Pro: "Judy Woodruff: Four years ago, you changed your position, is that right, on abortion?
Rep. Dennis Kucinich: Well, you know what? It was long before I ran for president the first time that I came to an understanding of how this issue was tearing America apart and how it's possible to simultaneously stand for a woman's right to choose and, at the same time, work to make abortions less likely. I think it's possible to do both."
"Kucinich Details His Views on Iraq War, Health Care Reform," Online News Hour, Oct. 4, 2007
Not Clearly Pro or Con: "What we've seen is that without solid trade policies, we're undermined. Without a strength-through-peace doctrine of rejecting war as an instrument of policy, we're going to keep borrowing money from China. Let us not forget we're borrowing money from China to finance the war in Iraq. And in addition to that, the speculation on Wall Street has weakened our economy.
We need a policy of constructive engagement with China, stop the arms race with them, work to make sure we have a global climate change treaty with China, get them to transition out of nuclear and coal and oil. You know, I'm talking about a whole new direction that's based on a doctrine of strength through peace, and I have a voting record up here to back it up, unlike some of my esteemed colleagues."
Democratic Presidential Debate, hosted by NPR, Des Moines, IA, Dec. 4, 2007
Con: "Our policy toward Cuba has failed. More than four decades of a unilateral embargo and persistently hostile and aggressive rhetoric and actions from successive administrations have created only misery for the Cuban people and have hurt, not helped, U.S. interests at large.
Common sense dictates that we pursue a policy of normalizing relations with Cuba. We need to work for repeal of the Helms-Burton Act and the immediate lifting of the trade embargo. We must lift not only the trade embargo. We must also lift the travel ban. We must cooperate with Cuba on issues of national security."
Not Clearly Pro or Con: "It's time for the United States to stop looking at Africa as a place where our corporations can exploit the people. I mean, let's face it. If Darfur had a large supply of oil, this administration would be occupying it right now."
All-American Presidential Forums, hosted by PBS, Howard University, Washington, D.C., June 28, 2007
Con: "...[A]s President I'll do everything I can to end the federal death penalty which I've already introduced legislation for in the past because we need to have an approach that recognizes the discrimination which exists in our justice system."
Public Broadcasting System (PBS) Democratic Presidential Debate, June 28, 2007
Pro: "I stand for global commerce, but global commerce that's based on morality, based on the rights of workers to organize, to bargain collectively, to strike, to have decent wages, to have a safe workplace, and to have a secure retirement. It's based on human rights, on protecting people from being exploited, on prohibitions on slave labor, child labor and prison labor. My trade policies will be based on protecting the environment, protecting the quality of our air and our water and our land. Until we cancel NAFTA [North American Free Trade Agreement] and the WTO [World Trade Organization], and return to bilateral trade, conditioned on workers' rights, human rights and environmental quality principles we'll never be able to reclaim the essence of morality in our commerce because global corporations are setting the rules. And they're setting the rules without regard to the interest of people or countries. And that's why my presidency will return to bilateral trade, where we'll set the conditions. And this way, we can elevate the cause of workers not only in this country but everywhere."
"Congressman Dennis Kucinich, Candidate for the Democratic Presidential Nomination," BuzzFlash.com, Jan. 8, 2004
Pro: "...[T]he skyrocketing costs of higher education. These costs -- which have been far outrunning inflation -- are now beginning to put higher education out of reach for more and more American families, and saddling far too many students who do go to college with a crushing debt burden after graduation. If something doesn't change, we are in danger of returning to the days when a college education was largely the province of the rich and upper-middle classes."
"Q&A: The Democratic Candidates on Higher Education," The Chronicle of Higher Education, Jan. 23, 2004
Not Clearly Pro or Con: Voted Yes on the "Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002" (H.R. 2356) on Mar. 20, 2002:
"The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 (BCRA) includes several provisions designed to end the use of nonfederal, or 'soft money' (money raised outside the limits and prohibitions of federal campaign finance law) for activity affecting federal elections...
The BCRA increases limits on contributions made by individuals and some political committees; indexes certain contribution limits for inflation; prohibits contributions by minors to federal candidates and parties; and prohibits contributions, donations, expenditures, independent expenditures and disbursements by foreign nationals...
The new law may raise the individual contribution limits for Senate and House candidates who are facing self-financed candidates if those candidates spend more than a specified amount of their own funds on the campaign."
"Major Provisions of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002," Federal Election Commission website (accessed Jan. 10, 2008)
Pro: "An open and honest examination of the flaws in electronic voting will lead us to only one possible conclusion: electronic voting machines are dangerous to democracy because there is no way of ensuring their accuracy. We need to have a voter-verified paper trial for every election so that any errors and irregularities caused by the voting machines can be discovered."
