Adam Murphy'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.
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.
Adam Murphy has provided voters with clear stances on key issues by responding to the 2020 Political Courage Test.
Wisconsin State Legislative Election 2020 Political Courage Test
| Pro-choice | a) Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support legalizing abortion when the pregnancy resulted from incest or rape? | ||
| No | c) Do you support the prohibition of public funds for organizations that perform abortions? | ||
| I am ok with public funds not going specifically for abortions, as is the case now. However, organization like Planned Parenthood help decrease unwanted pregnancies and abortions, along with a slew of other women's heath issues, and so they should be funded, and we can leave abortion as a paid service. | |||
| Yes | a) In order to balance the budget, do you support reducing state employee salaries AND/OR pensions? | ||
| Yes | b) In order to balance the budget, do you support an income tax increase on any tax bracket? | ||
| These need more than Yes/No answers. Should we review pensions and salaries? Of course. Regularly. But that isn't the direct job of the legislature. I am in favor of increasing income tax on the top 1%, and especially in times of crisis, lowering income taxes on the bottom 50%. They both strengthen the economy. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support a limit 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? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support automatic voter registration? | ||
| Let's make voting easy for everyone. The GOP has done what it can to repress voter turnout. That's offensive. Districts should be non-partisan. I realize there will be some natural gerrymandering, and that's understandable and expected. But Wisconsin is awful. And as far as campaign finance, I'd love to see a state fund established for candidates, and not allow contributions at all. That will likely never happen, but I'd love to see candidates on equal financial footing, and then see what they can do. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support capital punishment for certain crimes? | ||
| Yes | b) Should an individual under 18 accused of a violent crime be prosecuted as an adult? | ||
| No | c) Do you support the enforcement of federal immigration laws by state and local police? | ||
| No | d) Do you support the use of private prisons in Wisconsin? | ||
| No | e) Do you support mandatory minimum sentences for non-violent drug offenders? | ||
| Yes | f) Do you support the legalization of recreational marijuana? | ||
| No | g) Should individuals convicted of violent crimes be eligible for early release? | ||
| Yes | h) Should law enforcement officers be protected when reporting a violation of use-of-force standards? | ||
| Again, so many of these are more than yes/no. Federal immigration laws need to be fixed, and have needed to be for a long time. The US actually needs more immigration because birth rates are now below levels needed to maintain our population. Private prisons are a terrible idea. Yes, we should legalize, decriminalize marijuana, and expunge records like Illinois is doing. Legislators shouldn't determine sentences or early release - so maybe? Officers should definitely be protected for blowing the whistle on a fellow officer. They are literally the most lethally trained members of society. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support state government spending as a means of promoting economic growth? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support lowering state income taxes as a means of promoting economic growth? | ||
| No | c) Do you support reducing government regulations on the private sector? | ||
| No | d) Do you support requiring welfare applicants to pass a drug test in order to receive benefits? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support an increase of the minimum wage of Wisconsin? | ||
| Yes | f) Do you support requiring employers to provide paid family leave? | ||
| Yes | g) Do you support providing financial relief to businesses AND/OR corporations negatively impacted by the state of national emergency for COVID-19? | ||
| Again, Yes/No isn't appropriate for these. Government spending is part of GDP, and helps actually grow the economy. It's basic economics. Lowering income taxes on the bottom 50% would increase economic activity. Increasing income taxes on the top 1% will also increase economic activity. So, both. Arbitrarily saying reduce government regulations is stupid. Make them easy to understand and beneficial to society. Drug testing for welfare is STUPID and has been repeatedly shown to cost more than it saves. Stop wasting money on shaming people. Yes, we should help parents and businesses impacted by COVID. | |||
| a) Do you support adopting federal education standards in Wisconsin? | |||
| b) Do you support state funding for charter schools? | |||
| c) Do you support increasing teacher salaries AND/OR benefits in Wisconsin? | |||
| Yes | d) Should immigrants unlawfully present in the United States who graduate from Wisconsin high schools be eligible for in-state tuition at public universities? | ||
| No | e) Do you support raising tuition at Wisconsin public universities? | ||
| the first questions are incredibly dependent on the school and situation. No easy yes/no questions there. However, education is the biggest factor in things like crime rates, incomes, satisfaction, etc. So, the more education we provide, and the better the education, the more money we have, the higher our incomes, the less crime we have, and the greater our happiness in life. It's easy. And the legal status of a person does not impact those things. They still make money, spend money, etc. As for tuition, I'd like to see us provide K-16 education in Wisconsin. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support state funding for the development of renewable energy (e.g. solar, wind, geo-thermal)? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support government regulations of greenhouse gas emissions? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support increasing state funding for clean drinking water initiatives? | ||
| How are these even questions?! Clean air and water are basic necessities of life. Solar and Wind power are the biggest growing job markets in the country. if the government doesn't regulate, then people and businesses feel freer to pollute because "the other guy is doing it to." Its the economic principle of the commons, and as such, only the government has the power to make organization not pollute. | |||
| Yes | 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 after passing gun safety training? | ||
| Yes | d) Should a license be required for gun ownership? | ||
| I'm fine with people owning guns. But yes, the vast majority of residents believe and agree with some levels of gun control, and I do as well. Background checks and waiting periods do not infringe on the "well-regulated" aspect of the 2nd Amendment. | |||
| Yes | a) Should the state government increase funding for treatment facilities to combat opioid abuse? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support Medicaid expansion through Wisconsin'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? | ||
| No | f) Do you support requiring businesses to provide paid medical leave during public health crises, such as COVID-19? | ||
| a) Studies have found legalizing marijuana actually reduces opioid use. b) $200 million every year we have lost out on. Yes, expand it. f) That's just not practical to require business to provide paid medical leave in a pandemic without significant assistance from the government. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support the inclusion of sexual orientation in Wisconsin's anti-discrimination laws? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support the inclusion of gender identity in Wisconsin's anti-discrimination laws? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support greater efforts by Wisconsin state government in closing the pay gap between men and women? | ||
| d) Do you support expanding anti-discrimination laws to include hair textures and protective hairstyles? | |||
| I don't know what the hairstyle laws refer to, so I can't answer that one. Discriminating on the basis of sex, sexual orientation, or gender identity should be outlawed. | |||
| We need more than memes and Yes/No questions, and that's been my focus during this campaign. We need to consider the ramifications of a decision beyond the first layer. | |||
| My top priority is a non-partisan method for redistricting, and that doesn't require funding. That just requires honesty. It's what drew me into the race. Beyond that, education is the factor that affects everything else the most - jobs, business, income, crime, satisfaction, even population growth. We should be encouraging education at every level K-12, college, trades, adult learning. It's an investment that economist estimate pays a 10%-15% return. |
Vote Smart does not permit the use of its name or programs in any campaign activity, including advertising, debates, and speeches.