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Books by and about 2020 presidential candidates
Crippled America,
by Donald J. Trump (2015)
United,
by Cory Booker (2016)
The Truths We Hold,
by Kamala Harris (2019)
Smart on Crime,
by Kamala Harris (2010)
Guide to Political Revolution,
by Bernie Sanders (2017)
Where We Go From Here,
by Bernie Sanders (2018)
Promise Me, Dad ,
by Joe Biden (2017)
Conscience of a Conservative,
by Jeff Flake (2017)
Two Paths,
by Gov. John Kasich (2017)
Every Other Monday,
by Rep. John Kasich (2010)
Courage is Contagious,
by John Kasich (1998)
Shortest Way Home,
by Pete Buttigieg (2019)
The Book of Joe ,
by Jeff Wilser (2019; biography of Joe Biden)
Becoming,
by Michelle Obama (2018)
Our Revolution,
by Bernie Sanders (2016)
This Fight Is Our Fight,
by Elizabeth Warren (2017)
Higher Loyalty,
by James Comey (2018)
The Making of Donald Trump,
by David Cay Johnston (2017)
Books by and about the 2016 presidential election
What Happened ,
by Hillary Clinton (2017)
Higher Loyalty ,
by James Comey (2018)
Trump vs. Hillary On The Issues ,
by Jesse Gordon (2016)
Hard Choices,
by Hillary Clinton (2014)
Becoming ,
by Michelle Obama (2018)
Outsider in the White House,
by Bernie Sanders (2015)

Book Reviews

(from Amazon.com)

(click a book cover for a review or other books by or about the presidency from Amazon.com)

Sunday Political Talk Show interviews during 2015, interviewing presidential hopefuls for 2016


    Click on a participant to pop-up their full list of quotations
    from Sunday Political Talk Show interviews during 2015 (number of quotes indicated):
  • Barack Obama (1) Democratic President (elected 2008)
  • Ben Carson (38) HUD Secretary
  • Bernie Sanders (26) Democratic Presidential candidate
  • Bobby Jindal (9) Louisiana Republican 2016 Presidential candidate
  • Carly Fiorina (30) California SBA Director
  • Chris Christie (35) New Jersey N.J. Governor; Republican Presidential candidate
  • Donald Trump (53) Republican Presidential candidate
  • George Pataki (4) New York Republican presidential candidate
  • Hillary Clinton (4) Democratic Presidential candidate
  • Howard Dean (1) Democrat
  • James Webb (9) Former Virginia Senator; Democratic Presidential candidate
  • Jeb Bush (41) Florida Former FL Governor; Republican Presidential candidate
  • Jim Gilmore (3) Republican presidential candidate
  • John Kasich (51) Ohio Republican Governor
  • Lawrence Lessig (15) Massachusetts Democrat for President
  • Lincoln Chafee (5) Rhode Island Independent Rhode Island Governor
  • Lindsey Graham (20) South Carolina S.C. Senator; Republican Presidential candidate
  • Marco Rubio (14) FL Senator; Republican Presidential candidate
  • Martin O`Malley (13) Maryland Democratic Presidential candidate
  • Mike Bloomberg (2) New York Mayor of NYC
  • Mike Huckabee (24) Arkansas Republican Presidential candidate
  • Newt Gingrich (1) Republican
  • Rand Paul (34) Republican 2016 Primary Challenger
  • Rick Perry (19) Texas Secretary of Energy
  • Rick Santorum (7) Republican Presidential candidate
  • Scott Walker (19) Wisconsin WI Governor; Republican Presidential candidate
  • Ted Cruz (8) Republican 2016 Primary Challenger
    OR click on an issue category below for a subset.
This collection of excerpts comes from the five Sunday Talk Show interviews, during 2015, of 2016 presidential hopefuls.

    A long-standing political tradition is the Sunday morning talk show, beginning with "Meet the Press" in 1947. Currently, five separate "talking head" programs appear on five different TV stations every Sunday morning.

    Making an appearance on all five talk shows on one Sunday is known as a Full Ginsburg, because it was first accomplished by William Ginsburg (Monica Lewinsky's attorney) in 1998.

    In 2013, both Jeb Bush and Marco Rubio accomplished a Full Ginsburg, fueling speculation that both are planning a presidential run in 2016.

    In 2014, John Kerry was the only person to accomplish a Full Ginsburg, but no one thinks he is planning a presidential run in 2016.

    In 2015 so far, White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough accomplished a Full Ginsburg in the follow-up to the January 2015 State of the Union speech.

