Robert Sarvis' Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)
Key
Official Position: Candidate addressed this issue directly by taking the Political Courage Test.
Inferred Position: Candidate refused to address this issue, but Vote Smart inferred this issue based on the candidate's public record, including statements, voting record, and special interest group endorsements.
Unknown Position: Candidate refused to address this issue, or we could not infer an answer for this candidate despite exhaustive research of their public record.
Additional Information: Click on this icon to reveal more information about this candidate's position, from their answers or Vote Smart's research.
Other or Expanded Principles & Legislative Priorities are entered exactly as candidates submit them. Vote Smart does not edit for misspelled words, punctuation or grammar.
Robert Sarvis has refused to provide voters with positions on key issues covered by the 2014 Political Courage Test, despite repeated requests.
Issue Positions
For Presidential and Congressional candidates who refuse to provide voters with their positions, Vote Smart has researched their public records to determine their likely responses. These issue positions are from 2014.
- Despite exhaustive research, Vote Smart was unable to find information about this candidate's position.
- "Eliminating, or dramatically reducing, the income tax, which reduces employment and lowers take-home pay;" (votesmart.org)
- "Economic freedom leads to innovation, job-creation, and wage growth. Open and competitive markets, not dictates or subsidies from government bureaucrats, are the engine of economic dynamism." (votesmart.org)
- "I pledge to make debt-reduction and balanced budgets a priority. I support simplifying the tax code, reforming entitlements, and cutting bloated budgets--including military spending. And I support a balanced budget amendment and protections against accounting gimmicks." (votesmart.org)
- "Parents, not politicians or bureaucrats, should be in charge of the education dollars spent on their children." (votesmart.org)
- Despite exhaustive research, Vote Smart was unable to find information about this candidate's position.
- "I support repealing unnecessary and burdensome regulations. Micromanaging the economy stifles investment and job growth. Overregulation also insulates incumbent firms from new competition." (votesmart.org)
- "Protect gun rights and respect the Second Amendment." (www.robertsarvis.com)
- "Real healthcare reform begins with deregulationmore healthcare service-providers, rational incentives, and innovation will produce accessible and affordable care." (www.robertsarvis.com)
- "Sarvis seeks to expand personal freedom by supporting marriage equality, restoring civil liberties and embracing immigrants with open arms." (votesmart.org)
- "I'm Willing to Fight for Marriage Equality" (votesmart.org)
- "The President claimed he already has authorization for war, but the growing consensus is that he does not. The Authorization of the Use of Military Force does not cover this military action, and the President should have asked for approval before beginning the bombing campaign a month ago. He should certainly ask for Congressional approval now before continuing and expanding it."Sarvis then goes on to enumerate several causes of concern that ought to be debated in Congress and recalls the unintended consequences of the United States' military action in Libya, including the collapse of order and the evacuation of the American embassy there." (votesmart.org)
- "Sarvis said Even when college graduates are able to get a job we take an enormous amount of their paycheck to give to retirees, healthcare and social security, so there are a lot of ways that the system is rigged against young people." (www.collegiatetimes.com)
This candidate has responded to a Political Courage Test in a previous election. As a continued effort to provide the American public with factual information on candidates running for public office, these archived responses are made available here.
| a) Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation? | |||
| b) Should abortions be illegal after the first trimester of pregnancy? | |||
| Yes | c) Should abortion be legal when the pregnancy resulted from incest or rape? | ||
| Yes | d) Should abortion be legal when the life of the woman is endangered? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support requiring parental notification before an abortion is performed on a minor? | ||
| Yes | f) Do you support requiring parental consent before an abortion is performed on a minor? | ||
| Yes | g) Do you support the prohibition of public funds for abortion procedures? | ||
| h) Do you support the prohibition of public funds for organizations that perform abortions? | |||
| No | i) Should an ultrasound be required prior to an abortion? | ||
| Abortion has proven to be a politically intractable issue because we are divided not just on the political issue but on the metaphysical issue. Given that, I find it counterproductive to try to settle the matter through the coercive power of the state. Trying to do so has ruined our political discourse and polarized our political parties. | |||
1) State Spending:Using the key, indicate what state funding levels (#1-6) you support for the following general categories. Select one level per category; you may use a number more than once.2) State Taxes:Using the key,indicate what state tax levels (#1-6) you support for the following general categories. Select one level per category; you may use a number more than once.3) Budget Stabilization:Indicate which proposals you support (if any) for balancing Virginia's budget.
