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Nita Lowey's 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.

Nita Lowey has failed to provide voters with positions on key issues covered by the 2018 Political Courage Test, despite repeated requests from Vote Smart and voters like you.

What is the Political Courage Test?

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 2018.

  • "Roe v. Wade affirmed the constitutional right of women to make their own health choices, free of government intrusion. I'm committed to protecting this monumental ruling and fighting for women’s reproductive health rights. #CommitToRoe " (twitter.com)
  • "Adding nearly $2 trillion to the national debt with a massive tax giveaway to corporations and the very wealthiest, then turning around and targeting investments in the priorities of American families under the guise of fiscal responsibility, is the height of hypocrisy." (twitter.com)
  • Signed a letter stating: "·Preserving the agreement in the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013 that required increased spending to be spread evenly between defense spending and non-defense discretionary accounts which have both been harmed by the ongoing sequester;" (votesmart.org)
  • "5 yrs ago #CitizensUnited opened flood gates for $$$ in politics. RT if you agree we need campaign finance reform!" (twitter.com)
  • "Investments in our roads, bridges, broadband lines, power grids, and other critical infrastructure to create jobs and build for the future;" (lowey.house.gov)
  • "Adding nearly $2 trillion to the national debt with a massive tax giveaway to corporations and the very wealthiest, then turning around and targeting investments in the priorities of American families under the guise of fiscal responsibility, is the height of hypocrisy." (twitter.com)
  • "That is why she has led efforts to: […] Invest in school modernization so students can learn in 21st century classrooms; [...]" (lowey.house.gov)
  • "Invest in alternative energy sources like wind and solar, which will decrease usage of fossil fuels, create millions of green jobs, and reduce our dependence on foreign oil" (lowey.house.gov)
  • "Congresswoman Lowey believes individuals have the right to own firearms, but commonsense regulations are critical to keeping our community safe. That is why she is working to: Reinstate permanetly the federal ban on assault wapons and restrict large-capacity magazines; prevent other states' lax concealed carry laws from endangering New York communities; close the gun show loophole; mandate child safety locks; and keep guns out of the hands of children, criminals, and those with links to terrorism." (lowey.house.gov)
  • "The Affordable Care Act was passed by a majority of the House and a supermajority of the Senate, signed into law by the President, and upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court. Yet the majority continues to jeopardize the jobs and security of middle-class families in order to reverse the legitimate outcome." (votesmart.org)
  • "President Trump’s wall is a $21 billion dollar waste. Let’s spend that money on new jobs, roads & bridges, & new Pell Grants instead." (twitter.com)
  • "Instead of providing a plan to reform our immigration system in a way that lives up to our values & reflects needs of our nation, House Rs are pushing radical, divisive proposals that are an extension of @POTUS’s extreme anti-immigrant agenda. My statement on the Goodlatte bill:" (twitter.com)
  • "We are in dire need of comprehensive immigration reform that protects #DREAMers. Until then, we must #DefendDACA." (twitter.com)
  • Despite exhaustive research, Vote Smart was unable to find information about this candidate's position.
  • Despite exhaustive research, Vote Smart was unable to find information about this candidate's position.
  • Despite exhaustive research, Vote Smart was unable to find information about this candidate's position.
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.
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.

Indicate which principles you support (if any) concerning abortion.

a) Abortions should always be illegal.
b) Abortions should be illegal when the fetus is viable, with or without life support.
X c) Abortions should always be legally available.
d) Abortions should be legal only within the first trimester of pregnancy.
e) Abortions should be legal when the pregnancy resulted from incest or rape.
f) Abortions should be legal when the life of the woman is endangered.
g) Abortions should be limited by waiting periods and notification requirements as decided by each state government.
h) Prohibit the dilation and extraction procedure, also known as "partial birth" abortion.
i) Prohibit public funding of abortions and public funding of organizations that advocate or perform abortions.
X j) Support "buffer-zones" by requiring demonstrators to stay at least five feet from abortion clinic doorways and driveways.
X k) Provide funding for family planning programs as a means to decrease the number of abortions.
l) Other

Budgetary PrioritiesIndicate what levels of federal funding you support for the following general categories.

