| OnTheIssues.org excerpts: (click on issues for details)
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Abortion
Virgil Goode: Zero funding for Planned Parenthood.
Gary Johnson: No federal funding for stem cell research.
Barack Obama: Stem cells hold promise to cure 70 major diseases.
Michael Badnarik: Veto any legislation restricting right to choose.
Michael Badnarik: Oppose government control over the abortion issue.
Wesley Clark: Let a woman and her doctors decide about reproductive health.
Wesley Clark: Women deserve access to birth control & reproductive choice.
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Budget & Economy
Roseanne Barr: Federal Reserve stole our money and our future.
Virgil Goode: Balance the budget now, not in 10 years, by cutting agencies.
Mike Huckabee: Created state surplus in AR; cut spending to do same for US.
Wesley Clark: Plan for jobs-invest in security & budget relief to states.
Wesley Clark: A healthy economy depends on long-term deficit reduction.
Bob Dole: Stop deficit spending and balance the budget.
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Civil Rights
Roseanne Barr: Laws should not restrict people on whom they can love.
Roseanne Barr: Racial profiling is not American.
Barack Obama: Same-sex couples should be allowed to marry.
Barack Obama: No federal laws should hinder state-based same-sex marriage.
Virgil Goode: No gay marriage; no gay civil unions.
Buddy Roemer: Protect sexual preference; decide gay marriage by each state.
Barack Obama: Better enforce women’s pay equity via Equal Pay Act.
Barack Obama: Strengthen the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Ralph Nader: Patriot Act associated with abuse of Muslim’s civil rights.
Michael Badnarik: Help minorities by removing barriers to self-employment.
Michael Badnarik: Let people, including gays, marry as they see fit.
Wesley Clark: Eliminate wage gap for women.
Wesley Clark: Strong enforcement of Civil Rights Act including hate crimes.
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Corporations
Rocky Anderson: End the legal concept of corporate "personhood".
Herman Cain: Excessive regulation drives up prices; market self-regulates.
Gary Johnson: Lower the tax burden; eliminate corporate tax.
Barack Obama: End tax breaks for companies that send jobs overseas.
Barack Obama: Hold corporations responsible for pensions & work conditions.
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Crime
Virgil Goode: Capital punishment for certain murders.
Gary Johnson: 1994: Proponent of death penalty, but willing to debate it.
Gary Johnson: Death penalty as a public policy is flawed.
Mike Gravel: Eliminate mandatory minimum sentencing laws.
Michael Badnarik: Require offenders to compensate their victims.
Michael Badnarik: End mandatory minimums for drug offendors.
John Edwards: More DNA testing to reduce wrongful capital convictions.
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Drugs
Roseanne Barr: End all Drug Wars; stop monopoly of subsidized prisons.
Herman Cain: Illegal immigration exacerbates horrendous drug smuggling.
Gary Johnson: Drug policy today parallels Prohibition in the 1920's.
Mike Gravel: War on drugs loses an entire generation to our prisons.
Michael Badnarik: Self-medication should be up to individuals, not government.
Michael Badnarik: Drug War also has funded terrorism.
Michael Badnarik: Block federal spending on the War on Drugs.
John Edwards: Disparity in penalty for crack vs. powder is not justified.
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Education
Roseanne Barr: Forgive all student loans; they're debt slavery.
Virgil Goode: End the federal Department of Education.
Buddy Roemer: Competition & choice are antidotes to flab & irrelevance.
Herman Cain: Expand school vouchers and charter schools.
Gary Johnson: Put educational funds in the hands of the people who use it.
Gary Johnson: End the Department of Education.
Barack Obama: STEP UP: summer learning opportunities for disadvantaged.
Barack Obama: First Senate bill: increase Pell Grant from $4,050 to $5,100.
Wesley Clark: No vouchers for private schools.
Wesley Clark: Fund Elementary & Secondary Education Act and more.
Wesley Clark: Fully fund Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
Wesley Clark: Would support initiatives to make teaching prestigious.