Con: "When we perpetrate acts of violence, such as drilling in ANWR, we are damaging ourselves as humans. It destroys the land, it destroys the herd, it destroys the Gwich'in [tribe]. It destroys us all."
"Dancing with Ghosts," U.S. House of Representatives Congressional Record, Dec. 18, 2005
Pro: "...Reduce oil consumption by implementing strong fuel economy standards. Substantially improving CAFE [Corporate Average Fuel Economy] standards over a ten-year period would reduce the oil used by one-third in 2020 and save consumers $16 billion at the gas pump."
Excerpt of a May 25, 2002 letter to George Bush signed by Dennis Kucinich and 73 other members of Congress
Pro: "...[A]s we reduce our carbon footprint, simultaneously we work with the world community. The Kyoto Climate Change Treaty is just the first step. We need to go beyond Kyoto. We need to reach out to the world and reduce our carbon emissions, and we need to have environmental protection to secure our food supplies."
"Campaign for America's Future: Take Back America 2007," Federal News Service, June 20, 2007
Pro: "My efforts to lead the fight against assault weapons have been highly recognized by The Coalition to Stop Gun Violence. One year after the DC-area sniper attacks, I co-signed a bill, H.R. 2038, to renew and strengthen the federal assault weapons ban. I also attended a recent Save Our Sons and Daughters (SOSAD) event.
While some believe that gun laws should reside at the state level, I respectfully disagree. In this mobile society, national control of guns just is necessary, just as it is with pollution. It is the right of Americans to keep and bear arms; however it is not the right of American felons to arm themselves. In a time when homeland security is of utmost concern, it is perplexing why anyone would not wish to keep guns out of the hands of those who might do us harm. This is why I would support legislation to require background checks, identical to the background checks currently required for transfers by licensed gun dealers, for firearm transfers by unlicensed gun dealers at gun shows. Sensible laws to prevent guns from winding up in the wrong hands do not infringe on any constitutional rights."
Pro: "It's time we ended this thought that health care is a privilege. It is a basic right, and it's time to end this control that insurance companies have not only over health care but over our political system...
We're being told here today to buy into a view of the world which says that, well, you know, but the insurance companies run the system. We'll have people, you know, we'll work out competition between the insurance companies and maybe we'll have government subsidize the insurance companies. Where is our call for greatness? What if FDR [Franklin D. Roosevelt] said, well, you know, we can't really do the New Deal?"
"New Leadership on Health Care: A Presidential Forum," Las Vegas, NV, Mar. 24, 2007
Not Clearly Pro or Con: Cosponsored the "Greater Access to Affordable Pharmaceuticals Act of 2001" (H.R.1862):
"Title II - Importation of Prescription Drugs...
Declares that enforcement efforts concerning importation of prescription drugs by individuals should focus on significant threats to public health rather than importation that is clearly for personal use, particularly importation from Canada."
"H.R.1862: Greater Access to Affordable Pharmaceuticals Act of 2002," GovTrack.us website, May 16, 2001
Con: Voted No on the "Secure Fence Act of 2006" (H.R.6061) on Sep. 14, 2006:
"SEC. 3. CONSTRUCTION OF FENCING AND SECURITY IMPROVEMENTS IN BORDER AREA FROM PACIFIC OCEAN TO GULF OF MEXICO...
(1) SECURITY FEATURES.-
(A) REINFORCED FENCING.-In carrying out subsection (a), the Secretary of Homeland Security shall provide for least 2 layers of reinforced fencing, the installation of additional physical barriers, roads, lighting, cameras, and sensors..."
"Secure Fence Act of 2006" (H.R.6061), Library of Congress website, Sep. 29, 2006
Con: "The war in Iraq has been a disaster, but a war against Iran would be worse. Another preemptive unilateral war by the United States would further destabilize the region and make our country less safe.
This Administration's failure to allow weapons inspectors to complete their work in Iraq led our nation into a unnecessary war, and has caused the death of over 1,300 US soldiers. We must not make the same mistake again.
This Administration must allow the international community to continue weapons inspections in Iran and have the international community disarm any and all illegal weapons that may be in the country. Any covert or overt action in Iran without the approval of the international community would be illegal and further isolate the United States."
"Attack on Iran Will Further Destabilize Region; Make US Less Secure," Dennis Kucinich's official candidate website, Jan. 17, 2005
Con: "The Administration, with its policy in Iraq, has isolated the United States from the international community and threatens to make our country less safe not more safe."
"Kucinich: The Administration's Military Victory Is a Foreign Policy Failure," Press Release, May 1, 2003
Not Clearly Pro or Con: "The chaos and factional violence in Gaza that ultimately led to the Hamas military takeover of the Presidential Compound and the National Security Guard building demonstrates a failure of President Bush's strategy in matters relating to Hamas."