    OnTheIssues.org excerpts all five of the shows, listed below, with their respective interviewing pundits and each pundit's political affiliation:

  • ABC This Week: (George Stephanopoulos; liberal; from Bill Clinton's staff)
  • CNN "State of the Union": (Candy Crowley; moderate liberal)
  • Fox News Sunday: (Chris Wallace; conservative)
  • Meet the Press: (Chuck Todd; moderate)
  • CBS Face the Nation: (Bob Schieffer; moderate; ran briefly as Democrat for governor of Texas in 2009)

 OnTheIssues.org excerpts:  (click on issues for details)
Abortion
    Ben Carson: Need civil discussion between pro-life and pro-choice.
    Mike Huckabee: Pro-life rhetoric not to blame in clinic shootout.
    Mike Huckabee: Abortion should be illegal but not criminal.
    Donald Trump: Defund Planned Parenthood.
    Martin O`Malley: A decision to abort is between a woman and her doctor.
    Jeb Bush: Defund Planned Parenthood, but not with federal shutdown.
    Lawrence Lessig: I would veto a law defunding Planned Parenthood.
    Carly Fiorina: Fund health clinics for non-abortion & alternative services.
    Carly Fiorina: GOP should shut government to defund Planned Parenthood.
    Chris Christie: Put defunding of Planned Parenthood on the president's desk.
    John Kasich: Federal shutdown ineffective in defunding Planned Parenthood.
    Scott Walker: We defunded Planned Parenthood in a blue state.
    Chris Christie: Successfully defunded Planned Parenthood in New Jersey.
    Ben Carson: Was personally against abortion; but what others do matters.
    Ben Carson: Planned Parenthood historically targets black communities.
    Ben Carson: Drugs OK to prevent conception in instances of rape & incest.
    Donald Trump: Planned Parenthood is important, but abortions must stop.
    John Kasich: Reasonable exceptions, but respect other opinions.
    Mike Huckabee: Taking innocent life does not solve problem of rape.
    Ben Carson: I spent my career saving the lives of little babies.
    Marco Rubio: Abortion is complex issue; we must reduce the number of them.
    Rand Paul: Fund community health centers instead of Planned Parenthood.
    Rand Paul: Force a Senate vote on defunding Planned Parenthood.
    Scott Walker: Ban abortion after 20 weeks at both state & federal level.
    Jeb Bush: Husband of Terri Schiavo blames Bush for harassment.
Budget & Economy
    Donald Trump: Strong on debt limit; ask for a pound of flesh.
    Chris Christie: Cut taxes and reduce spending, while creating new jobs.
    Carly Fiorina: Simplify tax code and reduce regulation.
    Rick Perry: Dodd-Frank should focus on Wall Street, not community banks.
    Rick Perry: Federal Reserve & Wall Street actions have hurt our economy.
    Bobby Jindal: Reduced size of government in Louisiana.
    Rick Perry: Texas is primarily responsible for national job creation.
    Bernie Sanders: Economic issues take a larger toll on minority groups.
    Donald Trump: If debt reaches $24T, that's the point of no return.
    Martin O`Malley: Reinstate Glass-Steagall: separate investments from banking.
    Bernie Sanders: We've transferred trillions from middle class to the top 1%.
    John Kasich: Wall Street is vital for the US, but often times too greedy.
    Lincoln Chafee: Widening disparity of wealth hurts the middle class.
    John Kasich: National tour to call for a balanced-budget amendment.
    John Kasich: Balanced Budget Forever: promote constitutional amendment.
    Ted Cruz: Top 1% under Obama got fat & happy while workers are hurting.
    Rand Paul: Is the Fed too big to be audited?
Civil Rights
    Donald Trump: I'm "fine" with affirmative action, for now.
    Lawrence Lessig: LGBT rights secured constitutionally; now work on statute.
    Lawrence Lessig: Aggressively support transgendered social recognition.
    Scott Walker: Prohibit discrimination in the workplace, but no equal pay.
    Lawrence Lessig: I am a libertarian on free speech issues.
    John Kasich: Government employees should comply with gay marriage ruling.
    Mike Huckabee: The court's ruling on gay marriage was unconstitutional.
    Chris Christie: Churches can use sexual orientation; businesses can't.
    Donald Trump: After Supreme Court vote, gay marriage is a reality.
    Donald Trump: I'm no misogynist; I put women in charge of construction.
    John Kasich: Can respect and love gay people.
    Ben Carson: Political correctness undermines Black Lives Matter movement.
    Donald Trump: Obama's presidency has done nothing for African Americans.
    Jim Gilmore: 2007: yes to traditional marriage; no to civil unions.
    Jim Gilmore: Traditional marriage is the appropriate thing.
    Bernie Sanders: Black Lives Matter: deal with institutional racism.
    James Webb: Doing away with Confederate iconography is secondary issue.
    Bernie Sanders: Right to love each other, regardless of sexual orientation.
    Ted Cruz: Supreme Court gay rights ruling undermines the Constitution.
    John Kasich: I support traditional marriage, but it's time to move on.
    Lindsey Graham: Respect Supreme Court decision & fight for religious liberty.