Slightly Decrease Funding a) Agricultural
Slightly Increase Funding b) Arts
Maintain Funding Status c) Defense
Greatly Increase Funding d) Education
Slightly Increase Funding e) Environmental
Slightly Increase Funding f) International aid
Maintain Funding Status g) Law enforcement
Greatly Increase Funding h) Medical Research
Slightly Decrease Funding i) National Aeronautical Space Administration (NASA)
Maintain Funding Status j) National Parks
Slightly Increase Funding k) Scientific Research
Maintain Funding Status l) Transportation and Highway Infrastructure
Maintain Funding Status m) Welfare
n) Other
2) Would you support enforcing the spending limits agreed to in 1997 by the President and Congress to balance the budget?

Defense SpendingIndicate what levels of federal funding you support for the following categories.

Maintain Funding Status a) Armed Forces personnel training
Slightly Decrease Funding b) Covert intelligence operations
Maintain Funding Status c) Defense plant conversion
Slightly Decrease Funding d) Military hardware
Slightly Decrease Funding e) Military space shuttle missions
Slightly Increase Funding f) Pay for active duty personnel
Greatly Decrease Funding g) National Missile Defense Program
Maintain Funding Status h) Modernization of weaponry and equipment
Maintain Funding Status i) Programs to improve military retention rates
Maintain Funding Status j) Research and development of new weapons
Maintain Funding Status k) Troop and equipment readiness
l) Other

Budget SurplusIndicate your priorities for spending any anticipated federal budget surplus.

Not a Priority a) Defense
Medium Priority b) Education
Low Priority c) Federal debt reduction
High Priority d) Medicare
Highest Priority e) Social Security
Lowest Priority f) Tax cuts
g) Other

TaxesIndicate what levels you support concerning taxes, deductions, and tax credits in the following categories.Income Taxes - Family IncomeIncome Taxes - Retiree IncomeOther TaxesDeductions/Credits

Eliminate a) Less than $25,000
Slightly Decrease b) $25,000 - $75,000
Slightly Decrease c) $75,000 - $150,000
Maintain Status d) Over $150,000
e) Other
Slightly Decrease f) Over $40, 000
g) Other
Maintain Status a) Alcohol taxes
Slightly Decrease b) Capital gains taxes
Greatly Increase c) Cigarette taxes
Maintain Status d) Corporate taxes
Maintain Status e) Gasoline taxes
Greatly Decrease f) Inheritance taxes
Eliminate g) Other
Maintain Status a) Charitable deductions
Slightly Increase b) Medical expense deductions
Maintain Status c) Mortgage deductions
Slightly Increase d) Child tax credit
Slightly Increase e) Earned income tax credit
Slightly Increase f) Student loan tax credit
Greatly Increase g) Other
Marriage Penalty
College tuition

Taxes

No 2) Do you support replacing the current U.S. income tax structure with a flat income tax?
Yes 3) Should a married couple filing jointly pay the same taxes as if they were an unmarried couple filing separately?
Yes 4) Would you cut taxes if there were an operating surplus?
No 5) Would you cut taxes and use Social Security surpluses to supplement the difference?
6) Other

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding campaign finance issues.

X a) Support public taxpayer funding for Congressional candidates who comply with campaign spending limits.
b) Increase the amount individuals are permitted to contribute to federal campaigns.
c) Prohibit Political Action Committee (PAC) contributions to candidates for federal office.
X d) Provide free or low-cost television advertising to candidates who agree to voluntary campaign spending limits.
X e) Ban unregulated soft money campaign contributions to political parties or committees.
f) Prohibit non-U.S. citizens from making soft money contributions to national parties or party committees.
X g) Require full disclosure of funding sources of issue advocacy commercials which appear within 60 days of an election.
X h) Make campaign spending limits mandatory for all federal candidates.
i) Remove all contribution limits on federal candidates and parties, but require complete and immediate disclosure via the Internet.
j) Require Congressional candidates to raise over half of their campaign money from their home state.
k) Other

Indicate which principles you support (if any) to address crime.

