Issue Position: Civil Rights and Civil Liberties

Issue Position

Every American, regardless of race, creed, or religion has a right to liberty and the pursuit of happiness. As we work to keep our nation safe, we must also work to protect these freedoms.

Warrant-less Wiretapping

It is important for our intelligence community to have the tools and resources they need to protect American lives. However, this does not mean they should be able to circumvent existing laws and act without appropriate oversight.

Bill firmly believes that any surveillance conducted by the President and national security agencies must be authorized by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) courts. Without this judicial oversight, there is no real protection for the civil liberties and privacy of American citizens.

The U.S. Constitution is not a discretionary document. As a Member of Congress, Bill will defend the Constitution and ensure that no one is above the law.

Racial Profiling

A person's race, ethnicity, and national origin should have no bearing on how they are viewed or treated by the criminal justice system. Bill will support legislation that rejects racial profiling by federal agencies, both, because it is ineffective in finding terrorists and inconsistent with a society that cherishes diversity. He will work to ensure that local law enforcement groups are better able to document and prevent similar practices.

Hate Crimes

Hate crimes are committed against individuals, but they affect entire communities. Bill supports the Matthew Shepard Act, which would expand federal hate crime laws to include crimes motivated by the victim's perceived gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability. The act would also provide federal authorities with a greater ability to assist state and local law enforcement with investigations into bias-motivated crimes.

Employment Discrimination

Bill supports the Employee Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) and believes it is important to protect against both sexual orientation and gender identity-based discrimination. Bill also believes in providing equal pay for equal work and would support legislation to prohibit wage discrimination.

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