    Rick Perry: Would attend same-sex marriage of a family member.
    Mike Huckabee: Don't force children to accept transgender choice by others.
    Rick Santorum: Fight gay marriage ruling, but not with civil disobedience.
    Martin O`Malley: Led Maryland to 2012 same-sex marriage law.
    Rand Paul: Marriage for heterosexuals; contracts for same-sex couples.
    Bobby Jindal: Ok to deny services to gays based on religious beliefs.
    Bobby Jindal: Let's have religious liberty without anti-gay discrimination.
    Rick Santorum: Push for religious liberty in workplace, but not anti-gay.
    Rand Paul: I don't believe in rights based on your behavior.
    Jeb Bush: Let businesses express religious freedom against gays.
    Rand Paul: Gay contracts ok, but gay marriage is offensive.
    Ben Carson: Give gays rights, but not marriage, because it's a choice.
    Jeb Bush: Respect civil unions & same-sex lifetime commitments.
    Jeb Bush: 1994: LGBT protections are tantamount to elevating sodomy.
Corporations
    Lawrence Lessig: We need a new law to take on Wall Street.
    Bernie Sanders: Wall Street business model is a fraud & led us to recession.
    Bernie Sanders: Casino-type capitalism causes devastating problems.
    Carly Fiorina: US should uplift small businesses, not crony capitalism.
    Carly Fiorina: Crony capitalism is alive and well: focus on small business.
    Carly Fiorina: As CEO, laid off 30,000 workers but doubled size of company.
    Chris Christie: Overhaul ridiculous tax system so companies stop leaving.
Crime
    Jeb Bush: Death penalty a tough call, but victims' families benefit.
    Scott Walker: Independent investigation for any death in police custody.
    John Kasich: Save money by converting prisoners to taxpayers.
    John Kasich: Community must understand challenge of police & deadly force.
    Chris Christie: Community policing will avoid African-American police deaths.
    Donald Trump: Black lives matter, but we need strong police presence.
    John Kasich: Death penalty is consistent with justice & Christian values.
    Martin O`Malley: I was re-elected as Baltimore mayor because I made progress.
    John Kasich: My policies worked to integrate police and community in Ohio.
    Jeb Bush: 1994: build more prisons; serve longer sentences.
    Jeb Bush: 1990s: punishment over therapy; 2010s: that hardens people.
    Newt Gingrich: On Ferguson: stop when a policeman tells you to stop.
    Martin O`Malley: I reduced both violent crime and incarceration rates.
Drugs
    Chris Christie: Allow private sector to offer drug treatment programs.
    Chris Christie: Treatment, not jail, for drug addicts; it's a disease.
    Donald Trump: Yes to medical marijuana; otherwise, decide state by state.
    Ben Carson: Exposure to marijuana results in decreased IQ.
    Carly Fiorina: I don't support legal pot, but I support states' pot choice.
    Donald Trump: 1990: Drug enforcement is a joke; 2015: only medical pot.
    Marco Rubio: Medical marijuana could be OK, but not recreational use.
    Jim Gilmore: I'm not a legalization guy.
    Lincoln Chafee: Taxing legal pot to fix potholes is appealing.
    Marco Rubio: No responsible way to recreationally use marijuana.
    Rick Santorum: Colorado has no right to violate federal drug laws.
    George Pataki: OK to legalize if we can contain addiction and kids' access.
    Mike Bloomberg: No legalization; pot lowers IQ by 5 to 10 points.
    Ted Cruz: I foolishly smoked pot when young, but never since.
Education
    Donald Trump: Cut Department of Education and Common Core.
    Chris Christie: Teachers unions are not for education of our children.
    Carly Fiorina: School choice is the only way to fix education.
    Donald Trump: Common Core is a disaster.
    Chris Christie: Free college is ludicrous, but we can reduce the cost.
    Carly Fiorina: Common Core limits choices; vouchers allow choices.
    Scott Walker: Tuition cap on University of Wisconsin; then reform tenure.
    Marco Rubio: Professor of political science at Florida International U.
    Mike Bloomberg: Push Voc-Ed: plumbers earn more than Harvard grads.
    Scott Walker: High school football is ok if practiced responsibly.
    Mike Huckabee: I'm against Common Core; it differs from its original intent.
    Jeb Bush: 1994: cut Department of Education from 2,000 to 50 staff.
Energy & Oil
    Chris Christie: Keystone pipeline would have minimal environmental impact.
    Lawrence Lessig: Stop subsidizing oil companies & their pollution.
    Jeb Bush: Create a North American energy strategy.
    Donald Trump: Windmills are destroying shorelines all over the world.
    Donald Trump: Solar hasn't caught on because it has a 32-year payback.
    John Kasich: Climate change is a real issue, but the extent is unproven.
    Donald Trump: Maybe some climate change is manmade, but not all.
    Rick Perry: Defend Keystone XL and other oil & gas exploration.
    Carly Fiorina: Regulation won't stop climate change.
    Rick Santorum: Nothing the US could do will affect global warming.
Environment
    Bernie Sanders: Climate change will lead to international security crises.