a) Broaden the use of the death penalty for federal crimes.
b) Increase spending to build more federal prisons.
X c) Impose "truth in sentencing" for violent criminals so they serve full sentences with no chance of parole.
X d) Support programs to provide prison inmates with vocational and job-related skills and job-placement assistance when released.
X e) Support programs to provide prison inmates with drug and alcohol addiction treatment.
X f) Increase penalties for crimes committed on school grounds.
X g) Increase funding for community policing programs.
X h) Implement penalties other than incarceration for certain non-violent offenders.
X i) Require that crimes based on gender, sexual orientation, and disability be prosecuted as federal hate crimes.
j) Enforcement of civil rights should primarily be the responsibility of the federal government.
k) Prosecute as adults, youths accused of a felony.
l) Provide block grants to states for implementation of programs to combat juvenile crime.
m) Impose harsher penalties for youths convicted of violent offenses.
X n) Support the use of "boot camps" as alternative sentencing for juvenile offenders.
X o) Support programs that provide job training and placement services for at-risk youth.
p) Other

Indicate which principles you support (if any) concerning illegal drugs.

a) Increase penalties for selling illegal drugs.
b) Support mandatory jail sentences for selling illegal drugs.
c) Support capital punishment for convicted international drug traffickers.
X d) Expand federally sponsored drug education and drug treatment programs.
e) Decriminalize the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes.
X f) Increase border security to stop the flow of illegal drugs into the U.S.
g) Eliminate federal funding for programs associated with the "war on drugs."
h) Other

Indicate which principles you support (if any) concerning education (K-12).

X a) Support national standards and testing of public school students.
X b) Allow parents to use vouchers (equal opportunity scholarships) to send their children to any publicly-funded school.
c) Allow parents to use vouchers (equal opportunity scholarships) to send their children to any participating school: public, private or religious.
X d) Allow parents to use tax-free savings accounts to send their children to any publicly-funded school.
e) Allow parents to use tax-free savings accounts to send their children to any participating school: public, private or religious.
X f) Support charter schools where teachers and professionals receive authorization and funding to establish new schools.
g) Promote education flexibility by giving federal funds, in the form of block grants, to the states to spend it as they see fit.
X h) Increase funding for block grants to states to help them hire additional teachers.
X i) Support teacher testing and reward teachers with merit pay.
X j) Increase funding for computers and computer training in public schools.
X k) Increase funding for school capital improvements (e.g. buildings and infrastructure).
l) Eliminate restrictions on federal education funding, giving educators or local school districts more flexibility to design and implement their programs.
X m) Support affirmative action in public college admissions.
n) Eliminate federal financial aid for individuals convicted of drug offenses.
X o) Increase funding of programs such as Pell grants and Stafford loans to help students pay for college.
X p) Support federal tax incentives to help families save for college.
q) Other

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding employment and affirmative action.

X a) Provide tax credits for companies that move job-creating industries into areas with high unemployment.
X b) Increase funding for national job-training programs that re-train displaced workers or teach skills needed in today's job market.
c) Reduce government regulation of the private sector in order to encourage investment and economic expansion.
X d) Establish empowerment zones in areas with large numbers of unemployed people.
e) Eliminate any federal programs designed to reduce unemployment.
X f) Increase the federal minimum wage.
X g) Encourage employers to offer flex-time scheduling, comp-time, and unpaid leave for family emergencies.
X h) Provide tax credits for businesses that offer on-site child care.
i) The federal government should consider race and sex in making government contracting decisions.
X j) The federal government should continue affirmative action programs.
k) The federal government should discontinue affirmative action programs.
l) The federal government should utilize merit and qualifications in making government contracting decisions.
m) Other

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding America's environment and natural resources.

X a) Strengthen the regulation and enforcement of the Clean Water Act.
X b) Strengthen the regulation and enforcement of the Clean Air Act.
c) Waive environmental review requirements for grazing permits.
X d) Revise the 1872 mining law to increase the fees charged to mining companies using federal lands.
e) Require states to fully compensate citizens when environmental regulations limit uses of privately owned land.
X f) Encourage further development and use of alternative fuels to reduce pollution.
X g) Strengthen emission controls on all gasoline or diesel-powered engines, including cars, trucks, and sport utility vehicles.
X h) Promote the selling of pollution credits between nations to encourage industries to decrease pollution levels.
X i) Strengthen logging restrictions on federal lands.
j) Reduce current federal regulations on the environment.
k) Give states added flexibility from the federal government in enforcing and funding federal environment regulations.
l) Other

Indicate which principles you support (if any) concerning gun issues.

