Connecticut State Legislative Election 2012 Political Courage Test

Abortion & Reproductive

1. Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation?
- Pro-life

2. Should abortions be illegal after the first trimester of pregnancy?
- No

3. Should abortion be legal when the pregnancy resulted from incest or rape?
- Yes

4. Should abortion be legal when the life of the woman is endangered?
- Yes

5. Do you support requiring parental notification before an abortion is performed on a minor?
- Yes

6. Do you support requiring parental consent before an abortion is performed on a minor?
- Yes

7. Do you support the prohibition of public funds for abortion procedures?
- Yes

8. Do you support the prohibition of public funds for organizations that perform abortions?
- No

9. Other or expanded principles
- I am personally pro-life but also have sincere libertarian concerns about our state or federal government being involved in legislation abortion. I introduced a bill requiring parental notification prior to an abortion being performed on a minor in the Connecticut General Assembly in 2011.

Budget, Spending, & Tax

1. Education (higher)
- Maintain Status

2. Education (K-12)
- Maintain Status

3. Environment
- Maintain Status

4. Health care
- Maintain Status

5. Law enforcement/corrections
- Maintain Status

6. Transportation/infrastructure
- Maintain Status

7. Welfare
- Greatly Decrease

8. Other or expanded categories
- Greatly Decrease

1. Alcohol taxes
- Greatly Decrease

2. Cigarette taxes
- Greatly Decrease

3. Corporate taxes
- Greatly Decrease

4. Gas/Oil taxes
- Greatly Decrease

5. Property taxes
- Greatly Decrease

6. Sales taxes
- Greatly Decrease

7. Income taxes (low-income families)
- Greatly Decrease

8. Income taxes (mid-income families)
- Greatly Decrease

9. Income taxes (high-income families)
- Greatly Decrease

10. Other or expanded categories
- Greatly Decrease

1. Tapping into Connecticut's "rainy day" fund
- No

2. Increasing tuition rates at public universities
- No

3. Reducing or eliminating public worker collective bargaining
- Yes

4. Reducing state employee salaries AND/OR pensions
- Yes

5. Instituting mandatory furloughs AND/OR layoffs for state employees
- Yes

6. Reducing benefits for Medicaid recipients
- No

7. Other or expanded principles
- I believe that we need to reduce the size and scope of government. This includes the number of state employees. It also means that state employees should be compensated similarly to private sector employees and that the state should compete for the best candidates for the best pay just like any other employer.

Campaign Finance & Government Reform

1. Individual
- No

2. Political Action Committee
- No

3. Corporate
- No

4. Political Party
- No

5. Should candidates for state office be encouraged to meet voluntary spending limits?
- No

6. Do you support requiring full and timely disclosure of campaign finance information?
- Yes

7. Do you support greater public disclosure of donors for all organizations that seek to influence elections?
- No

8. Do you support the use of an independent AND/OR bipartisan commission for redistricting?
- Yes

9. Do you support requiring a government-issued photo identification in order to vote at the polls?
- Yes

1. Other or expanded principles
- I believe the first amendment to our US Constitution absolutely does apply to political speech and as such it should not be limited in any way. Regarding f) - This is an absolute requirement to ensuring clean, lawful elections. Any opposition to this is based in political posturing and manipulation, not in common sense or fact.

Crime & Public Safety

1. Do you support capital punishment for certain crimes?
- Yes

2. Do you support alternatives to incarceration for certain non-violent offenders, such as mandatory counseling or substance abuse treatment?
- Yes

3. Do you support decriminalizing the possession of small amounts of marijuana?
- Yes

4. Should a minor accused of a violent crime be prosecuted as an adult?
- Yes

5. Should a minor who sends sexually-explicit or nude photos by cell phone face criminal charges?
- Yes

6. Do you support the enforcement of federal immigration laws by state and local police?
- Yes

7. Other or expanded principles
- e) The question is too vague to answer properly. If it's a crime, yes prosecute.. If not, no. not sure if the question wants to define a new crime or ask my opinion on existing crime applying to minors.

