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Tom Steyer on Principles & Values

Democratic Presidential Challenger; CEO

 


US is supposed to be value-driven leader of the world

The United States is supposed to be the value-driven leader of the world. We stand for freedom. We stand for democracy and justice and equality. And I think when we go out to the world we should be standing up for the things that we believe in. That's what the whole idea of the United States is. So I'm never going to be complimenting people, unelected leaders, of countries who completely control without any form of democracy, justice, or equality. I think it's inappropriate.
Source: CNN Town Hall 2020 with Chris Cuomo , Feb 24, 2020

Developed countries don't jail former presidents

The countries that have thrown past presidents into jail, have generally been developing countries, and that's a pattern that is hard to break. What's a more American tradition? We move the country forward. We don't focus on the mistakes of the leaders that are leaving office. Most Americans do not care about what a particular individual did, so much as they care about their family's wellbeing, their community, their town.
Source: 8th Democrat 2020 primary debate, St. Anselm College in NH , Feb 7, 2020

I have been a grassroots organizer for 10 years

I have been a grass roots organizer for 10 years, and that is exactly what I am doing in the early primary states. I am going. I'm listening to people. I spend all my time in the kinds of meetings that I love which is taking questions and asking questions and listening and learning. And so in fact that's what I think has happened is that I have a presence on the ground personally and our organization is doing the kind of the grass roots organizing that I have been doing for a decade.
Source: CNN SOTU 2020 interview of presidential hopefuls , Jan 12, 2020

Trump officials should testify for court of public opinion

I'm the person who started The Need to Impeach movement. Over eight and a half million signed that petition. It's a question of right and wrong. If we want the people to understand what's going on, we need to have administration officials testify on TV so we can judge. The court that counts here is the court of public opinion. If we want Republican senators to do the right thing, we need their constituents to see the truth, and tell them, "Get rid of this guy or we'll get rid of you."
Source: December Democratic primary debate on impeaching Trump , Dec 19, 2019

Coalitions of ordinary American citizens beat corporations

I'm different from everybody else on this stage. I know that the government in Washington, D.C., is broken. I know that it's been purchased by corporations. And I've spent a decade putting together coalitions of ordinary American citizens to beat those corporations. I'm the only one on this stage who's willing to talk about structural change in Washington itself, term limits, that if we're going to make bold changes, we're going to need new and different people in charge.
Source: November Democratic primary debate in Atlanta , Nov 20, 2019

Impeachment reflects the will of the American people

I started the Need to Impeach movement because I knew there was something desperately wrong at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. That we did have the most corrupt president in the country, and that only the voice and the will of the American people would drag Washington to see it as a matter of right and wrong, not of political expediency. Impeaching and removing this President is something the American people are demanding. They're the voice that counts and that's who I went to, the American p
Source: October Democratic Primary debate on impeaching Trump , Oct 15, 2019

To reach non-voters, be trustworthy, not calculating

What we believe in is going to the vast tens of millions of Americans who don't vote, because they don't believe in the system, and say to them, "This system can work again for you." That's what I've been trying to do, as an outsider, to say, "This system can work again." The only way to do that, in my opinion, is to tell the hard truths, is to be straightforward, and not to be so calculating and careful and tactical, but rather, to be trustworthy.
Source: Meet the Press interviews in 2019 , Jul 28, 2019

Trump is a criminal, nothing at all like me

Q: People have compared you to Donald Trump--another rich white man who talks about populism and is ready to take on members of his own party.

Steyer: He's had a completely different career from me; he has completely different values; he wants completely different things than I want. I consider him to be the most corrupt president and one of the most important criminals in American history. I couldn't imagine someone who I think is less like me.

Source: The Atlantic magazine on 2019 Democratic primary , Jul 10, 2019

Mueller report says Trump obstructed justice

The release of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's report made clear that Donald Trump obstructed justice. For two years, members of Congress said we needed to wait for Mueller's report before making any judgments on impeachment. We now know that Mueller's team exposed at least 140 contacts between the Kremlin and the Trump campaign, brought 199 criminal charges, handed down 37 indictments or guilty pleas, and earned at least five prison sentences.

Special Counsel Mueller laid out strong evidence that Trump obstructed justice, and (as he considered himself bound by Justice Department guidance against indicting a sitting president) invoked Congress's responsibility to enforce checks and balances to ensure no one branch of government becomes too powerful.

The stage is already set for a Trump reckoning. The impeachment process would remind voters why they don't approve of this lawless president.

Source: San Francisco Chronicle, Tom Steyer OpEd on Mueller Report , May 13, 2019

Republicans did not lose Congress for impeaching Clinton

House Democrats know that President Trump is unfit for office and that they hold the power to begin impeachment proceedings. Yet instead of acting on the merits of the situation, they appear consumed with whether or not they will suffer politically for it.