"Dysfunctional Debate, Dysfunctional Policies," The Nation, June 16, 2007
Con: "Today, with a proposed Constitutional Amendment defining marriage, we would establish a law that will be at odds with the 14th Amendment that guarantees equal protection of the law...
Today, in a shameless attempt to divert, distract and distort from the lackluster performance of Congress, the House is set to write discrimination into the US Constitution."
"Kucinich on the Federal Marriage Amendment," Dennis Kucinich's Congress website, July 18, 2006
Pro: "Well, four years (a)go when there were raids in California, I as a member of the Congress objected to that. And, of course, it's a matter between doctors and patients, and if doctors want to prescribe medical marijuana to relieve pain, compassion requires that the government support that. And so as president of the United States, I would make sure that our Justice Department was mindful that we should be taking a compassionate approach.
I want to go one step further, because this whole issue of drugs in our society is misplaced. Drugs have infected the society, but I think we need to look at it more as a medical and a health issue than as a criminal justice issue."
Democratic forum on Viacom's Logo cable network, Aug. 9, 2007
Con: "There are bills sponsored by both parties in Congress to create a draft. In 2004 the selective service system put up on their website a call for people to staff local draft boards. There was a commotion about it immediately after that went up; they took it down. There's a substantial amount of money in the budget to be able to put into effect the structure to create a draft...
It's time for this nation, Democrats and Republicans alike, to come together and oppose all efforts to reinstate the draft. For the sake of our children and our future, we must end this wrongful war."
"The Draft," Dennis Kucinich's U.S. House of Representatives website (accessed Jan. 10, 2008)
Con: "If you have a church, or if you have a church group that seeks funding from the government you can not take federal funds without there being strings attached. And as soon as those strings get attached the freedom of religion becomes a little bit eroded. I think that the idea of faith-based initiatives when they involved a path for tax dollars represents a challenge because you have to understand that there is a reason why government does this. And when political parties are involved it becomes at least problematic."
"In Their Own Words," Interfaith Alliance website, Nov. 19, 2003
Con: "In the United States Constitution, Article 6, it says 'No religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States.'
The founders understood that it was very dangerous to have any religion try to determine who the President of the United States should be and have any consesus of a religious nature that would help to form public opinion in such a way that the President would not be sympathetic to those of another faith or of no faith at all."
"Is America Unofficially a Theorcracy?" 10questions.com website (accessed Jan. 3, 2008)
Con: "Despite a bipartisan rejection to the President's plan to privatize Social Security and shift the nation's retirement system from Main Street to Wall Street last year, the President is trying to bury his ill-advised and misguided plan in his new massive budget request sent to Congress Monday.
The President's stealth Social Security privatization plan would take more than $700 billion, over seven years, in guaranteed retirement security from millions of Americans and gamble it in the stock market...
Last year when the public learned about the issue they rejected the President's approach. Despite his attempt to sneak it past the public, I am confident once attention is brought to his stealth privatization plan the American public will reject it again."
"Kucinich: Bush Proposes Stealth Social Security Privatization Plan In Budget," Press Release, Feb. 8, 2006
Pro: Cosponsored "Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act of 2007" (H.R.3) that amends "the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to conduct and support research that utilizes human embryonic stem cells, regardless of the date on which the stem cells were derived from a human embryo, provided such embryos: (1) have been donated from in vitro fertilization clinics; (2) were created for the purposes of fertility treatment; (3) were in excess of the needs of the individuals seeking such treatment and would never be implanted in a woman and would otherwise be discarded (as determined in consultation with the individuals seeking fertility treatment); and (4) were donated by such individuals with written informed consent and without any financial or other inducements."
Library of Congress: THOMAS website (accessed Nov. 21, 2007)
Con: "We need to cancel Bush's tax cuts and flip them so we give the benefit to the 80 percent, while currently it's going to the top one percent, so people will have more money so they can save their homes."
Pro: Voted Yes on "Proposing an Amendment to the Constitution of the United States Authorizing the Congress to Prohibit the Physical Desecration of the Flag of the United States" (H.J.Res.4).
Con: "The reality is that the United States has employed torture and has transported people to certain torture -- and perhaps death. Torture is not an American value, and the President's signing statement reserving the right to torture is a clear violation of international and U.S. law that makes all of us -- and especially our soldiers -- less safe. The dismissal of the Geneva Convention as 'quaint' and the legal gymnastics performed by this administration to justify brutalizing another human should shock all of us...
For the head of the C.I.A. to testify in front of Congress that 'water boarding' is a 'professional interrogation technique' is horrifying. In essence, the American people are being told that Thomas de Torquemada and the rest of the Spanish Inquisitors were not torturers when they used the 'aselli,' the water torment; they were merely professional and forceful questioners. Let us be candid, water boarding is a war crime."
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