Project Vote Smart - Carl Mumpower, III - Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)

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Carl Mumpower, III (NC)
Current Office: Councilmember Current District: At-Large				Biographical Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)Interest Group Ratings Position Papers Speeches and Public Statements Campaign Finances

Project Vote Smart does not send the Political Courage Test to this office. Please call our Voter's Research Hotline at 1-888-VOTE SMART (1-888-868-3762) for more information. However, this official has filled out the Political Courage Test previously for an office that PVS covers

What is the Political Courage Test? North Carolina Congressional Election 2008 Political Courage Test Please Note The Political Courage Test asks candidates which items they will support if elected. It does not ask them to indicate which items they will oppose. Through extensive research of public polling data, we discovered that voters are more concerned with what candidates would support when elected to office, not what they oppose. If a candidate does not select a response to any part or all of any question, it does not necessarily indicate that the candidate is opposed to that particular item. Project Vote Smart does not permit the use of its name or programs in any campaign activity, including advertising, debates, and speeches. Abortion Issues Budgetary, Spending, and Tax Issues Campaign Finance and Government Reform Issues Crime Issues Education Issues Employment Issues Environment and Energy Issues Gun Issues Health Issues Immigration Issues International Aid, International Policy, and International Trade Issues National Security Issues Social Issues Social Security Issues Welfare and Poverty Issues Legislative Priorities

Abortion Issues
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Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding abortion.
	a) Abortions should always be illegal.
	b) Abortions should always be legal.
	c) Abortions should be legal only within the first trimester.
	d) Abortions should be legal when the pregnancy resulted from incest or rape.
X	e) Abortions should be legal when the life of the woman is endangered.
	f) Dilation and extraction or "partial-birth" abortion procedures should be legal.
X	g) Medicare, Medicaid, and federal subsidies should be prohibited from being used on abortion procedures.
	h) Other or expanded principles.
I believe this is a state's rights issue and should be resolved at that level and not by Congress. I am pro-life in my position and will vote accordingly if legislation comes before us.

Budgetary, Spending, and Tax Issues
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Indicate what federal funding levels (#1-6) you support for the following general categories. Select one number per category, you can use a number more than once.
1) Budget Priorities
Eliminate	a) Agriculture
Eliminate	b) Arts
Slightly Increase	c) Defense
Eliminate	d) Education
Maintain Status	e) Environment
Maintain Status	f) FEMA
Maintain Status	g) Homeland security
Greatly Decrease	h) International aid
Maintain Status	i) Law enforcement (Federal)
Eliminate	j) Law enforcement (State)
Maintain Status	k) Medical research
Slightly Increase	l) National parks
Maintain Status	m) Public health services
Maintain Status	n) Scientific research
Greatly Decrease	o) Space exploration programs
Maintain Status	p) Transportation and highway infrastructure
Eliminate	q) United Nations
Greatly Decrease	r) Welfare
	s) Other or expanded categories
Federal subsidies create an unlevel playing field through entitlements that are selectively applied, expensive and disruptive to a free market economy.
2) Defense Spending
Slightly Increase	a) Armed forces personnel training
Maintain Status	b) Intelligence operations
Slightly Increase	c) Military hardware
Greatly Increase	d) Modernization of weaponry and equipment
Maintain Status	e) National missile defense
Maintain Status	f) Pay for active duty personnel
Maintain Status	g) Programs to improve troop retention rates
Greatly Increase	h) Research and development of new weapons
Greatly Increase	i) Troop and equipment readiness
	j) Other or expanded categories
Protection of the citizenry is Job 1 for the Federal government - we live in a dangerous world that necessitates a strong defense system. I would speak in favor of reducing the number of troops we have maintained in foreign lands since WW II.
3) Taxes
Indicate what federal tax levels (#1-6) you support for the following general categories. Select one number per category, you can use a number more than once.
Family Income Taxes
Maintain Status	a) Less than $12,000
Maintain Status	b) $12,001-$40,000
Maintain Status	c) $40,001-$100,000
Maintain Status	d) $100,001-$180,000
Maintain Status	e) $180,001-$350,000
Maintain Status	f) $350,001 and above
	g) Other or expanded categories
The current Federal tax code is unwieldly and selectively applied to special interests. I am in favor of stepping away from income tax to a consumption tax.
Other Taxes
Maintain Status	a) Alcohol taxes
Greatly Decrease	b) Capital gains taxes
Maintain Status	c) Cigarette taxes
Eliminate	d) Corporate taxes
Maintain Status	e) Gasoline taxes
Eliminate	f) Inheritance taxes
	g) Other or expanded categories
I am not in support of additional Federal taxes which in turn fund the growth of the Federal bureaucracy.
Deductions/Credits
Maintain Status	a) Charitable contribution deduction
Maintain Status	b) Child tax credit
Maintain Status	c) Earned income tax credit
Greatly Decrease	d) Medical expense deduction
Maintain Status	e) Mortgage deduction
Maintain Status	f) Student loan credit
	g) Other or expanded categories
This section illustrates the complexity and absurdity of the current Federal tax code.
Yes	4) Do you support the permanent repeal of the federal estate tax?
Yes	5) Do you support requiring the federal budget to be balanced each year?
	6) Other or expanded principles
I support the creation of a consumption tax as a replacement for the current Federal tax code.