Economic

1. Do you support reducing government regulations on the private sector?
- Yes

2. Do you support increased state funding for job-training programs that re-train displaced workers?
- No

3. Do you support expanding access to unemployment benefits?
- No

4. Do you support providing financial incentives to the private sector for the purpose of job creation?
- No

5. Do you support increased spending on infrastructure projects for the purpose of job creation?
- No

6. Do you support providing direct financial assistance to homeowners facing foreclosure?
- No

7. Other or expanded principles
- Less Government, more freedom and opportunity. Leave the money in the hands of the citizens who will spend it and grow our economy. Government intervention is what caused the economic problems we are currently facing. Each of these options above will only result in more inconsistency, and less economic growth.

Education

1. Do you support the national Common Core State Standards initiative?
- No

2. Do you support a merit pay system for teachers?
- Yes

3. Is the tenure process for public school teachers producing effective teachers?
- No Answer

4. Should parents be allowed to use vouchers to send their children to any school?
- Yes

5. Do you support state funding for charter schools?
- Yes

6. Do you support the state government providing college students with financial aid?
- No

7. Should illegal immigrants who graduate from Connecticut high schools be eligible for in-state tuition at public universities?
- No

8. Other or expanded principles
- c) The question doesn't mean anything. I believe teachers are effective or they are not. Whether they have tenure has nothing to do with it. As far as education, I believe we need LOCAL CONTROL, not some big bureacracy on the fed or state level mandating behavior for individual towns and school districts. Major cities are different from rural areas & should be run differently on a different set of rules. This is why we have local & municipal governments to make local decisions. I say we let them. This will create competition between communities for the best schools.

Environment & Energy

1. Do you support state funding for the development of alternative energy?
- No

2. Do you support state funding for the development of traditional domestic energy sources (e.g. coal, natural gas, oil)?
- No

3. Do you support state funding for improvements to Connecticut's energy infrastructure?
- Yes

4. Do you support state funding for open space preservation?
- Yes

5. Do you support enacting environmental regulations aimed at reducing the effects of climate change?
- No

6. Other or expanded principles
- I believe our government should be restricted to what's contained in our state and US constitutions. I also believe that the private sector has shown that it can do a far better job of creating big leaps in technology, not to mention science and medicine. Let Exxon and Mobil compete over how they will provide energy in the future and what new advancements will be made. Spending taxpayer dollars on this research has proven far less fruitful.

Gun

1. Do you support restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns?
- No

2. Should background checks be required on gun sales between private citizens at gun shows?
- Yes

3. Should citizens be allowed to carry concealed guns?
- Yes

4. Should a license be required for gun possession?
- No

5. Other or expanded principles
- Please see the US Constitution, Bill of Rights, Amendment II

Health

1. Do you support a universally-accessible, publicly-administered health insurance option?
- No

2. Do you support expanding access to health care through commercial health insurance reform?
- Yes

3. Do you support interstate health insurance compacts?
- Yes

4. Do you support requiring individuals to purchase health care insurance?
- No

5. Do you support monetary limits on damages that can be collected in malpractice lawsuits?
- No

6. Do you support allowing doctors to prescribe marijuana to their patients for medicinal purposes?
- Yes

7. Other or expanded principles
- There is a common thread to all of my answers. They all revolve around maximum freedoms for individuals and also free markets to determine the availability and costs of products and services. - Incidentally, this is what the founders intended and what our Constitution provides for. A government take over of healthcare will have a chilling and devastating impact on our freedoms. Bureacrats will then control what food is available, what we eat, and whether we are deserving of healthcare treatments based on our age, diet etc.

Social

1. Should marriage only be between one man and one woman?
- Yes

2. Should Connecticut continue to grant marriage licenses to same-sex couples?
- No

3. Do you support the inclusion of sexual orientation in Connecticut's anti-discrimination laws?
- No

4. Do you support the inclusion of gender identity in Connecticut's anti-discrimination laws?
- No

5. Other or expanded principles
- I believe the government should NOT be in the business of marriage. We should have nothing but civil unions for everyone as far as the government is concerned. Marriage would then be up to individuals and their religious institutions as to what should or should not be recognized.

Legislative Priorities

In the following area, on an attached page, or via e-mail, please explain in a total of 100 words or less, your top two or three priorities if elected. If they require additional funding for implementation, please explain how you would obtain this funding.
- 1. Eliminate wasteful and excessive government spending. 2. Reduce the tax burden on individuals and businesses. 3. Improve the business climate in Connecticut by eliminating unnecessary red tape and regulation.