X a) Ban the sale or transfer of semi-automatic guns, except those used for hunting.
X b) Maintain and strengthen the enforcement of existing federal restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns.
c) Ease federal restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns.
d) Repeal federal restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns.
e) Allow citizens to carry concealed guns.
X f) Require manufacturers to provide child-safety locks on guns.
X g) Increase penalties for the possession of any illegal guns.
X h) Hold gun owners responsible for crimes committed with their guns by children age 16 and under.
X i) Raise the minimum age for ownership of handguns from 18 to 21.
X j) Require background checks of gun buyers at gun shows.
X k) Require a license for gun possession.
l) Other

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding health issues.

a) Providing health care is not a responsibility of the federal government.
b) Implement a universal health care program to guarantee coverage to all Americans regardless of income.
X c) Support health care strategies focused on prevention, including health education, and natural medicines and remedies.
X d) Support a Patient's Bill of Rights to define and enforce the rights of insured patients, including greater access to specialists and emergency rooms, wider choice of health care providers, and appeal mechanisms when claims are denied.
X e) Support a Patient's Bill of Rights which includes the right to sue when claims are denied.
f) Support a Patient's Bill of Rights which includes the right to appeal to an administrative board of specialists when services are denied.
X g) Provide tax incentives to small businesses that provide health care to their employees.
h) Expand eligibility for tax-free medical savings accounts, which would be taxed if used for purposes other than medical costs.
i) Limit the amount of damages that can be awarded in medical malpractice lawsuits.
X j) Allow states and local communities to use federal funds for needle-exchange programs to combat the spread of HIV.
X k) Provide citizens age 55-65 the option of purchasing Medicare health coverage.
X l) Support legislation to provide prescription drug coverage under Medicare.
X m) Increase funding for AIDS programs.
n) Other

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding immigration.

a) Decrease the number of immigrants allowed into the country.
b) Increase the eligibility of legal immigrants for certain social programs (e.g. public housing, food stamps).
X c) Require the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) to reduce the time between applying for citizenship and taking the oath of allegiance to six months.
X d) Provide extra federal aid to states with higher numbers of immigrants for necessary medical and social services.
e) Prohibit states from passing laws that deny human services (medical care, education) to illegal immigrants or their children.
f) Grant U.S. citizenship to children born in the US only if their parents immigrated legally.
X g) Increase the immigration quota for computer scientists and other information technology workers.
h) Establish English as the official national language.
i) Support the separation of the INS into two bureaus: one administering naturalization and one administering border patrol.
j) Increase state autonomy in handling immigration issues.
k) Reimburse states for providing services to illegal aliens.
l) Other

International AidIndicate which principles (if any) you support regarding U.S. International Aid.

X a) Aid should be granted to countries when extraordinary circumstances cause disaster and threaten civilian lives.
X b) Aid should be granted to countries when it is in the security interests of the U. S.
X c) Aid should be granted to countries that are close allies of the U. S. and in need of financial/military assistance.
d) Aid should be eliminated for any nation with documented human rights abuses.
e) Aid programs should be scaled back and eventually eliminated except for extraordinary circumstances.
f) Other

International PolicyIndicate which principles you support (if any) regarding the Middle East.Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding the United States-United Nations relationship.