Campaign Finance and Government Reform Issues
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Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding campaign finance and government reform.
X	a) Support increasing the amount individuals are permitted to contribute to federal campaigns.
	b) Prohibit Political Action Committee (PAC) contributions to candidates for federal office.
	c) Allow unregulated soft money campaign contributions to political parties or committees.
X	d) Remove all contribution limits on federal campaigns and parties.
	e) Support prohibiting ads containing candidates' name that are paid for by third parties from airing 60 days before a primary and 30 days before a general federal election.
	f) Support instant run-off voting (IRV).
	g) Support designating Election Day as a national holiday.
X	h) Support giving the President the power of the line item veto for items concerning appropriations.
	i) Support limiting the President's use of signing statements in order to prevent an alternative interpretation of the bill.
	j) Support a federal shield law to protect reporter-source privilege.
	k) Other or expanded principles
This is a free speech issue and should not be restricted. That said, I will not personally accept PAC or special interest money to fund my campaign.

Crime Issues
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Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding crime.
X	a) Support the use of the death penalty for federal crimes.
	b) Eliminate the use of the death penalty for federal crimes.
X	c) Support programs to provide prison inmates with vocational and job-related skills and job-placement assistance when released.
X	d) Support programs to provide prison inmates with drug and alcohol addiction treatment.
	e) Reduce prison sentences for those who commit non-violent crimes.
X	f) Support mandatory jail sentences for selling illegal drugs.
X	g) Support strict penalties for internet crime (e.g. hacking, identity theft, worms/viruses).
	h) Require that crimes based on sexual orientation be prosecuted as federal hate crimes.
	i) Other or expanded principles
Timely, fair, and accoutable justice is crucial to the safety of our nation - at the national, state and local levels.

Education Issues
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Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding education.
	a) Support the federal government funding universal pre-K programs.
X	b) Allow parents to use vouchers to send their children to any public school.
X	c) Allow parents to use vouchers to send their children to any private or religious school.
	d) Allow teachers and professionals to receive federal funding to establish charter or magnet schools.
	e) Increase funding for the Pell Grant program.
	f) Decrease interest rates of Stafford Loans.
X	g) Support federal tax incentives to help families save for college.
	h) Ban university financial aid officers from owning stock in or accepting gifts from student loan lenders.
	i) Require universities to disclose financial relationships with lenders.
	j) Support federal education standards and testing requirements for K-12 students (No Child Left Behind).
X	k) Eliminate all federal education standards and testing requirements for K-12 students (No Child Left Behind).
	l) Other or expanded principles
Federal and state government intrusion on local education control has had detrimental impact by creating regulatory and financial controls that disengage students, teachers, and communities from their educational responsibilities.

Employment Issues
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Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding employment.
	a) Increase funding for national job-training programs that retrain displaced workers or teach skills needed in todays job market.
X	b) Reduce government regulation of the private sector.
	c) Encourage employers to offer child care services, flex-time scheduling, comp-time, and unpaid leave for family emergencies.
	d) Increase the federal minimum wage.
	e) Support the right of workers to unionize.
X	f) Eliminate all federal programs designed to reduce unemployment.
	g) Include sexual orientation in federal anti-discrimination laws.
	h) Include gender identity in federal anti-discrimination laws.
	i) Other or expanded principles
This is a state and local responsibility. Federal intrusion is decreasing accountabilities and opportunities.

