Summary of political beliefs

[JohnRM]

Ideology
Social: Conservative
Economic: Free market capitalist
Foreign: Staunch nationalist
Gov't Style: Republican


Social Policy
Abortion: Pro-Life: I do not oppose contraception or day-after pills.
Same Sex Marriage: Indifferent. I opposed the Supreme Court decision for the sole reason that it took the decision out the hands of the states.
Drugs / Narcotics: Illegal. I would also increase restrictions on pharmaceuticals. Americans are over-medicated. Severe cases need to be locked up, as they were in the past.
Death Penalty: Permitted. I would apply stricter guidelines, increase the burden of proof, and streamline the process to decrease the time between conviction to execution. The penalty would also be expanded to apply to violent sexual criminals and child predators.
Gun Control: Status Quo. I am willing to entertain requiring a license to purchase firearms with a reasonable process including background checks and training, but I have not heard any good proposals, yet.
Affirmative Action: Prohibited. Individuals should be evaluated based on merit alone. Private industry and non-profits may operate as they wish.
Prostitution: Illegal. Clients ought to receive much harsher penalties than prostitutes.
Right to Die: Legal. The government should have no say in the matter, regardless of the circumstances.
Public Education: State matter. The federal government should have no part in public education.
PATRIOT Act: Supportive. Despite what most people think. The worst provisions have expired.
NSA Spying: Opposed. The NSA doesn't need quite as much power as they claim.
Immigration: Reformed. Streamline the process so that people don't need to come illegally. Immigrants are human beings deserving of the blessings of liberty. It's either that or we extend substantial foreign aid to Mexico, et al. in order to make life better for them there. Anyone?



Economic Policy
Minimum Wage: Status Quo. No one deserves a living wage simply because they work full-time. Some jobs are not meant to give someone a living. Emptying trash isn't worth paying $15/hr.
Welfare/Social Security: Reduce it. Children, the disabled, and the elderly should have access to assistance. There need to be reasonable cuts and increased age-limits for retirement.
Right-to-Work: Oppose it. I personally dislike unions, but companies ought to have the right to make deals with unions as they see fit.
Taxation: Reduce it. The size of the federal government needs to be reduced.
Obamacare: Reform it.. I can't honestly say that I know enough about the issue of healthcare, the law itself, or the effect that the ACA is having to make an informed judgement. I am not opposed to the style of the law in principle. The most important thing to me is that employees are no longer held hostage by their employers for their health insurance.
Trade: Free Trade. Though, I would support the establishment of a preferential trading system among western nations and particularly the Anglosphere and Commonwealth.
Federal Student Loans: Reform it. Introduce a system to provide increasingly better assistance based on merit/performance. Require a minimum GPA of 3.0 in order to receive additional federal loans. Students with a GPA of 3.75 or higher should have substantial loan amounts forgiven upon graduation, starting at 25 percent and increasing one percent per hundredth.
Climate Change: Address it. I believe that climate change is occurring and that it is the result of human activity. We need to address the issue before it addresses us.
Alternative Energy Subsidies: Supportive. Wind, solar, and other alternatives with merit ought to be subsidized to a reasonable degree by the government, both in research and development and manufacturing.
Keystone XL Pipeline: Indifferent. Leave it to the states and localities in which it is to be laid.



Foreign Policy
Afghanistan: Supportive. The country should be garrisoned indefinitely with enough troops and capability to prevent the return of terrorist training camps and interdict cross-border activity.
Iraq: Opposed. There was absolutely no reason to invade Iraq. Nothing that was accomplished was worth the blood and treasure.
Iran: Containment. Exhaustive diplomacy should be undertaken to come to an agreement, but I would support all military measures necessary if diplomacy should fail.
ISIS/Syria: Containment. Continue to support opposition with arms, airstrikes, and other services. If ISIS threatens to spread into Saudi Arabia or elsewhere, more aggressive measures may be necessary.
Cuba: Normalize relations. If we're willing to do business with countries like China, Saudi Arabia, and elsewhere, why not Cuba? They're not special.
Military Spending: Status Quo. Cancel the F-35. Purchase additional F-18s, an additional tranche of F-16s and F-15s, and...I don't know what the Marines will do. The F-35 sucks.
Israel/Palestine: Pro-Israel. Try living in a virtual foxhole your entire life. Then you can talk to me about it (the conflict).
Terror War Detainees: Indifferent. You either have to give them constitutional rights like all criminals or you have to treat them like POWs. Make up your/my mind. I don't care which, but I'm sick of dealing with this issue.



Constitutional/Government Reform
Presidential Elections: Abolish it. Have the president chosen by the states and confirmed by the Senate, or something similar.
Senatorial Elections: Abolish it. Return the power of appointment to the state legislatures.
Gerrymandering: Abolish it. Establish independent bodies to draw congressional districts.
Term limits: Reform it. Increase the presidential term to six years and prohibit a second term. Limit Senatorial service to two terms. Establish a federal office service limit of 1 years. Individuals become ineligible to run for federal office after their 15th year of service.
Voter ID Laws: Unnecessary. Little or no voter fraud actually takes place.
Compulsory Voting: Unnecessary. The fewer people who vote, the more valuable my vote is.
DC Statehood: Supportive, with a caveat. The District of Columbia has to be somehow merged into the State of Maryland.
Puerto Rico Statehood: Opposed. Puerto Rico should remain a territory for now.