| Slightly Decrease | a) Education (higher) | ||
| Maintain Status | b) Education (K-12) | ||
| Maintain Status | c) Environment | ||
| Slightly Decrease | d) Health care | ||
| Slightly Decrease | e) Law enforcement/corrections | ||
| Maintain Status | f) Transportation/infrastructure | ||
| Slightly Decrease | g) Welfare | ||
| Greatly Decrease | h) Other or expanded categories: | ||
| Slightly Decrease | a) Alcohol taxes | ||
| Maintain Status | b) Cigarette taxes | ||
| Greatly Decrease | c) Corporate taxes | ||
| Maintain Status | d) Gas/Oil taxes | ||
| Slightly Decrease | e) Property taxes | ||
| Maintain Status | f) Sales taxes | ||
| Greatly Decrease | g) Income taxes (low-income families) | ||
| Greatly Decrease | h) Income taxes (mid-income families) | ||
| Greatly Decrease | i) Income taxes (high-income families) | ||
| Slightly Decrease | j) Other or expanded categories: | ||
| Yes | a) Tapping into Virginia's "rainy day" fund | ||
| Yes | b) Increasing tuition rates at public universities | ||
| Yes | c) Reducing or eliminating public worker collective bargaining | ||
| Yes | d) Reducing state employee salaries AND/OR pensions | ||
| Yes | e) Instituting mandatory furloughs AND/OR layoffs for state employees | ||
| Yes | f) Reducing benefits for Medicaid recipients | ||
| My reform proposals may not necessarily have immediate spending impacts but they put us on a long-term path toward substantial reductions in costly spending programs, saving taxpayers money while improving health, safety, and education outcomes and moving us toward open and competitive markets. To read more about my proposals, visit www.RobertSarvis.com/issues | |||
| I have proposed the most principled, equitable, comprehensive tax reform plan of any candidate for Governor. We ought to substantially reduce, if not eliminate, the income tax (to spur employment and leave families with more take-home pay), and replace the existing sales tax w/ a uniform consumption tax on all retail sales of goods and services, a very broad-based, efficient tax that enables us to keep rates low. Close ALL loopholes, industry subsidies, incentives/credits/deductions. Move to fewer, simpler broad-based taxes with low rates. Eliminate archaic and economic-activity-reducing taxes, especially business taxes, and unpopular taxes like the car tax. | |||
| When the budget needs to be balanced, there should be no sacred cows. | |||
a) Do you support limits on the following types of contributions for state candidates?
| No | 1) Individual | ||
| No | 2) Political Action Committee | ||
| No | 3) Corporate | ||
| No | 4) Political Party | ||
| No | b) Should candidates for state office be encouraged to meet voluntary spending limits? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support requiring full and timely disclosure of campaign finance information? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support the use of an independent AND/OR bipartisan commission for redistricting? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support requiring a government-issued photo identification in order to vote at the polls? | ||
| No | f) Do you support allowing governors to serve consecutive terms? | ||
| Yes | g) Do you support the automatic restoration of voting rights to non-violent felons upon completion of their terms? | ||
| I support: *nonpartisan redistricting, ideally by computer algorithm; *term limits for all public offices in Virginia, including federal offices; *initiatives/referenda; *easier ballot access; *not just automatic restoration of voting rights but also reducing disenfranchisement by ending the drug war & legalizing marijuana. Re campaign finance, too much money in politics stems from too much money being parceled out by government, incentivizing lobbying and gift-giving. The solution is the RULE OF LAW. Ridding our tax and regulatory policies of cronyism and corporatism should be our number one concern, and only a Libertarian without big-money backing can be trusted to do that. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support capital punishment for certain crimes? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support alternatives to incarceration for certain non-violent offenders, such as mandatory counseling or substance abuse treatment? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support decriminalizing the possession of small amounts of marijuana? | ||
| d) Should a minor accused of a violent crime be prosecuted as an adult? | |||
| e) Should a minor who sends sexually-explicit or nude photos by cell phone face criminal charges? | |||
| No | f) Do you support the enforcement of federal immigration laws by state and local police? | ||
| Re the death penalty, I think it should be exceptionally rare, reserved for the most heinous of cases and where guilt is certain. I am greatly concerned, though, about granting the state the power to put someone to death, due to the possibility of error, the potential for ulterior political motives of prosecutors clouding judgment, the potential for induced witness testimony from plea agreements, etc. Extra resources should be made available to the defense where prosecutors seek the death penalty. Re minors, it depends on the circumstances. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support reducing government regulations on the private sector? | ||
| No | b) Do you support increased state funding for job-training programs that re-train displaced workers? | ||
| No | c) Do you support expanding access to unemployment benefits? | ||
| No | d) Do you support providing financial incentives to the private sector for the purpose of job creation? | ||
| No | e) Do you support increased spending on infrastructure projects for the purpose of job creation? | ||
| No | f) Do you support providing direct financial assistance to homeowners facing foreclosure? | ||
| Republicans and Democrats have undermined our economy's ability to grow and create jobs. They have allowed special interests to capture the legislative and regulatory process and use it to insulate themselves from competition by increasing barriers to entry and the costs of doing business. Government needs to excise all such provisions and focus on ensuring markets are open and competitive, so that entrepreneurs and innovators, and businesses of all sizes, compete on a level playing field. That will produce a flexible economy capable of putting people back to work and generating prosperity broadly shared throughout society. | |||