Environment and Energy Issues
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Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding the environment and energy.
	a) Strengthen the regulation and enforcement of the Clean Water Act.
	b) Strengthen the regulation and enforcement of the Clean Air Act.
X	c) Support increased development of traditional energy resources (e.g. coal, natural gas, oil).
	d) Strengthen emission controls on all gasoline and diesel-powered engines, including cars, trucks, and sport utility vehicles.
	e) Strengthen fuel efficiency standards on all gasoline and diesel-powered engines, including cars, trucks, and sport utility vehicles.
X	f) Support domestic oil exploration in areas that are currently restricted.
X	g) Encourage further development and use of alternative fuels.
	h) Support the use of ethanol as an alternative fuel.
X	i) Support research and development of nuclear reactors as an alternative energy source.
	j) Allow energy producers to trade pollution credits under "cap and trade" laws.
	k) Support international mandatory emission targets to limit global warming.
	l) Support international voluntary emission targets to limit global warming.
	m) Other or expanded principles
The discussion on the environment has been kidnapped by extremists. There are no credible arguments for bad air and water - there is substantial disagreement for how we support such. Heavy regulation, poorly enforced, is the worst of all worlds.

Gun Issues
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Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding guns.
X	a) Allow individuals to carry concealed guns.
	b) Ban the sale, ownership or possession of handguns except by law enforcement and other government officials.
On (c) and (d), indicate what levels (#1-6) you support for the following categories.
Greatly Increase	c) Enforcement of existing restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns.
Eliminate	d) Restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns.
	e) Other or expanded principles
The Second Amendment is clear on the right of the citizenry to bear arms. It does not suggest that we should be poorly armed or restricted in our abilities to self-protect against government or other potential sources of harm and lost liberty. If we have laws, those laws should be enthusiastically versus selectively enforced.

Health Issues
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Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding health.
	a) Implement a universal healthcare program to guarantee coverage to all Americans, regardless of income.
X	b) Expand eligibility for tax-free medical savings accounts.
X	c) Allow the importation of prescription drugs into the United States.
	d) Support expanding prescription drug coverage under Medicare.
X	e) Offer tax credits to individuals and small businesses to offset the cost of insurance coverage.
	f) Support expanding child healthcare programs.
X	g) Providing healthcare is not a responsibility of the federal government.
	h) Other or expanded principles
A tax credit to support Americans in purchasing their own health care plan is more prudent than duplicating the failed policies of socialist nations devoted to big government at the expense of individual liberties.

Immigration Issues
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Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding immigration.
	a) Decrease the number of legal immigrants allowed into the country.
X	b) Establish English as the official national language.
	c) Support a temporary worker program.
X	d) Support harsher financial punishments for those who knowingly employ illegal immigrants.
	e) Support amnesty for illegal immigrants already working in the United States.
X	f) Illegal immigrants should have to return to their countries of origin before being considered for citizenship.
	g) Illegal immigrants should be given a pathway to citizenship.
	h) Support merit-based visas over family-based visas.
	i) Other or expanded principles
There are no credible arguments for ignoring the rule of law and allowing aliens to illegally violate our borders and others to illegally employ them.

International Aid, International Policy, and International Trade Issues
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International Aid
Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding international aid.
X	a) Support the United States granting aid to countries when extraordinary circumstances cause disaster and threaten civilian lives.
	b) Support the United States granting aid to countries when it is in the security interests of the United States.
	c) Eliminate United States aid for any nation with documented human rights abuses.
	d) Aid granted by the United States should be scaled back and eventually eliminated.
	e) Other or expanded principles
We have a poor track record of applying aid to real problems in a timely and constructive manner. This is a misused tool.
International Policy
Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding international policy.
Yes	a) Should the United States continue to provide leadership in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process?
Yes	b) Should the United States support the creation of a Palestinian state?
Yes	c) Should the United States impose greater international sanctions on Iran if it continues to defy United Nations mandates?
Undecided	d) Should the United States support the Lebanese government against insurgent forces?
Yes	e) Should the United States maintain its troop levels in Iraq?
No	f) Should the United States withdraw its troops from Iraq?
g) Discuss your proposals for Iraq.
I would not have supported our going to Iraq. That said, we betray the men and women who have served and died there if we exchange potential and hope for assured chaos through arbitrary withdrawal. I would advocate for an Iraqi citizen vote on whether they wish us to remain and fight with them or not - unless there are a supermajority of purple fingers, we should initiate an immediate phased withdrawal of our troops.
Yes	h) Should the United States apply greater economic and diplomatic sanctions against North Korea if it fails to abide by its agreement to suspend its nuclear program?
Yes	i) Should the United States increase financial support for Afghanistan?
Yes	j) Should the United States increase military support for Afghanistan?
No	k) Should the United States trade nuclear fuel to India for civilian purposes?
Undecided	l) Should the United States decrease financial support for Pakistan?
Undecided	m) Should the United States decrease military support for Pakistan?
Yes	n) Should the United States be involved in bringing an end to the violence in Darfur, Sudan?
Yes	o) Should the United States be involved in bringing an end to the violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo?
Undecided	p) Should the United States provide economic and military support to the Transitional Government of Somalia?
Undecided	q) Should the United States use sanctions to encourage the government of Zimbabwe to end its human rights abuses?
No	r) Should the United States support the creation of an independent nation of Kosovo?
	s) Other or expanded principles
We should always be willing to help - we should always do so with with an eye on reason, realities, and responsible goals. We have a history of going into situations with a good heart w/o accompanying wisdom and realism. Each of these foreign policy circumstances is fluid and loaded with potentials of a good and bad nature.
International Trade
Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding international trade.
Yes	a) Do you support the United States imposing economic sanctions on China?
Undecided	b) Do you support the United States imposing trade sanctions on Venezuela?
Yes	c) Do you support the United States involvement in free trade agreements?
Yes	d) Do you support the United States involvement in intergovernmental organizations dedicated to trade?
	e) Other or expanded principles
Trade relations should be fairly upheld by both parties. America is routinely abused by her trade "partners" - including China - and appeasement is not the answer. I would speak in favor of strong and mutually advantageous agreeements fairly enforced - or those agreeements should be nullified.