Wesley Clark: School buildings must be safe places to learn.
Wesley Clark: Develop flexible systems to measure schools’ success.
Wesley Clark: Will ensure universal access to pre-school.
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Energy & Oil
Virgil Goode: Drill in Alaska, in continental US, and off our coasts.
Herman Cain: Loosen government's grip; expand domestic energy resources.
Mike Gravel: Make Global Warming a matter of national security.
Michael Badnarik: End oil company subsidies & restrictions on alternatives.
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Environment
Roseanne Barr: Corporations befoul our food and water supply.
Ron Paul: Eliminate the ineffective EPA.
Mitt Romney: Replace "green jobs" program with American competitiveness.
Herman Cain: No ethanol subsidies; let markets decide forms of energy.
Mike Huckabee: Stewardship of the air and land and soil is very important.
Barack Obama: Reduce mercury and lead to protect community health.
Barack Obama: Protect the Great Lakes & our National Parks and Forests.
Michael Badnarik: Protect the environment by defending property rights.
Wesley Clark: Reinvigorate EPA action on environmental justice.
Wesley Clark: Will enforce Clean Air Act, and no net loss of wetlands.
Wesley Clark: Will hold business accountable for toxic waste.
Wesley Clark: No drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
Wesley Clark: Incentives for energy efficiency & alternative fuels.
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Families & Children
Michele Bachmann: Leading advocate for foster and adopted children.
Bill Richardson: Supports paid family leave; voted for Family & Medical Leave.
Mike Huckabee: Supports convenant marriage; adopted it in Arkansas.
Wesley Clark: Give workers flexibility & increase production.
Wesley Clark: Same sex couples should have same rights as heterosexuals.
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Foreign Policy
Roseanne Barr: Self-determination and right of return for Palestinians.
Virgil Goode: Curtail expenditures to the United Nations.
Gary Johnson: No foreign aid spending unless it protects U.S. interests.
Barack Obama: Strengthen NATO to face 21st-century threats.
Barack Obama: $50B annually to strengthen weak states at risk of collapse.
Wesley Clark: End China’s currency manipulation to help US manufacturers.
Wesley Clark: Establish “Civilian Reserve” for times of military need.
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Free Trade
Virgil Goode: No North American Union; preserve our sovereignty.
Gary Johnson: Eliminate needless barriers to free trade.
Barack Obama: Stand firm against CAFTA for labor & environmental standards.
Michael Badnarik: Peace and free trade are mutually dependent.
Wesley Clark: Labor rights are human rights: promote free and fair trade.
Wesley Clark: Free trade will work if terms are fair for labor.
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Government Reform
Roseanne Barr: Ballot Access in all 50 states; end Electoral College.
Virgil Goode: Term limits for US House & Senate.
Barack Obama: Public campaign financing with free television & radio time.
Barack Obama: Create “Google for Government” to track government spending.
Mike Gravel: Repeal the Electoral College; enact federal term limits.
Michael Badnarik: Every regulator we fire creates 150 new jobs.
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Gun Control
Virgil Goode: Co-chair of the Second Amendment Caucus.
Mike Gravel: Require license & training for gun ownership.
Michael Badnarik: Criminals won’t prey on armed victims.
Michael Badnarik: Gun control means being able to hit your target.
Wesley Clark: Enforce existing laws & close gun show loophole.
Wesley Clark: Renew ban on assault weapons, & hold gun makers accountable.
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Health Care
Virgil Goode: End ObamaCare; support tort reform.
Herman Cain: ObamaCare is health care "deform": repeal & replace.
Gary Johnson: Repeal ObamaCare & failed Medicare prescription drug benefit.
Barack Obama: Increase competition in the insurance and drug markets.
Barack Obama: National Health Insurance Exchange for private coverage.
Michael Badnarik: Tax credits for personal Health Savings Accounts.
Michael Badnarik: Excess regulations cause high pharmaceutical prices.
Wesley Clark: Insure children & make all coverage more affordable.
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Homeland Security
Roseanne Barr: Military Industrial Complex is our shadow government.
