Walt Sorg's Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)
Key
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Walt Sorg has provided voters with clear stances on key issues by responding to the 2024 Political Courage Test.
Indiana State Legislative Election 2024 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 (e.g. Medicaid) for organizations that perform abortions? | ||
| A fundamental difference between me and my opponent: I trust women. He does not. I firmly stand by the notion that the government has no place in dictating personal healthcare choices. | |||
| No | a) In order to balance the budget, do you support limiting state government spending on social programs (e.g. SNAP, TANF)? | ||
| No | b) Do you support a decrease in income taxes in order to promote economic growth? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support a wealth tax in order to pay for public programs in your state? | ||
| Indiana's tax structure is backwards: the highest percentages of taxes paid fall on low and middle-income families. Taxes should be adequate to support public services, and levied based on ability to pay. | |||
| No | a) Do you support capital punishment for violent 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? | ||
| No | e) Do you support mandatory minimum sentences for nonviolent drug offenders? | ||
| Clearly the current system does not work. We have the highest incarceration rate of any major industrial nation. Prisons have become academies for advance crime education. We need to reinvent our system in a way that combats recidivism. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support state government spending as a means of promoting economic growth (e.g. grants, tax incentives)? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support reducing state government regulations on the private sector (e.g. for business or the environment)? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support an increase of the minimum wage of Indiana? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support government spending on affordable housing projects in Indiana? | ||
| I would champion establishing Community Land Banks which restore abandoned/tax-foreclosed properties and makes them available to first-time home buyers. We also need to address the challenge created by large investors taking over single-family housing and raising housing costs for families. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support adopting federal education standards (e.g. Common Core) in Indiana? | ||
| No | b) Do you support state funding for charter schools? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support increasing teacher salaries AND/OR benefits in Indiana? | ||
| Yes | d) Should immigrants in the United States who graduate from Indiana high schools be eligible for in-state tuition at public universities, regardless of immigration status? | ||
| Immigrants (regardless of immigration status) pay taxes. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support state funding for the development of renewable energy (e.g. solar, wind, geo-thermal)? | ||
| No | b) Do you support state governments allowing permits for drilling on public lands? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support increasing state funding for clean drinking water initiatives? | ||
| Climate change is the most important challenge not just for Indiana, but for the entire planet. It is shameful that the current legislature is not considering ways for state government to do its part to reduce global warming. We can begin by electrifying public transportation (urban and school buses), and the state government fleet of autos and trucks. We also need uniform standards for expanding solar energy developments. | |||
| Yes | a)Do you support limiting campaign contributions from corporations, unions, and individuals? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support the use of an independent or bipartisan commission for redistricting? | ||
| No | c) Do you support requiring a government-issued photo identification in order to vote at the polls? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support automatic voter registration? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support the implementation of ranked choice voting in Indiana? | ||
| I was part of leading a successful drive in Michigan which ended partisan gerrymandering of legislative and congressional districts. The Michigan constitutional amendment we succeeded in adopting should be a model for Indiana. Indiana also needs much stronger campaign finance reporting requirements. Voters have a right to know who is paying for campaigns. All contributions of more than $25 must be itemized; candidates must report contributions and spending quarterly in election years. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you generally support gun-control legislation (e.g. red flag laws, closing the boyfriend loophole)? | ||
| Yes | b) Should background checks be required on gun sales between private citizens at gun shows? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support the right to concealed carry in Indiana? | ||
| I am a gun owner who supports the 2nd amendment, but rights carry with them responsibilities. We must begin with strengthening our red flag law, enacting safe storage legislation, ending the gun show loophole and requiring safe-use training as a condition of concealed carry. Allowing anyone with a pulse to conceal carry a deadly weapon with no requirement that they know how to use it safely is unjustifiable. | |||
| Yes | a) Should the state government increase funding for treatment facilities to combat opioid abuse? | ||
| No | b) Do you support a government-run (e.g. single-payer) healthcare program such as Medicare-for-All? | ||
| Yes | c) Should an individual have the right to choose to die (e.g. those with a terminal illness) through euthanasia? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support mandating vaccinations (e.g. for school or employment)? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support expanding paid family AND/OR medical leave benefits (e.g. maternity leave)? | ||
| No | f) Should the government be able to regulate the cost of prescription drugs? | ||
| No | g) Do you support banning gender affirming care for transgender youth in Indiana? | ||
| Yes | h) Do you support the legalization of marijuana for medicinal use in Indiana? | ||
| I support a vibrant government option for health insurance but believe persons should have the right to seek out coverage in the private market. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support inclusion of sexual orientation in Indiana's anti-discrimination laws? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support the inclusion of gender identity in Indiana's anti-discrimination laws? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support greater efforts by Indiana's state government in closing gender, racial, and other wage gaps? | ||
| We are all God's children. | |||
| 1. Attack climate change with state policies reducing reliance on fossil fuels, and supporting energy conservation 2. Empower the people of Indiana by ending partisan gerrymandering, eliminating artificial barriers to voting, and guaranteeing the right to enact laws/constitutional amendments through citizen petitions and referenda. 3. Strengthen public education by stopping tax funding of private schools, and significantly raising teacher pay. |
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