    Donald Trump: Cut the EPA; what they do is a disgrace.
    Donald Trump: Eminent domain is a very useful tool for job creation.
    Carly Fiorina: New EPA regulations will destroy livelihoods & industries.
    Carly Fiorina: EPA thinks that a fish is more important than 1000's of jobs.
    John Kasich: We should not worship environment like pantheists.
    Mike Huckabee: Climate change is questionable; address other issues instead.
    Lindsey Graham: Climate change is real, but don't make a religion of it.
    Jeb Bush: 1990s: Compensate landowners; 2010s: state-run conservation.
Families & Children
    Lawrence Lessig: Sexually abused by his choir teacher as a schoolboy.
    Lawrence Lessig: 2008:Criticized Catholic Church for immunity on sexual abuse.
    Bernie Sanders: 1972: wrote fictional "satire" about men oppressing women.
    Mike Huckabee: Don't allow kids to listen to toxic music like Beyonce.
Foreign Policy
    Ben Carson: Trust experts to decide rules of engagement for ISIS.
    Ben Carson: Political solution must accompany military solution in Syria.
    Jeb Bush: Russia won't be an ally in Syria but maintain communication.
    Mike Huckabee: Muslim nations must fight ISIS; sanction those that don't.
    Martin O`Malley: Need to move towards 'networked intelligence'.
    Jeb Bush: Islamic terrorism has co-opted Islamic religion.
    Jeb Bush: America needs to lead in fight against Assad and ISIS.
    John Kasich: No more dickering & delays: Syria's Assad has got to go.
    Jeb Bush: Obama/Clinton/Kerry foreign policy caused global instability.
    Chris Christie: No relations with Cuba until they stop harboring fugitives.
    Donald Trump: Diplomacy & respect crucial to our relationship with Russia.
    Bernie Sanders: Address humanitarian crisis in Syria with allies in region.
    John Kasich: Keep Iran accountable, WITHIN the existing Nuclear Deal.
    John Kasich: Syrian refugee situation is fundamentally a European crisis.
    John Kasich: Refugee crisis is on Europe, but US also has responsibility.
    Bernie Sanders: US should be more selective about using drone strikes.
    Ben Carson: Leave no doubt that we will stand with South Korea.
    James Webb: Prepare for unpredictable actions by North Korea.
    Ben Carson: Obama has turned his back on Israel.
    Mike Huckabee: Iranian nuclear deal arms & equips a terrorist state.
    Bernie Sanders: We have to negotiate with others, even Iran.
    Chris Christie: Arm Emiratis, Jordanians, & others before sending US troops.
    Chris Christie: Tourism money won't end up with the people of Cuba.
    Rick Perry: Priorities: Tear up agreement with Iran; secure US border.
    John Kasich: Fight ISIS with a coalition including US ground troops.
    Marco Rubio: Pre-conditions for Iran: end enrichment & ballistic missiles.
    Marco Rubio: End relations with anti-American communist tyranny in Cuba.
    Bobby Jindal: Bad Iran nuclear deal is worse than no deal.
    Carly Fiorina: I would have walked away from Iran talks & imposed sanctions.
    James Webb: Prefers confidence building gestures to deal with Iran.
    James Webb: China is the greatest long term threat to America.
    Lindsey Graham: Destroy Iran's nuclear program, & also its air force & navy.
    Carly Fiorina: Our allies need specific help to defeat ISIS.
    Rick Perry: Cancel any nuclear deal Obama makes with Iran.
    Rick Perry: Ally militarily with India to push back against China.
    Marco Rubio: Opposes nuclear deal with Iran; but supported deal in 2012.
    Ben Carson: Military force is not off the table when it comes to Russia.
    Ben Carson: Would not go to war with Russia over Ukraine.
    Lindsey Graham: Congress will not approve Iran nuclear deal.
    Rand Paul: U.S. intervention in Libya strengthened Islamic State.
    Rand Paul: Boycott countries that demonize women, like Saudi Arabia.
    Rand Paul: 2011: eliminate all foreign aid & rebuild America instead.
    Mike Huckabee: Governors have world views; I've been all over the Mideast.
    Scott Walker: Foreign policy is about leadership, not PhD's.
    Jeb Bush: Pressured father's V.P. staff to help Cuban prisoners.
    Rick Santorum: Successfully pushed bipartisan national security legislation.
Free Trade
    Chris Christie: Supports free trade, but distrusts Obama's TPP agreement.
    Bernie Sanders: I strongly opposed NAFTA and DOMA from their inception.
    Donald Trump: Restrict free trade to keep jobs in US.
    Hillary Clinton: Trans Pacific trade deal doesn't meet my standards.
    Donald Trump: Disastrous deals because we don't have smart negotiators.
    Donald Trump: China and Japan are beating us; I can beat China.
    Donald Trump: 35% import tax on Mexican border.
    Donald Trump: Stupid people negotiate our trade bills, & trade won't work.
    Bernie Sanders: Base trade policy on working families, not multinationals.
    Lindsey Graham: Make currency manipulation a key issue in trade negotiations.
    Rick Perry: Ex-Im Bank is corrupt; closing it helps our competitiveness.
    Hillary Clinton: TPP must produce jobs, raise wages, & protect security.