| No | a) Do you support the national Common Core State Standards initiative? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support a merit pay system for teachers? | ||
| No | c) Is the tenure process for public school teachers producing effective teachers? | ||
| Yes | d) Should parents be allowed to use vouchers to send their children to any school? | ||
| No | e) Do you support state funding for charter schools? | ||
| No | f) Do you support the state government providing college students with financial aid? | ||
| g) Should illegal immigrants who graduate from Virginia high schools be eligible for in-state tuition at public universities? | |||
| We can reform the public schools AND provide parents/students a way out of failing schools through a universal school choice program. I'm the only candidate who is talking about administrative bloat, eliminating SOLs, and providing parents, students, and teachers with more choice and freedom in an open and competitive market for education services. See my website for more thoughts on K-12 school choice: http://www.robertsarvis.com/issues/school-choice. Re higher education, our subsidies simply get captured by institutions through higher tuition. That's why students have so much debt. Higher education subsidies are also regressive, largely funding wealthy students. | |||
| No | a) Do you support state funding for the development of alternative energy? | ||
| No | b) Do you support state funding for the development of traditional domestic energy sources (e.g. coal, natural gas, oil)? | ||
| No | c) Do you support state funding for improvements to Virginia's energy infrastructure? | ||
| No | d) Do you support state funding for open space preservation? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support enacting environmental regulations aimed at reducing the effects of climate change? | ||
| f) Should uranium mining be permitted in Virginia? | |||
| All energy sources should be subject to strict and strong liability rules for environmental harms. This includes air and water pollution, oil spills, gas spills, death of migratory birds, etc, etc. Doing so adds in the external costs to the price of energy paid by consumers. Once we do that properly, the government should be agnostic with respect to energy sources, not subsidizing or arbitrarily focusing on any particular source or technology. Importantly, any fees or taxes raised MUST NOT become another source of revenue by revenue-hungry legislators, but MUST be offset by tax reductions elsewhere. | |||
| No | a) Do you support restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns? | ||
| No | b) Should background checks be required on gun sales between private citizens at gun shows? | ||
| Yes | c) Should citizens be allowed to carry concealed guns? | ||
| No | d) Should a license be required for gun possession? | ||
| e) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| No | a) Do you support a universally-accessible, publicly-administered health insurance option? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support expanding access to health care through commercial health insurance reform? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support interstate health insurance compacts? | ||
| No | d) Do you support requiring individuals to purchase health care insurance? | ||
| No | e) Do you support monetary limits on damages that can be collected in malpractice lawsuits? | ||
| Yes | f) Do you support allowing doctors to prescribe marijuana to their patients for medicinal purposes? | ||
| The healthcare system is so expensive b/c of a century of bad regulations given to us by Republicans and Democrats at federal & state levels. Federal policy ties insurance to jobs, limits choices, pushes spending through insurance policies, incentives overconsumption, and eliminates price transparency (w/o prices, we can't economize). State licensing and accreditation restricts entry into the insurance market and into the healthcare professions. Increased demand w/ constrained supply drives up prices. I'm the only candidate who understands healthcare economics. We need real reform, including licensure reform, expanding scope of NP/PA authority, and much more. | |||
| No | a) Should marriage only be between one man and one woman? | ||
| Yes | b) Should same-sex couples be allowed to form civil unions? | ||
| c) Do you support the inclusion of sexual orientation in Virginia's anti-discrimination laws? | |||
| d) Do you support the inclusion of gender identity in Virginia's anti-discrimination laws? | |||
| The state shouldn't be granting legal privileges on the basis of personal relationships. BUT, if government is is doing so, those privileges should be available to same-sex couples equally. My marriage was illegal in Va 50 years ago; many arguments against equal treatment of same-sex marriages are the same as those against interracial marriages. They were wrong then and are wrong today. I also respect religious liberty. Religious institutions should not be told whom to marry. Religious institutions' views on marriage should not be at issue. I support prohibiting sexual-identity and sexual-orientation discrimination in public employment. | |||
| My top three priorities are: *Jobs/economic growth ??Eliminate cronyism and corporatism, and foster open and competitive markets under the rule of law, to create a flexible economy that puts people back to work and creates broadly shared wealth. Free entrepreneurs and innovators to compete on a level playing field. *Education reform ? Cut administrative bloat, eliminate SOLs, and focus on actual learning and teacher-driven solutions in public schools. Implement universal school choice to give families more choice when schools are failing, to empower teachers, and to foster open and competitive markets in education. *End the Drug War. |
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