Virgil Goode: Cut defense spending, but not veterans benefits.
Gary Johnson: Let the PATRIOT Act expire; respect habeas corpus.
Gary Johnson: Due process at Guantanamo; no torture of terrorist suspects.
Buddy Roemer: No more "oil duty" for Marines: stronger but more focused.
Buddy Roemer: Patriot Act ok after full debate and temporary modifications.
Herman Cain: Best military training, equipment, & technology.
Barack Obama: Repeal Don’t-Ask-Don’t-Tell.
Barack Obama: Support veterans via the Dignity for Wounded Warriors Act.
Bill Richardson: Convince Muslims by closing Guantanamo & stopping renditions.
Mike Gravel: Raze Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib prisons to the ground.
Ralph Nader: Repeal the Patriot Act; end secret detentions.
Michael Badnarik: Mideast hatred comes from US actions, not US lifestyle.
Wesley Clark: Replace Dont-Ask-Dont-Tell with British policy.
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Immigration
Virgil Goode: Stop illegal aliens & terrorists on our Southern border.
Virgil Goode: End anchor babies and reduce legal immigration.
Jill Stein: Provide a legal path to citizenship for immigrant residents.
Gary Johnson: 2 year grace period for illegals to get work visas.
Gary Johnson: 1 strike & you're out for legal immigrants who violate terms.
Buddy Roemer: The border needs to be sealed, with no amnesty.
Herman Cain: Secure our borders; enforce our laws.
Michael Badnarik: Eliminate restriction on work permits.
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Jobs
Rick Santorum: Workers should have secret-ballot elections for unions.
Herman Cain: Employee Free Choice Act is really forced unionization.
Mike Huckabee: Supports farm subsidies & fully-funded crop insurance.
Barack Obama: Give public safety officers collective bargaining rights.
Wesley Clark: Stop rewarding companies that shift jobs overseas.
Wesley Clark: Will support unions and a fair living wage.
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Principles & Values
Herman Cain: Pledge's "under God" is a collective reaffirmation.
Barack Obama: Active in the Trinity faith community.
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Social Security
Virgil Goode: Preserve and protect Social Security.
Herman Cain: Modernize entitlements; nothing should be off the table.
Gary Johnson: Change escalator from wage-based to inflation-based.
Mike Huckabee: Replace payroll tax & fund Social Security with FairTax.
Barack Obama: Stop any efforts to privatize Social Security.
Mike Gravel: Put real money in the Trust Fund & invest it properly.
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Tax Reform
Virgil Goode: Eliminate the Death Tax; institute modified FairTax.
Herman Cain: Federal government taxes too much and too often.
Mike Gravel: Repeal the income tax and close down the IRS.
Wesley Clark: Tax simplification via a $2,250 child tax credit.
Wesley Clark: Families First tax plan: fair,progressive,simple,responsible.
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Technology
Rick Santorum: Moon base is fiscal insanity.
Rick Santorum: Moon colony is fiscal insanity during debt crisis.
Mike Huckabee: Infrastructure: Stimulus, Safety, Security, & Sustainability.
Barack Obama: Increase funding for basic research; expand broadband access.
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War & Peace
Virgil Goode: Come home from Afghanistan now.
Jill Stein: End the Oil Wars.
Buddy Roemer: Avoid occupying foreign lands: too expensive & too deadly.
Herman Cain: Diplomacy must never compromise military might.
Gary Johnson: Eliminate ineffective interventions in Iraq & Afghanistan.
Bill Richardson: Open an ideological front in the war against Jihadism.
Mike Gravel: Commence an immediate and orderly withdrawal from Iraq.
Michael Badnarik: More Americans are opposing Iraq War.
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Welfare & Poverty
Herman Cain: Safety net has become dependency on the government.
Barack Obama: Engages people of faith on all aspects of his public service.
Wesley Clark: Lift 2 million children out of poverty by 2008.
Wesley Clark: Promote homeownership; end redlining; end predatory lending.
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