    Martin O`Malley: Opposing bad trade deals like TPP is just common sense.
    Bernie Sanders: Wrong, wrong, wrong that trade deals create jobs here.
Government Reform
    Carly Fiorina: Assert principles to facilitate bi-partisan action.
    John Kasich: Move power, money and influence out of Washington.
    Donald Trump: Get rid of the regulations that are just destroying us.
    Chris Christie: Congress must work together for progress to happen.
    Chris Christie: As president, I will enforce law and transparency.
    Carly Fiorina: Reduce size of federal government by not replacing retirees.
    Chris Christie: Reform instead of tax increases.
    Chris Christie: Does not support electing Supreme Court justices.
    Mike Huckabee: South Carolina was right to remove the confederate flag.
    Mike Huckabee: Banning confederate flag is an issue for the states.
    Ben Carson: Covertly spy on government workers to make them work harder.
    Mike Huckabee: Opposes "judicial supremacy"; they're just rulings, not law.
    Ben Carson: We should discuss "judicial review" in its modern usage.
    Carly Fiorina: Zero-based budgeting, and civil service pay-for-performance.
    Carly Fiorina: Crony capitalism is alive and well.
    Jeb Bush: Vetoed more than $2.3 billion in earmarks.
Gun Control
    Chris Christie: Gun restrictions based on terror watchlists is a state issue.
    Donald Trump: Keep enemies of the state away from guns.
    John Kasich: Registering mentally ill is first priority in gun control.
    Martin O`Malley: Time to work together to crack down on gun manufacturers.
    Ted Cruz: Obama is coming for our guns.
    Lincoln Chafee: Common-ground, commonsense safety legislation.
    Hillary Clinton: Sensible restraints on manufacturer liability & online sales.
    Lawrence Lessig: Keep machine guns away from the sorts who massacre kids.
    Donald Trump: Protect the Second Amendment, but address mental health.
    Bernie Sanders: Ban semiautomatic guns & gun show loophole.
    Chris Christie: Vetoed gun laws that were not about public safety.
    John Kasich: 2nd Amendment advocate: NRA rating changed from "F" to "A".
    Bernie Sanders: Instant background checks: no guns for criminals or unstable.
    Donald Trump: Take guns from good people & bad people have target practice.
    Rick Perry: Laws are in place; it's enforcement that's lacking.
    George Pataki: Do a better job of enforcing federal gun laws.
    Bernie Sanders: Guns in Vermont are for hunting; but in L.A. are for killing.
    Bernie Sanders: Gun legislation must work for both rural & urban Americans.
    Jeb Bush: Reduce gun violence and protect 2nd Amendment.
Health Care
    Ben Carson: I don't want to end Medicare, just make it more efficient.
    Ben Carson: Health savings accounts for families to buy health care.
    Lawrence Lessig: ObamaCare public option was compromised to special interests.
    Chris Christie: Opposes expanding Medicaid nationally, did expand it in NJ.
    Carly Fiorina: Pre-existing conditions is good goal but ObamaCare will fail.
    Carly Fiorina: Companies should offer maternity leave, but not mandated.
    John Kasich: Opposes ObamaCare but not all public programs.
    Donald Trump: We didn't have a free market before ObamaCare.
    Donald Trump: ObamaCare deductibles are so high that it's useless.
    Ben Carson: ObamaCare is analogous to slavery.
    Bernie Sanders: U.S. is only major country without guaranteed healthcare.
    John Kasich: Shift funding from nursing homes to home-based care.
    John Kasich: Accepted ObamaCare's Medicaid expansion statewide.
    Barack Obama: All kids should get vaccinated, but not by law.
    Jeb Bush: You should vaccinate your children; over and out.
    Marco Rubio: All kids should get vaccinated, with medical exceptions.
    Rand Paul: Encourage vaccines, with religious exceptions.
    Hillary Clinton: The science is clear: vaccines work.
    Howard Dean: Only anti-government conservatives oppose vaccines.
    Mike Huckabee: Vaccines don't cause autism; I get vaccinated myself.
    Rick Perry: Increase immunization rates as part of protecting life.
    Ben Carson: Vaccines are extremely important, despite individual rights.
    Chris Christie: Parents have some choice, but kids should be vaccinated.
    Rand Paul: Parents own their children, and can choose to not vaccinate.
    Ben Carson: Spokesperson for Mannatech nutrition supplement for 10 years.
Homeland Security
    Donald Trump: People saw New Jersey Muslims celebrating after 9/11.
    Ben Carson: Doesn't want ISIS to know if he condones torture or not.
    Ben Carson: Beef up intelligence gathering, including in mosques.
    Ben Carson: Keep 2nd amendment rights for people on terror watchlist.
    Chris Christie: Re-start metadata collection; boost morale of intel officers.
    Chris Christie: Obama created refugee crisis; now burdens Americans with it.
    Donald Trump: Bring back waterboarding and other interrogation methods.
    Donald Trump: Surveil mosques but don't close mosques.
    Donald Trump: New Jersey Muslims cheered on 9/11.
