and corporations should pay their fair share. | |||
| Yes | Do you support the regulation of indirect campaign contributions from corporations and unions? | ||
| Money in politics has been an issue for a long time, and the floodgates have now opened with Citizens United. We should have comprehensive campaign finance reform that eliminates the outsized influence of wealthy individuals, corporations, and lobbyists. I support the public funding of our elections for qualifying candidates. | |||
| No | Do you support increasing defense spending? | ||
| We spend vastly more in defense spending than any other nation on earth, now over $730 billion per year. We must ensure the commitments to our soldiers and veterans are met, while also reigning in the military industrial complex. | |||
| Yes | Do you support federal spending as a means of promoting economic growth? | ||
| No | Do you support lowering corporate taxes as a means of promoting economic growth? | ||
| Yes | Do you support providing financial relief to businesses AND/OR corporations negatively impacted by the state of national emergency for COVID-19? | ||
| We are in the midst of a climate emergency, and thus need to use the full power of the government to manage the decline of the fossil fuel economy and transition to the clean economy of tomorrow. This must include public investment in innovation and technology, as well as the modernization of infrastructure necessary to spur this transition. We must have greater transparency of accountability of corporations. In response to COVID-19, I support investment in individuals and small businesses, but oppose corporate bailouts without significant conditions on the use of funds. | |||
| Yes | Do you support requiring states to adopt federal education standards? | ||
| I believe Common Core standards are important in the harmonization of education expectations across states, while allowing states and school districts to develop curriculum. I believe more education resources are needed to prepare our students for the economy and world they will inherit. We also must address educational inequities and improve opportunities for students in areas with a lower tax base. I also support expanded public education funding, both for early learning as well as higher education in trade schools, community colleges, and public universities. | |||
| Yes | Do you support government funding for the development of renewable energy (e.g. solar, wind, geo-thermal)? | ||
| Yes | Do you support the federal regulation of greenhouse gas emissions? | ||
| We are in a climate emergency, and our federal government must align our national commitments with warming thresholds to preserve a livable planet. Our government spends almost $650 billion per year in direct and indirect subsidies of the fossil fuel industry. That must end. We must employ every available tool to accelerate the decarbonization of our society and manage a just transition to a clean energy economy. This includes a managed decline of fossil fuels, holding industry accountable for a legacy of pollution, and facilitating the expansion of renewables, storage and efficiency. | |||
| Yes | Do you generally support gun-control legislation? | ||
| When a republican Congress allowed the assault-weapons ban to expire in 2004, we have witnessed a corresponding increase in deadly mass shootings that have plagued our schools, places of worship, and public spaces. We can ensure 2nd Amendment rights are respected, while also creating common sense gun control. We must not only reinstitute an assault weapons ban, but impose gun licensing requirements to protect our communities and support responsible gun ownership, as well as close loopholes to prevent access to dangerous and unstable individuals. | |||
| No | Do you support repealing the 2010 Affordable Care Act ("Obamacare")? | ||
| Yes | Do you support requiring businesses to provide paid medical leave during public health crises, such as COVID-19? | ||
| I believe medical coverage is a right, not a privilege. The COVID-19 health crisis has shown us the gaps in the current system, where over 30 million have filed for unemployment and many have also lost their insurance. I believe we need to move toward Medicare for All, where healthcare is not tied to employment. We can substantially lower costs by eliminating corporate greed and administrative costs, while improving care. We must also ensure access to healthcare, including various incentive programs to promote rural health facilities and expanded access. | |||
| No | Do you support the construction of a wall along the Mexican border? | ||
| No | Do you support requiring immigrants who are unlawfully present to return to their country of origin before they are eligible for citizenship? | ||
| We need comprehensive immigration reform, including a pathway to citizenship for those already contributing to the fabric of our communities. We should end policies of family separation and the unjust detention and deportation of asylum seekers. It is predicted there will be 700 million climate refugees by mid-century, which will occur both from within and outside our borders. We must implement and moral and just process for managing human dislocation at this scale, which will require a vast increase in resources and a comprehensive approach toward integrating individuals into our communities. | |||
| No | Should the United States use military force to prevent governments hostile to the U.S. from possessing a weapon of mass destruction (for example: nuclear, biological, chemical)? | ||
| Yes | Do you support reducing military intervention in Middle East conflicts? | ||
| We should rely on expanded diplomacy and international alliances to prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, with military force only used as a last resort where there is an active threat. Congress should reassert its power as the sole decision-making body with the ability to declare war, and we should manage the withdraw of our military intervention across the globe. Similarly, we should end the proliferation of weapons production in our own country, including current plans for expanded nuclear pit production, and instead focus resources on the cleanup and safe decommissioning of our nuclear arsenal. | |||
| No | Do you generally support removing barriers to international trade (for example: tariffs, quotas, etc.)? | ||
| We should maintain and, in fact, expand our ability to impose conditions on trade deals. In particular, we should implement measures that ensure climate commitments are being met, as well as for labor standards and human rights conditions with trade partners. This is critical to avoid a race to the bottom, as well as to facilitate global action from both nations and corporations to rapidly decarbonize our global economy. Such conditions also protect American workers and small businesses. But this will also require our commitment to help developing nations leapfrog carbon-intensive industrial practices and implement green solutions. | |||
| We are in a climate crisis, requiring the rapid transformation of our society and economy to maintain a livable planet. Aligning law and policy with warming thresholds is my top priority. At the center of this transformation we must have an unwavering focus on justice and equity. We must manage the decline of fossil fuels, expand zero carbon infrastructure, and diversify our economy. To accomplish this, we must improve how we take care of people by improving the safety net, including Medicare for all, worker guarantees and labor standards, reinvesting in education, building landscape and community resilience. |
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