POLITICAL PARTY SPECTRUM

Answer each question HONESTLY! There are NO gray areas!! Your decision must be based upon ONLY the information given in each option. Think carefully about your response.

ABORTION Abortion is the ending of a pregnancy by medical procedure BEFORE the fetus is delivered.

Position 1 I believe that human life begins at conception.  Abortion is the murder of a human being. Nobody has the right to murder a human being. I would support legislation to prohibit/ban partial birth abortions, called the "Partial Birth Abortion Ban" (partial birth abortion - the killing of an unborn baby of at least 20 weeks)

Position 2 I believe that a fetus is not a human life and incapable of sustaining itself outside of the womb. I believe the decision to have an abortion is a personal choice of a woman regarding her own body. The government should stay out of it.  ALL women should be guaranteed the right to a safe and legal abortion, including partial birth abortions if that is their choice.

GUN CONTROL Gun control means to pass laws which RESTRICT who can own guns and/or limit sales of certain types of guns, magazines, ammo, etc.

Position 1 I believe that the Second Amendment gives the individual the right to keep and bear arms. The 2nd Amendment was written to allow people to protect themselves from government, not criminals. I believe gun control laws do not stop crime and criminals.  In fact, statistics show that areas with more restrictive gun laws have higher crime rates. I believe you have a right to defend yourself, your family and property against criminals and the gov’t.

Position 2 I believe the Second Amendment has been misinterpreted. It gives no individual the right to own a gun, but allows the state to keep a militia (National Guard). I believe guns are dangerous.  Guns kill innocent people and children every year. The only people who should have guns are law enforcement officials. I believe laws should be made to RESTRICT the kind of guns, amounts of ammo, magazines, etc. that the public can purchase.

HEALTH CARE Health care includes ALL hospitalization, treatments, dental, and vision care programs.

Position 1 I believe that free healthcare provided by the government (socialized medicine) means that everyone will get the same poor-quality healthcare (supply v demand). The rich will continue to pay for superior healthcare, while all others will receive poor-quality free healthcare from the government.  Health care should remain privatized (run by insurance companies)

Position 2 I support UNIVERSAL (everyone) government-supervised health care.  There are millions of Americans who can't afford health insurance and they should have access to necessary health services. I believe that healthcare is a basic human right and the government should provide it for those who cannot afford it.

DEATH PENALTY Capital punishment (DEATH PENALTY) is the execution of convicted murderers, etc., as punishment for their crime(s).

Position 1 I believe that the death penalty is a punishment that fits the crime; it is neither ‘cruel' nor ‘unusual'. I believe that executing a murderer is the appropriate punishment for taking an innocent life. (eye for an eye).

Position 2 I believe that we should abolish the death penalty.  The death penalty is inhumane and is ‘cruel and unusual' punishment. I don’t believe that the death penalty deters crime.  Imprisonment is the appropriate punishment.  Every execution risks killing an innocent person and there ARE examples where innocent people have been executed accidentally (wrong person convicted).

Taxes are the cost of running government and providing public services

Position 1 I support lower taxes and a smaller government. I believe that lower taxes create more incentive for people to work, save, invest, and engage in entrepreneurial (business) endeavors. In my opinion, money is best spent by those who earn it.

Position 2 I support higher taxes and a larger government (a government that does MORE for its people). I feel that high taxes enable the government to do good things for society (infrastructure) and create jobs.  We need high taxes for social welfare programs (Obamacare, Medicaid, Welfare, etc) to provide for the poor.  We can't afford to cut taxes since cutting taxes means that those programs will be cut. The wealthy should pay more since they can afford to. 

SAME-SEX MARRIAGE Legally marrying allows gay and lesbian couples the same legal standing and benefits that heterosexual married couples receive in the United States.

Position 1 I believe that the definition of marriage is between one man and one woman.    I would support the creation of a constitutional amendment establishing marriage as the union of one man and one woman. This would legally OUTLAW homosexuals, lesbians, transgendered, etc from legally getting married. I believe that requiring states to sanction same-sex relationships violates the 10th amendment since marriage does not appear in the Constitution. This is a “states rights” issue.

Position 2 I believe that marriage should be legal for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender couples to ensure equal rights for all. All individuals, regardless of their sex, have the right to legally marry. This is an issue of the 14th amendment and thus protected by the Constitution. I believe that prohibiting same-sex citizens from marrying denies them of their civil rights.  In fact, this issue is very similar (or equal) to the civil rights which African Americans fought for during the 1950s and 60s (de-segregation)

WORK THE REST OF THE ISSUES ON YOUR OWN INDIVIDUALLY. REMEMBER TO CONSIDER EACH RESPONSE CAREFULLY. THERE ARE NO GRAY AREAS. I WILL HELP YOU WITH SCHOOL VOUCHERS, AFFIRMATIVE ACTION AND HOMELAND SECURITY

EDUCATION—SCHOOL VOUCHERS A government funded system which allows parents to use tax money to send their child to whatever school they want

Position 1 Parents would receive the cost of educating their child for a year (voucher)    Parents would then be able to decide what school they wanted to send their child to This would give all parents the right to choose good schools for their children

Position 2 The school voucher program is untested School vouchers would encourage racial, economic, religious stratification (separation) of our country School vouchers do not improve student academic performance. There are no studies which show higher academic performance at charter schools.

AFFIRMATIVE ACTION The policy of favoring members of a disadvantaged group who have suffered historically from discrimination

Position 1 People should be admitted to schools and hired for jobs based on their ability (best man for the job—regardless of race, sex, creed or color) Using race as a factor eliminates individuals based on the color of their skin, which IS by definition, RACIST

Position 2 Because racism has existed in the past, it is necessary to ‘level the playing field’ and assist those who have been deprived of equal opportunities based upon race (schools, jobs, etc)  American is still a racist society and minorities still lag behind whites in all statistical measurements of success

HOMELAND SECURITY The national effort to ensure that our country is safe and resilient from terror attack

Position 1 Wary of parts of the Patriot Act Patriot Act provides the government the ability to conduct surveillance (visual, audio, computer) on suspected terrorists without a warrant The government is the sole institution who determines who qualifies as “a terrorist”

Position 2 Oppose the Patriot Act Constitutional rights should be given to all people in this country. Determining whether or not someone is a terrorist does not necessarily mean that a person’s rights are forfeited

ASSESSMENT #1 DEFINE LIBERAL/CONSERVATIVE Liberals believe in government action to achieve equal opportunity and equality for all. It is the duty of the government to alleviate social ills and to protect civil liberties and individual. Liberals believe the role of the government should be to guarantee that no one is in need. Liberal policies generally emphasize the need for the government to solve problems. Liberals believe that the Constitution is a living, breathing document and should evolve with ever-changing times. Conservatives believe in personal responsibility, limited government, free markets, individual liberty, traditional American values and a strong national defense. Conservatives believe the role of government should be to provide people the freedom necessary to pursue their own goals (opportunity). Conservative policies generally emphasize empowerment of the individual to solve problems, not the government. Conservatives believe the Constitution is the bedrock of our society and should be interpreted as it was originally written

RESULTS HOW MANY BOXES CHECKED FOR #1? HOW MANY FOR #2? CONSERVATIVES = POSITION #1 LIBERALS = POSTION #2