    Rand Paul: Bulk data collection does not improve safety.
    Rand Paul: Surveillance of mosques ok; database of Muslims not ok.
    Jeb Bush: Let military experts determine troop count.
    Donald Trump: We have a problem with radical Muslims.
    Donald Trump: Fix veteran's hospitals, and pay private doctors for them.
    John Kasich: Expand voucher program for veterans' healthcare.
    Bobby Jindal: Hillary should not be above the law in her email scandal.
    James Webb: I opened up more billets to Navy women than anyone.
    John Kasich: Make a coalition to fight ISIS in Syria.
    Rand Paul: More targeted surveillance; no bulk data collection.
    Donald Trump: Enhanced interrogation a non-issue, compared to terrorism.
    Rand Paul: Increase targeted surveillance to defend against terrorism.
    Chris Christie: Gathering metadata is necessary for homeland security.
    Donald Trump: Our nuclear arsenal doesn't work; it's 30 years old.
    Jeb Bush: Deal with bullies like Putin with strength, not nuance.
    Ben Carson: ISIL is clear threat; aggressively commit to its destruction.
    Jeb Bush: We need strategy against ISIS: advisory but not military.
    Lindsey Graham: Lack of ISIL strategy is Commander-in-Chief malpractice.
    Bernie Sanders: Worried about invasion of privacy from NSA corporate America.
    Rick Santorum: The Patriot Act did not cause any invasions of privacy.
    Lindsey Graham: Maintain FISA electronic surveillance for terrorist suspects.
    Mike Huckabee: NSA bulk metadata isn't effective; human intelligence is.
    Rick Perry: Patriot Act gives us a technological advantage.
    Rick Perry: Hillary needs to answer questions about Benghazi & ethics.
    Rand Paul: Focus NSA surveillance on threats, not innocent Americans.
    John Kasich: Run drone program out of Pentagon, not the CIA.
    Bernie Sanders: We need a strong military, but stop wasting tens of billions.
    Rand Paul: 2010: decrease DOD budget by $164B; 2015: increase by $190B.
    Rand Paul: Conservative realist, matured from isolationism.
    Carly Fiorina: Don't pull punches on Benghazi: a tragedy and a scandal.
    Rand Paul: $76B in defense spending via cuts to EPA, HUD & foreign aid.
    Lindsey Graham: Restore defense cuts made automatically by sequestration.
    Scott Walker: Listen to generals in the field to decide defense policy.
    Lindsey Graham: The next stage of the fight against terrorism is in Africa.
Immigration
    Lawrence Lessig: Promise the hardest workers that they can become citizens.
    Jeb Bush: Prove border is secure, while doing comprehensive reform.
    John Kasich: Focus of immigration should be to keep families together.
    John Kasich: Latino immigrants will continue to play critical role in US.
    Ben Carson: Taking in Middle Eastern refugees could be dangerous.
    John Kasich: Focus on border & guest workers, not birthright citizenship.
    Chris Christie: Use modern technology to track illegal immigrants.
    Ben Carson: Use drones to destroy smuggler hide-outs on Mexican border.
    Donald Trump: The border wall will be well-managed and built correctly.
    John Kasich: 1993: end birthright citizenship; 2015: not part of approach.
    Chris Christie: E-verify instead of building a physical wall.
    Bernie Sanders: Open borders for guest workers pushes down U.S. worker wages.
    Donald Trump: Building a wall will save money because it stops bad dudes.
    John Kasich: Seal the border with Mexico, support legal immigrants.
    Rand Paul: Secure border with Mexico; do away with sanctuary cities.
    Marco Rubio: No green card for 10 years for current illegal immigrants.
    Martin O`Malley: Help people immigrate to our nation of immigrants.
    Donald Trump: OpEd: businesses & Republicans condemn anti-Mexico terms.
    George Pataki: Practical policy: legal residency after 200 hours of service.
    Chris Christie: Increase electronic border surveillance and create E-Verify.
    Rick Perry: I secured the border & reduced apprehensions as Texas Gov.
    Donald Trump: Make Mexico pay for wall with severe economics.
    Donald Trump: Mexico & Latin America send us drugs, crime, and rapists.
    Donald Trump: Build great wall on southern border; have Mexico pay for it.
    Marco Rubio: Comprehensive immigration reform is politically infeasible.
    Rand Paul: Legal status for 11 million illegals after we secure border.
    Scott Walker: 2013: Comprehensive reform; 2015: no, that's amnesty.
    Scott Walker: No amnesty, but no mass deportation either.
    Mike Huckabee: Let illegal immigrant kids in college despite parents' crime.
    Rick Santorum: Focus on skilled immigrants; now most are unskilled.
Jobs
    Lawrence Lessig: America needs a minimum wage that is a living wage.
    Chris Christie: I fought greedy unions and irresponsible spending in N.J.
    John Kasich: Don't raise minimum wage willy-nilly, & do it at state level.
    Donald Trump: Don't raise minimum wage, but create more opportunities.
    Donald Trump: Take jobs back from foreign countries to lower unemployment.
    Donald Trump: Real unemployment rate is 20%; don't believe 5.6%.
