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Monica Sohler

Other Party
Policy Positions

Monica Sohler's campaign website highlights the following issues:

Abortion & Reproductive Issues:

Pro-life a) Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation?
No b) Should abortion be legal when the pregnancy resulted from incest or rape?
Yes c) Should abortion be legal when the life of the woman is endangered?
Yes d) Do you support the prohibition of public funds for organizations that perform abortions?
  e) Other or expanded principles:
I do not support violent solutions for women or families. Abortion is an act of violence against women and children. We can and should do better. I do not support direct abortion in any case, but indirect abortion (side effect of other treatment) for life and serious health reasons I would support. I support social services to aid women and give them viable options other than abortion.

Budget, Spending, & Tax Issues:

1) Budget Stabilization:
Indicate which proposals you support (if any) for balancing New Jersey's budget.
No a) Reducing state employee salaries AND/OR pensions
No b) Instituting mandatory furloughs AND/OR layoffs for state employees
No c) Reducing benefits for Medicaid recipients
No d) An income tax increase on any tax bracket
  e) Other or expanded principles:
A better answer to all the above questions is "it depends". I believe NJ should honor its commitments to current employees, but new hires should use a 401k, as most taxpayers who support them do. We cannot continue with a pension system far more generous than most taxpayers have. But I do not support removing pension benefits from those already promised them. Tax increases on the wealthy "depends". They are a last resort to me. I am opposed to Tax increases on middle and working class. Mandatory layoffs are last resort.

Campaign Finance & Government Reform Issues:

a) Do you support limits on the following types of contributions for state candidates?
Yes 1) Individual
Yes 2) Political Action Committee
No 3) Corporate
Yes 4) Political Party
Yes b) Do you support requiring full and timely disclosure of campaign finance information?
Yes c) Do you support the regulation of indirect campaign contributions from corporations and unions?
Yes d) Do you support the use of an independent AND/OR bipartisan commission for redistricting?
Yes e) Do you support requiring a government-issued photo identification in order to vote at the polls?
  f) Other or expanded principles:
I'm open to considering voter ID laws ONLY if they are not restricting a registered voters ability to vote. IDs would have to be free and easy to get for registered voters. So it's less a "yes" and more an "open to" in my answer.

Crime & Public Safety Issues:

No a) Do you support capital punishment for certain crimes?
Yes b) Do you support alternatives to incarceration for certain non-violent offenders, such as mandatory counseling or substance abuse treatment?
No c) Do you support legalizing the possession of small amounts of marijuana?
No d) Should a minor accused of a violent crime be prosecuted as an adult?
No e) Do you support the enforcement of federal immigration laws by state and local police?
Yes f) Do you support delaying the seizure of assets by law enforcement officials until after a conviction?
  g) Other or expanded principles:
On immigration I think common sense needs to be used. Again, "it depends" We need a massive overhaul to federal immigration law. Most of us would not be here if strict immigration laws were on the books in past centuries. I do not believe in hunting down illegal immigrants and I support a congressional law similar to DACA. However violent criminals should be deported. Flaunting federal law is not a solution but I do not want to live in a "where are your papers" world. At times state and local should assist Feds.

Economic Issues:

No a) Do you support government spending as a means of promoting economic growth?
Yes b) Do you support lowering taxes as a means of promoting economic growth?
Yes c) Do you support reducing government regulations on the private sector?
Yes d) Do you support expanding access to unemployment benefits?
No e) Do you support requiring welfare applicants to pass a drug test in order to receive benefits?
Yes f) Do you support an increase of the minimum wage?
No g) Do you support legalized state-sponsored sports betting in New Jersey?
No h) Do you support a tax on short-term housing rentals in New Jersey?
  i) Other or expanded principles:
I support drug tests as long as anyone receiving tax dollars, including state legislators and contractors, are also required to receive them-- not just Wefare recipients. Also, there needs to be an appeal process and consideration made for the possibility of false positive tests. Government spending to promote economic growth and tax cuts for the same are another "it depends" answer. Show me it will work and I'll support it.

Education Issues:

No a) Do you support the national Common Core State Standards initiative?
Yes b) Do you support state funding for charter schools?
No c) Should immigrants unlawfully present in the United States who graduate from New Jersey high schools be eligible for in-state tuition at public universities in New Jersey?
  d) Other or expanded principles:
Teachers need to be free to teach in the best way possible for their students.

Environment & Energy Issues:

Yes a) Do you support state funding for the development of renewable energy (e.g. solar, wind, thermal)?
Yes b) Do you support state funding for open space preservation?
Yes c) Do you support government regulations of greenhouse gas emissions?
  d) Other or expanded principles:
Both the development of renewable energy and greenhouse emissions restrictions I would conditionally support. We have a lot of insane restrictions on businesses. We need to have common sense regulations that are proven to benefit the common good. I strongly support open space preservation.

Gun Issues:

No 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 citizens be allowed to carry concealed guns?
Yes d) Should a license be required for gun possession?
  e) Other or expanded principles:
Gun control- it depends. Again we need common sense. NJ has absurdly restrictive gun laws. I believe in getting input from police regarding gun laws. We want to restrict criminals, but not law abiding citizens. I am no fan of guns, but I believe in looking logically at what works over restrictions that provide no public benefit.

Health Issues:

Yes a) Do you support a universally-accessible, publicly-administered health insurance option?
Yes b) Do you support Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act ("Obamacare")?
No c) Do you support requiring individuals to purchase health care insurance?
No d) Do you support allowing doctors to prescribe marijuana to their patients for medicinal purposes?
  e) Other or expanded principles:
Supporting single payer medicine is something we need to seriously look into, however I am not solidly on board. We need to make sure benefits outweigh problems, and we need also preserve patients freedoms. I am very open to the idea.

Social Issues:

No a) Do you support same-sex marriage?
Yes b) Do you support the inclusion of sexual orientation in New Jersey's anti-discrimination laws?
No c) Do you support the inclusion of gender identity in New Jersey's anti-discrimination laws?
  d) Other or expanded principles:
I do not believe in actively opposing same sex marriage as the Supreme Court has ruled. I do believe in protecting legitimate conscience objections of businesses in all matters. My inclination is to get the government out of the marriage business altogether.