National Security Issues
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Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding national security.
Undecided	a) Do you support using military tribunals to try suspected terrorists when ordinary civilian courts are deemed inappropriate or impractical?
No	b) Should law enforcement agencies have greater discretion to monitor domestic communications, to prevent future terrorist attacks?
Yes	c) Should the United States hold foreign states accountable for terrorists who operate in their country?
No	d) Should the federal government increase funding to states and cities for homeland security?
Yes	e) Do you support pre-emptive military strikes against countries deemed to be a threat to United States national security?
No	f) Do you support the creation of a federal identification card system?
Yes	g) Do you support long-term use of National Guard troops to supplement the armed forces in assignments overseas?
Undecided	h) Should the United States expand its missile defense shield?
	i) Other or expanded principles
I do not believe we should surrender liberty for temporary and illusionay measures of security. I do not trust the Federal intelligence community, agency structure, or leadership and will resist givng them more tools when they are unable to effectively apply the tools they have in hand.

Social Issues
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Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding social issues.
No	a) Should same-sex couples be allowed to marry?
No	b) Do you support a federal constitutional amendment defining marriage as between a man and a woman?
No	c) Do you support federal funding for research on existing embryonic stem cell lines?
No	d) Do you support federal funding to create lines of stem cells from new embryos?
No	e) Should the federal government consider race and gender in government contracting decisions?
No	f) Should the federal government continue affirmative action programs?
No	g) Should the federal government regulate internet gambling?
	h) Other or expanded principles
I do not believe that the Federal government should be devoting itself to these issues. One either believes in big government or one does not. I am unwilling to selectively apply my belief in smaller and more efficient government that does a few things well versus a big government that does a lot of things poorly.

Social Security Issues
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Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding Social Security.
X	a) Allow workers to invest a portion of their payroll tax in private accounts that they manage themselves.
X	b) Ensure the viability of Social Security by increasing the payroll tax.
X	c) Decrease benefits paid to retirees.
X	d) Support proportional increases of Social Security benefits based on the cost of living index.
X	e) Raise the retirement age for individual eligibility to receive full Social Security benefits.
	f) Other or expanded principles
We will all have to share fairly in fixing our social security system. A crucial starting place is to stop Congress from robbing social security by adding new unfunded programs and otherwise abusing the resources of this citizen supported safety net.

Welfare and Poverty Issues
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Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding welfare and poverty.
	a) Require welfare recipients to spend at least 40 hours a week in a combination of work and training programs.
	b) Continue to give states and local governments flexibility in and responsibility for welfare programs through federal block grants.
	c) Support housing assistance for welfare recipients.
X	d) Abolish all federal welfare programs.
	e) Other or expanded principles
This is a state and local issue - the Federal government has a poor track record of uplifting the poor and disadvantaged.

Legislative Priorities
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Please explain in a total of 100 words or less, your top two or three priorities if elected. If they require additional funding for implementation, please explain how you would obtain this funding.
1) Push for sunset requirements on all legislation. 2) Push for persistent financial and performance audits of all Federal agencies. 3) Push against the inclusion of "hidden" earmarks in any legislation.

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