    Jeb Bush: State minimum wages ok, but not at federal level.
    Carly Fiorina: Layoffs in recession ensure company's overall health.
    Scott Walker: Wisconsin is open for business, via right-to-work law.
    John Kasich: Limit collective-bargaining rights for public employees.
    John Kasich: 2011: Public employee union reforms overturned by voters.
Local Issues
    Scott Walker: Build a new sports arena for the Milwaukee Bucks.
Principles & Values
    Chris Christie: No federal department to promote Judeo-Christian values.
    John Kasich: Need to promote Western values to win war of ideas.
    Ben Carson: A Muslim president would not stay true to American values.
    John Kasich: For the presidency. qualifications trump personal religion.
    Lawrence Lessig: Acknowledge elephant in the room: partisanship doesn't work.
    Donald Trump: My old liberal political views evolved like Reagan's did.
    Bobby Jindal: Uncompromising GOP leadership in DC to make real change.
    Bobby Jindal: We must stop viewing ourselves as being separated by race.
    Lindsey Graham: Supported removal of battle flag following shooting.
    Bernie Sanders: What's wrong with modeling U.S. on socialist Scandinavia?
    Lincoln Chafee: The Republican Party changed and I never changed.
    Rand Paul: Conservative on spending; libertarian-ish on other issues.
    Rand Paul: Defeat the Washington machine; unleash the American Dream.
    Martin O`Malley: Look at my actions as governor, not my approval rating.
    John Kasich: OpEd: Impatient with bureaucracy & with partisan posturing.
    Ben Carson: Personal religion important, but it's not the law.
    Martin O`Malley: History celebrates courage, not triangulation.
    Scott Walker: Run for governor & president are determined by God's will.
    Scott Walker: Even if people disagree, they want politicians who lead.
    Mike Huckabee: Chivalry is respect for women, not sexism.
    Mike Huckabee: Cultural bubbles of NY, DC, and LA divide them from us.
    Ben Carson: President needs common sense understand of Constitution.
Social Security
    Jeb Bush: Allow diverting over 10% to private savings accounts.
    John Kasich: Fix Social Security by lowering benefits.
    George Pataki: I would not reduce social security benefits.
    James Webb: Entitlement programs are safety net, not socialism.
    Carly Fiorina: Challenge the status quo on entitlement reform.
    Carly Fiorina: We can't reform entitlements until we reform government.
    Carly Fiorina: Need to change status quo to achieve entitlement reform.
    Bernie Sanders: Raise the Social Security cap on taxable income.
    Chris Christie: Cut Social Security for wealthy, but don't increase taxes.
    Martin O`Malley: Without Social Security, 1 in 4 seniors would be poor.
    Ted Cruz: Implement commonsense reforms for younger workers.
    Jeb Bush: Push back the retirement age to 68 or 70.
    Mike Huckabee: Opposes increases the eligibility age for social security.
    Bobby Jindal: Supported privatization & reform, early & enthusiastically.
    Ben Carson: Each person should be responsible for their own pension.
    Ben Carson: Gradually raise the age of eligibility for benefits.
Tax Reform
    Donald Trump: Repeal estate tax; it's double taxation.
    Jeb Bush: Reduce corporate tax rate to stimulate growth.
    Jeb Bush: Tax plan disproportionately benefits middle class, not rich.
    Jeb Bush: Cutting taxes decreases the deficit dynamically.
    Chris Christie: I vetoed more tax increases than any governor in history.
    Ben Carson: Flat tax of 10%-15% is fairest option, even for low-income.
    Ben Carson: Concentrate on incentivizing entrepreneurial risk taking.
    Ben Carson: Regulations increase the cost of living.
    Carly Fiorina: Simplify tax code; lower every tax rate; close loopholes.
    Rand Paul: Flat tax 14.5% on personal income; & 14.5% value added tax.
    Rand Paul: Flat tax doesn't exacerbate income inequality.
    Mike Huckabee: Bottom 1/3 of economy benefits most from the FairTax.
    Ben Carson: Proposes a flat tax between 10 and 15 percent.
    Lindsey Graham: Supports closing loopholes, means-testing higher income.
    John Kasich: Eliminated the Ohio estate tax but hiked cigarette taxes.
    Jeb Bush: 1994: Require voter approval of any new taxes.
Technology
    Lawrence Lessig: Free culture movement: oppose excessively strict copyright.
    Donald Trump: Rebuild our infrastructure on time & on budget.
    Rick Perry: Snowden verged on treachery; WikiLeaks put U.S. in jeopardy.
    Jeb Bush: BlackBerry pictured in official gubernatorial portrait.
War & Peace
    Jeb Bush: No-fly zone in Syria; arm Kurds; establish Sunni coalition.
    Jeb Bush: Send troops to Syria to then remain to maintain stability.
    John Kasich: Invading force but no occupying force in Syria.
    Lindsey Graham: Military commitment of regional troops in Syria is necessary.
    Lindsey Graham: Regional, not US, army would keep stability in Syria.
    Mike Huckabee: We are at war with radical Islam.
    Chris Christie: Change rules of engagement to more effectively fight ISIS.