a) The U.S. should resolve future disputes with Iraq only through diplomatic means.
X b) The U.S. should take unilateral military action if Iraq does not comply with all accepted United Nations resolutions.
c) The U.S. should take military action against Iraq only as part of an international effort.
d) The U.S. should end the economic embargo against Iraq.
e) The U.S. should not continue to play a prominent leadership role in the peace process between Israel and the Palestine Authority.
X f) The U.S. should continue to play a prominent leadership role in the peace process between Israel and the Palestine Authority.
g) Other
X a) The U.S. should participate in United Nations peacekeeping missions only when vital U.S. interests are involved.
b) The U.S. should not commit military troops to United Nations peacekeeping missions.
c) The U.S. should withdraw completely from the United Nations.
X d) The U.S. should pay its debt to the United Nations.
e) Other
No 3) Should the U.S. have full diplomatic relations with Cuba?
Yes 4) Should the U.S. have full diplomatic relations with China?
Yes 5) Should the U.S. recognize and extend full diplomatic relations to Taiwan?
Yes 6) Should the US maintain ground troops in Kosovo?
Yes 7) Do you support the cooperative threat reduction programs with Russia to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons to unfriendly nations?
No 8) Do you support modifying the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Treaty in order to deploy the National Missile Defense System?
Other

International Trade

Yes 1) Do you support the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)?
Yes 2) Do you support the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT)?
Yes 3) Do you support continued U.S. membership in the World Trade Organization (WTO)?
Yes 4) Do you support China becoming a member of the World Trade Organization?
Yes 5) Do you support imposing tariffs on products imported from nations that maintain restrictive trade barriers on American products?
Undecided 6) Should a nation's human rights record affect its normal trade relations (most favored nation status) with the United States?
Yes 7) Do you support normal trade relations (most favored nation status) with Vietnam?
8) Do you support granting the President "fast-track" authority in trade negotiations?
No 9) Do you support the trade embargo against Cuba?
Do you believe there has been a decline in moral and ethical standards in America over the last four decades?
Violence and incivility occupy too prominent a place in our popular culture. It is important that parents be empowered to protect their children from objectionable messages and images. At the same time, we must encourage individual responsibility by promoting work, stable family relationships, and respect for our neighbors.

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding Social Security.

a) Allow workers to invest a portion of their payroll tax in private accounts which they manage themselves.
b) Allow workers to invest a portion of their payroll tax in private accounts managed by private firms contracted by the government.
c) Invest a portion of Social Security's assets collectively in stocks and bonds instead of U.S. Treasury securities.
d) Increase the payroll tax to better finance Social Security in its current form.
e) Lower Social Security's annual cost-of-living increases.
f) Limit Social Security benefits based on recipients' other income and assets.
g) Require individuals to pay the Social Security tax on incomes above $68,400 (which is currently exempt).
X h) Support a lock box measure, limiting Congress's ability to spend Social Security and Medicare surpluses on any other federal programs except Social Security and Medicare, until each program's long-term solvency is guaranteed.
i) Other

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding technology.

X a) Continuing the moratorium on Internet sales taxes.
b) Implement regulation of Internet content by the federal government.
X c) Support on-line voter registration.
d) Support voting on-line.
e) Support government mandates to curtail violent and sexual content on television.
X f) Support strict penalties for Internet crimes such as hacking and Internet violence.
X g) Support strong Internet privacy laws.
h) Regulating the Internet should not in any way be controlled by the federal government.
i) Other
No Do you support amending the Constitution to limit the number of terms which members of Congress can serve?

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding poverty and the welfare system.

X a) Support housing assistance for welfare recipients.
X b) Provide homeless families with apartment vouchers they can use to supplement the cost of an apartment.
X c) Continue to give states and local governments responsibility for welfare programs through TANF block grants.
X d) Maintain current welfare-to-work requirements in order for states to qualify for block grants.
X e) Restore food stamp programs to legal immigrants.
f) Transfer homeless housing programs to states through block grants.
X g) Provide continued Medicaid benefits for those welfare recipients who have moved from welfare to work.
h) Require states to return any unused welfare block grant funding to the federal government.
i) Direct federal poverty aid through religious, community-based or other non-profit organizations.
j) Other
We must utitilze the federal budget surplus to protect and ensure the long-term solvency of Social Security and Medicare. We should also ensure that all children have access to a quality education by reducing class sizes, modernizing our schools, and making college tuition tax deductible. Finally, we must improve health care by passing a Patients' Bill of Rights, adopting a prescription drug benefit under Medicare, and increasing funds for biomedical research.

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