Mike Van Someren's Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)
On The Ballot: Running, Democratic for State Senate (WI) - District 33
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.
Mike Van Someren did not provide voters with positions on key issues covered by the 2022 Political Courage Test, despite repeated requests from Vote Smart and voters like you.
Issue Positions
For Presidential and Congressional candidates who refuse to provide voters with their positions, Vote Smart has researched their public records to determine their likely responses. These issue positions are from 2022.
- "The government does not belong in the private medical decisions of citizens of this country. The decision to have an abortion is a healthcare decision that is to be made by the woman making the decision. Congress needs to step up NOW and codify Roe." (twitter.com)
- "The government does not belong in the private medical decisions of citizens of this country. Whether to have an abortion is a health care decision that is to be made by the person who is pregnant and whomever they decide to include in making their deeply personal choice. Congress has failed to codify Roe, despite Americans overwhelming support for the fundamental right to privacy and access to abortion care." (www.mikevansomeren.com)
- Despite exhaustive research, Vote Smart was unable to find information about this candidate's position.
- "Continuing on with my plan to #RestoreOurDemocracy â we MUST reduce big-money influence in our elections. The Citizens United case opened the floodgates to corporations and other big-money donors to secretly influence campaigns." (twitter.com)
- "Continuing on with my plan to #RestoreOurDemocracy we MUST reduce big-money influence in our elections. The Citizens United case opened the floodgates to corporations and other big-money donors to secretly influence campaigns." (twitter.com)
- "The Citizens United case opened the floodgates to corporations and other big-money donors to secretly influence campaigns. We need to ensure that organizations that spend big money in elections, including SuperPACS, social welfare groups, 527s, and anyone else, are forced to disclose the names of their donors and the amounts given by those donors." (www.mikevansomeren.com)
- "When new officers are hired, emphasis must be placed on adding highly qualified individuals who are held to high standards. Those who fall short must be held accountable. To put more good recruits in the pipeline, we should invest in training programs and partner with schools to promote law enforcement as an attractive career option. To help hold poor performing officers accountable, we need federal whistleblower protections within the ranks." (www.mikevansomeren.com)
- Despite exhaustive research, Vote Smart was unable to find information about this candidate's position.
- "Fitzgerald voted against the #InflationReductionAct which is expected to create over 500,000 jobs & has resulted in the announcement of several major new investments by major manufacturers. We need leaders who will stop with party politics & work for us." (twitter.com)
- "We can enact common-sense plans to tackle the climate crisis and preserve our environment with sustainable practices while, at the same time, grow our economy and create family-supporting, middle-class jobs. Happy #EarthDay2022" (twitter.com)
- "While the infrastructure bill was finally signed into law in 2021, we still need to make significant investments in infrastructure to meet the standard of living that Americans expect and deserve. This includes ensuring that affordable and reliable high speed internet can be obtained anywhere in the U.S. Our regulations need to be rewritten to ensure that our shipping, transportation, and port infrastructure can quickly and efficiently move imports and exports throughout the country. Importantly, Congress should work to prohibit laws that protect legacy industries especially in terms of infrastructure. One high profile example of this are those state laws that prohibit municipalities from forming their own internet service providers. These laws should be prohibited because internet service has become so integral to the economy that it is truly a utility and something that municipalities should be able to provide to their constituents." (www.mikevansomeren.com)
- Despite exhaustive research, Vote Smart was unable to find information about this candidate's position.