At the moment, House Democrats, led by Speaker Pelosi, insist that any action toward impeachment--however warranted or urgent--would be too costly politically. This calculation not only answers the wrong question; it's unsupported by the facts. The politics of impeaching the president favors Democrats, and they should move forward with confidence.

There is simply no historical precedent for impeachment leading to serious political peril. Those trying to make this case point to President Bill Clinton, asserting that voters punished the GOP for an impeachment they viewed as overreach. It's true that Republicans lost five seats in the House, but two years later, voters kept the Republican majorities intact and delivered them the White House.

Source: San Francisco Chronicle, "Impeaching Trump," by Tom Steyer , May 13, 2019

Nixon only lost support once impeachment hearings began

Just a little over 30% of Americans wanted President Richard Nixon impeached and removed when the House Judiciary Committee began its inquiry--a lower share of the electorate than those who support Trump's impeachment today. But after uncovering evidence, hearing sworn testimony on live television, and giving the public a chance to judge Nixon's wrongdoing for themselves, support for his ouster soared to 57%. The American people left the GOP with a simple choice: continue to protect Nixon or save their own political futures. They chose self-preservation and still lost 52 seats in the next election.

Nixon's downfall offers an important lesson: the impeachment process itself can sway public opinion and force a reckoning among the president's partisan defenders. The stage is set for such a shift today.

Source: San Francisco Chronicle, "Impeaching Trump," by Tom Steyer , May 13, 2019

Trump & GOP systematically break the law & democratic norms

President Trump and the Republican Party have created an atmosphere of political violence. If you look across the political scene, what you see is routine, systematic lawlessness, an attempt to break small-D democratic norms, in pursuit of victory at all costs. And we see it in voter suppression. We see it in extreme gerrymandering. We see it in the violent political rhetoric, of course, that people have been alluding all morning.

But, more than that, we see it in a president who has been breaking the law systematically as a candidate, as a businessperson, and as a president.

There has been bad behavior on both sides--not that there's perfection on one side and absolute horror on the other. But we're seeing a much broader, systematic attempt to disrespect the norms of democracy, to actually disrespect the laws of the United States, and an attack on the rule of law. And that creates an atmosphere where anything can bubble up and anything is bubbling up.

Source: CNN 2018 interviews on impeachment of Trump , Oct 28, 2018

Majority of Americans want Trump impeached and removed

Q: You are one of the leaders nationally for impeachment. You have been running ads for a long time on TV. I don't hear Democratic leaders in Congress talking about impeachment, in fact, the opposite. If Democrats take the House, and do not ultimately began impeachment proceedings against President Trump, what will you do you?

STEYER: Almost 80% of registered Democrats want this president impeached and removed from office. If you ask Americans broadly, more people are in favor of that than aren't. So it's not as if I'm representing some small part of the United States. I'm representing most Americans. So, in fact, what we have is a movement that is asking for a different America, which is one that recognizes the rule of law, gets rid of corruption, and treats every American equitably & fairly. And so, if I hear from elected officials that it's not politically expedient, I ask only two questions. Are we telling the truth? Are we standing up for the American people and the Constitution?

Source: CNN 2018 interviews on impeachment of Trump , Oct 28, 2018

Election is a choice whether to go backward or forward

I'm a businessman, a professional investor, and a proud Democrat. I think Mitt Romney and I share the same income bracket-- although I guess we're never going to know. But the reason I'm here tonight is that Mitt Romney and I don't share the same vision for the future, especially when it comes to energy. You see, this election is a choice--a choice about whether to go backward or forward. And that choice is especially stark when it comes to energy.
Source: Speech at the 2012 Democratic National Convention , Sep 5, 2012

Other governors on Principles & Values: Tom Steyer on other issues:
CA Gubernatorial:
Brian Dahle
Caitlyn Jenner
Doug Ose
John Chiang
John Cox
Kevin Faulconer
Kevin Paffrath
Laura Smith
Rob Bonta
CA Senatorial:
Adam Schiff
Alex Padilla
Barbara Lee
Gail Lightfoot
James Bradley
Jerome Horton
Katie Porter
Laphonza Butler
Lily Zhou
Mark Meuser
Steve Garvey

Abortion
Budget/Economy
Civil Rights
Corporations
Crime
Drugs
Education
Energy/Oil
Environment
Families/Children
Foreign Policy
Free Trade
Govt. Reform
Gun Control
Health Care
Homeland Security
Immigration
Infrastructure/Technology
Jobs
Local Issues
Principles/Values
Social Security
Tax Reform
War/Iraq/Mideast
Welfare/Poverty

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