    Rand Paul: Only Sunni-Shiite coalition forces, not US, in Syria.
    Jeb Bush: NATO should consider declaring war on ISIS.
    Jeb Bush: Declare a war in Syria, take out ISIS and Assad.
    Jeb Bush: Best way to defeat terrorist ideology is to destroy ISIS.
    Jeb Bush: War is the only option in Syria, to take out Caliphate.
    Lindsey Graham: American troops should partner with regional army.
    Lindsey Graham: Russia will back down if US provokes it in deposing Assad.
    Lindsey Graham: If France invokes Article V, NATO should declare war on ISIS.
    Marco Rubio: Civilian causalities unfortunate but inevitable.
    Marco Rubio: Declare war on ISIS, fight via Sunni tribes and Kurds.
    John Kasich: Destroy ISIS, with US troops as part of coalition.
    Carly Fiorina: More than 50 boots on the ground in Syria.
    Carly Fiorina: Rebuild missile defense program in Poland.
    Lindsey Graham: Need substantial boots on the ground against ISIL.
    John Kasich: No-fly zone in Syria & sanctuaries, enforced by U.S.
    Lawrence Lessig: Our trillion dollar war made America less safe.
    Ben Carson: Don't get involved in Syria, but push ISIS in that direction.
    Donald Trump: Radical violent Islam that must be feared, not Islam itself.
    John Kasich: Constitution requires Congress' approval of Iran nuke deal.
    Bernie Sanders: Voted for Afghan War, to capture Osama bin Laden.
    John Kasich: I'm a "cheap hawk": Cut Pentagon waste, but not spending.
    Scott Walker: Lift political restrictions on 3,000 troops in Syria.
    Bernie Sanders: Middle Eastern countries must contribute to fight ISIS.
    Carly Fiorina: US must provide resources & leadership in fight against ISIS.
    John Kasich: Fight ISIS by supporting Kurds and educating Iraqis.
    Chris Christie: We need anytime/anywhere inspections for Iran nukes.
    Rick Perry: Coalition against ISIS but include US troops.
    Marco Rubio: Keep sanctions against Iran instead of Obama's nuke deal.
    James Webb: Supports cutting back the army's ground commitments.
    James Webb: Solution to ISIS will have to come from Sunni leadership.
    Donald Trump: Bomb the oil fields in Iraq to take on ISIS.
    Donald Trump: I said "don't hit Iraq," because it destabilized Middle East.
    Rick Perry: Decisive action against ISIS, not just promises & speeches.
    Scott Walker: US troops should fight ISIS alongside Kurds and Sunnis.
    Rick Perry: ISIS is worst threat to freedom since Communism.
    Rick Perry: Provide lethal aid to Ukraine against Russian separatists.
    Marco Rubio: No mistake to invade Iraq in 2003; we thought Iraq had WMDs.
    Rand Paul: Fight Iran with diplomacy and military strength, not war.
    John Kasich: Iran nuke deal: verify, verify, verify, without the trust.
    James Webb: Iran deal requires Congressional approval.
    Lincoln Chafee: Until Iraq War, there was lasting peace ahead of us.
    Rand Paul: Keep on mind on Iran nukes but don't trust the ayatollahs.
    Rand Paul: Oppose bombing Assad in Syria because it strengthens ISIS.
    Rand Paul: I brought fighting ISIS to the forefront of discussion.
    Rand Paul: Create & arm a Kurdish state as support against ISIL.
    Rand Paul: War only when all other measures are exhausted.
    Martin O`Malley: Radical terrorism and nuclear Iran are interconnected.
    Bobby Jindal: No deal with Iran that lets them become a nuclear power.
    Ben Carson: Eradicate ISIS as quickly and efficiently as possible.
    Mike Huckabee: Arm the Kurds to fight ISIS, plus U.S. bombing.
    Mike Huckabee: US boots on the ground to fight ISIS ok, if others join too.
    Scott Walker: Islamic terrorism like a virus; make sure it doesn't spread.
    Jeb Bush: Non-state terrorists are greatest threat we now face.
    Jeb Bush: OpEd: Supports 2003 Iraq invasion even with current evidence.
    Ted Cruz: Focused, direct military objective of destroying ISIS.
    Ted Cruz: Provide defensive weapons for Ukraine against Russia.
    Ted Cruz: Arm the Kurds to fight ISIS, with US air support.
    Rand Paul: Hillary's War: Ousting Gadhafi in Libya gave rise to ISIS.
    Rand Paul: Supporting rebels in Syrian Civil War gave rise to ISIS.
    Scott Walker: ISIS will attack on American soil; so take fight abroad.
    Scott Walker: Don't rule out US boots on the ground in Syria.
    Lindsey Graham: Returning from Iraq prematurely was a mistake.
    Lindsey Graham: Form regional coalition to enforce no-fly zone in Syria.
    Lindsey Graham: Ok to hold off Iranian sanctions but only while negotiating.
Welfare & Poverty
    Carly Fiorina: Progressive policies bad for poor that they claim to help.
    Jeb Bush: Poverty programs are ineffective, despite trillions spent.
    John Kasich: There are moral and practical reasons to help the poor.
    John Kasich: Matthew 25 commands us to aid the less fortunate.
    John Kasich: Reach out and help those who live in the shadows.
    Jeb Bush: 1994 Phoenix Project: end welfare culture.


The above quotations are from Sunday Political Talk Show interviews during 2015, interviewing presidential hopefuls for 2016.

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