- "Fitzgerald voted against the #InflationReductionAct which is expected to create over 500,000 jobs & has resulted in the announcement of several major new investments by major manufacturers. We need leaders who will stop with party politics & work for us." (twitter.com)
- "Inflation is running rampant now and one of the best ways to address it is to increase competition among companies. Antitrust law needs to be revamped by congress. At the same time profit margins for the largest corporations are increasing and the rich are getting richer at a faster pace than ever. This suggests that a significant portion of inflation is due to price gouging or corporate greed. In a truly competitive market, this type of conduct would be punished by competitors seeking an opportunity to grow their business through better pricing. We dont have the necessary competition right now so we need to create it." (www.mikevansomeren.com)
- "President Bidens student debt relief plan is a great first step addressing the student loan crisis. Recap: Bidens plan includes up to $10K in student loan forgiveness for borrowers making up to $125K per year." (twitter.com)
- "We should forgive student debt as part of a revamp of our higher ed system" (twitter.com)
- "Our most fundamental right as Americans is the right to vote for our leaders and make our voices heard through that vote, and we as Americans should demand that this fundamental right, to be a government of the people, be protected above all others. To do this, we need federal legislation that creates a clear baseline of voting protections for citizens of every state in the Union. States that wish to provide more protections and take additional steps to increase the integrity and ease of voting should be free to do so, as long as they meet these basic standards." (www.mikevansomeren.com)
- "We need to embrace voter ID as a method of providing faith in our election system while still ensuring full access to the polls for every voter. We can do this by ensuring that more forms of ID are acceptable for voting, and by making it easy and free to obtain IDs for voting purposes." (www.mikevansomeren.com)
- "This tweet makes me think he doesn't read the bills he votes on. If he did, Fitzgerald would know the Inflation Reduction Act is a huge investment in clean energy but is also an "all of the above" energy bill. Best way to secure energy is to have many sources." (twitter.com)
- "We can enact common-sense plans to tackle the climate crisis and preserve our environment with sustainable practices while, at the same time, grow our economy and create family-supporting, middle-class jobs. Happy #EarthDay2022" (twitter.com)
- Despite exhaustive research, Vote Smart was unable to find information about this candidate's position.
- "Iâm a gun owner and a 2nd Amendment supporter, and Iâm also an advocate for doing whatever we can to stop guns from getting into the wrong hands, and treating gun violence as the public health crisis it has proven to us time and again that it is." (twitter.com)
- "It took 8 days but Fitzgerald finally had a comment on the safety of our children. More school funding is great but let's also pass & fund gun safety laws supported by most Americans: âªï¸Univ. Background Checks âªï¸Red Flag Laws âªï¸Mental health/Domestic Violence Restrictions" (twitter.com)
- "Im a gun owner and a 2nd Amendment supporter, and Im also an advocate for doing whatever we can to stop guns from getting into the wrong hands, and treating gun violence as the public health crisis it has proven to us time and again that it is." (twitter.com)
- "I support universal background checks and the enforcement of straw purchase laws, and cracking down on dealers who violate the regulations. In states in which universal background checks are in place, gun deaths have decreased. Meanwhile, states that have not implemented universal background checks have seen their gun deaths increase. I will work to improve coordination and communication between federal agencies like ATF and FBI and state & local law enforcement agencies to quickly identify dangerous individuals and share information." (www.mikevansomeren.com)
- "It took 8 days but Fitzgerald finally had a comment on the safety of our children. More school funding is great but let's also pass & fund gun safety laws supported by most Americans: ??Univ. Background Checks ??Red Flag Laws ??Mental health/Domestic Violence Restrictions" (twitter.com)
- Despite exhaustive research, Vote Smart was unable to find information about this candidate's position.
- Despite exhaustive research, Vote Smart was unable to find information about this candidate's position.
- "#insulin was discovered over 100 years ago. While the cost of production has come down the price to patients has increased over 1,000%. This a kitchen table issue Americans rightfully expect govt to address. We need people in govt to address these issues now!" (twitter.com)
- Despite exhaustive research, Vote Smart was unable to find information about this candidate's position.
- "Immigration laws should be revamped and then enforced while at all times treating the immigrants (legal or otherwise) as the human beings they are." (twitter.com)
- Despite exhaustive research, Vote Smart was unable to find information about this candidate's position.
- "My prayers are with the people of Ukraine as they defend their right to govern themselves through their democratically elected government. The unprovoked invasion of Ukraine by Russia must be condemned &with our allies, we must do everything we can to assist the Ukrainian people." (twitter.com)
- "Congress should implement a tax on companies that have more than twenty percent (20%) of their workforce on government rental or food assistance. This would include those companies that use a franchise or dealership model. If companies business model relies on paying wages to workers that are so low those workers require taxpayer assistance to live. Those companies are being subsidized by us. Therefore, those same companies that are being subsidized with that taxpayer assistance should pay for that subsidy." (www.mikevansomeren.com)
- "On this Tax Day an estimated $1T of income taxes that are due and owing will go unpaid (often intentionally by the richest among us). We need officials that will fund our govt so it can do its job and make sure everyone pays what they owe, i.e., their fair share!" (twitter.com)
- "The first step in rebuilding the middle class is to provide incentives in the form of grants, loan programs, or tax credits for companies in industries that are deemed vital to national security (e.g., the production of pharmaceuticals, semiconductors and microchips, medical supplies, and food)." (www.mikevansomeren.com)
Vote Smart does not permit the use of its name or programs in any campaign activity, including advertising, debates, and speeches.