Matt Lynch'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.
Matt Lynch has provided voters with clear stances on key issues by responding to the 2016 Political Courage Test.
Ohio Congressional Election 2016 Political Courage Test
| Pro-life | Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation? | ||
| I support the Ohio Heartbeat Bill I Co-sponsored in the Ohio House. I support a Constitutional Amendment to protect the unborn. I will defend human life from the womb to the tomb. | |||
| No | In order to balance the budget, do you support reducing defense spending? | ||
| No | In order to balance the budget, do you support an income tax increase on any tax bracket? | ||
| The problem in Washington is not too little revenue, the problem is too much spending. I support a "Balanced Budget Amendment" to force Congress to control spending. I support the "penny plan" to reduce spending 1% each year which will balance the budget in 6 years. We cannot reduce defense spending since Obama has so weakened our military, but we can insist on wise spending to reduce waste in ALL areas. Our fragile economy cannot bear any tax increase. I support the repeal of the Federal Income Tax and replacing it with the "Fair Tax", ie, a national sales tax. | |||
| No | Do you support the regulation of indirect campaign contributions from corporations and unions? | ||
| No. Although I hate the money in politics we cannot restrict our freedom by denying citizens the right to contribute as they see fit. | |||
| Yes | Do you support capital punishment for certain crimes? | ||
| Yes | Do you support alternatives to incarceration for certain non-violent offenders such as mandatory counseling or substance abuse treatment? | ||
| Yes | Do you support mandatory minimum sentences for non-violent drug offenders? | ||
| Counseling and treatment are great but not a replacement for incarceration. A drug addict can be prevented if people fear the consequences of starting to use drugs in the first place. We do not help by decriminalizing drug use, we simply expose more people to the dangers of drugs. | |||
| No | Do you support federal spending as a means of promoting economic growth? | ||
| Yes | Do you support lowering taxes as a means of promoting economic growth? | ||
| No | Do you support providing tax incentives to businesses for the purpose of job creation? | ||
| We should not use the government to pick winners and losers in the marketplace. The result is "crony capitalism" that encourages corporations to pay off politicians. If you want to keep money out of politics (as I do) then let's stop using government to subsidize businesses with "corporate welfare". | |||
| No | Do you support requiring states to implement education reforms in order to be eligible for competitive federal grants? | ||
| NO! Common Core has got to go!...but it is just the latest cram down of Federal Education policy. We should close the Federal Dept of Education that has nearly 5000 employees and does not teach one child! If we want to spend Federal money on education, then block grant the funds to the states and let them decide what is best for education in their home states. Return the power to local school boards and parents over the education of their children. | |||
| Yes | Do you support building the Keystone XL pipeline? | ||
| No | Do you support funding for the development of renewable energy (e.g. solar, wind, thermal)? | ||
| No | Do you support increased regulations on the hydraulic fracturing ("fracking") industry? | ||
| I am all for renewable energy development but not at the taxpayers expense. This is just another form of "crony capitalism" that leads to higher prices and payoffs to politicians. Fracking has led to economic prosperity for workers and cheap energy for citizens! While we must have safe and appropriate regulation we need to avoid killing the goose! | |||
| No | Do you believe that human activity is contributing to climate change? | ||
| No | Do you support the federal regulation of greenhouse gas emissions? | ||
| I suppose human activity, as well as animal activity and plant activity, all have some effect on climate, the real question is to what degree and to what result? Bad science leads to bad policy and the govt should stay out of it. Too many want use CO2 regulations as a means to control our society. | |||
| No | Do you generally support gun-control legislation? | ||
| The 2nd Amendment is the right that protects all the others! | |||
| Yes | Do you support repealing the 2010 Affordable Care Act ("Obamacare")? | ||
| ACA is a failed policy that has led to higher prices for all and expanded coverage for few. We should: 1) get the lawyers out of medicine with tort reform 2) allow med ins to be sold across state lines to increase competition 3) promote health savings accounts 4) require Drs and hospitals to post their prices so consumers can make better choices | |||
| Yes | Do you support requiring illegal immigrants to return to their country of origin before they are eligible for citizenship? | ||
| Illegals will self deport once we stop corporations from hiring them. We must punish employers who knowingly hire illegals. Illegal labor leads to income inequality by keeping wages low and taking jobs from legal workers. | |||
| No | Do you support same-sex marriage? | ||
| Marriage was defined long before their was government. | |||
| Yes | Do you support targeting suspected terrorists outside of official theaters of conflict? | ||
| Yes | Should the U.S use military force in order to prevent governments hostile to the United States from possessing a nuclear weapon? | ||
| Yes, but only with the authority of Congress. No war without declaration of war as constitutionally required. | |||
| Yes | Do you support allowing individuals to divert a portion of their Social Security taxes into personal retirement accounts? | ||
| Social Security will collapse within the next ten years. If we don't change it soon it will be too late. Older workers must be guaranteed their benefits while younger workers can be given a choice to opt out at least partially. We must save Social Security and doing nothing will lead to disaster. | |||
SpendingIndicate what federal spending levels (#1-6) you support for the following general categories. Select one number per category; you can use a number more than once.TaxesIndicate 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.
| Slightly Decrease | a) Agriculture | ||
| Greatly Decrease | b) Arts | ||
| Greatly Increase | c) Defense | ||
| Greatly Decrease | d) Education | ||
| Greatly Decrease | e) Environment | ||
| Slightly Decrease | f) Homeland Security | ||
| Greatly Decrease | g) International aid | ||
| Slightly Decrease | h) Medical Research | ||
| Slightly Decrease | i) Scientific Research | ||
| Slightly Decrease | j) Space exploration | ||
| Eliminate | k) United Nations | ||
| Greatly Decrease | l) Welfare | ||
| Eliminate | a) Capital gains taxes | ||
| Eliminate | b) Corporate taxes | ||
| Eliminate | c) Small business taxes | ||
| Eliminate | d) Excise taxes (alcohol) | ||
| Eliminate | e) Excise taxes (cigarettes) | ||
| Eliminate | f) Excise taxes (transportation fuel) | ||
| Eliminate | g) Income taxes (low-income families) | ||
| Eliminate | h) Income taxes (middle-income families) | ||
| Eliminate | i) Income taxes (high-income families) | ||
| Eliminate | j) Inheritance taxes | ||
| Maintain Status | k) Payroll taxes | ||
| I support the "penny plan" to reduce spending by 1% each year, leading to a balanced budget in 6 years. Almost all areas of spending must be cut but the military has been decimated under Obama and in the short term must be built back up. By also passing the "fair tax", ie a national sales tax, while eliminating the income tax we will greatly increase prosperity and get more folks off the welfare system. | |||
| We must replace these taxes by also passing the "fair tax", ie a national sales tax, while eliminating the income tax and we will greatly increase prosperity. | |||
| I would not support any proposal requiring additional funding. If we cut the nonsense and waste we can pay for needed reforms. Reforming our tax system as outlined above and balancing the budget with a Constitutional Amendment are critical. We must build the wall on our southern border and enforce the laws against those that overstay their visas. We must protect our citizens from terrorism with common sense restrictions on immigrants from terrorist nations. Our elected officials need to take their oath to uphold the Constitution seriously and stop expanding government! "Government is not the solution, Government is the problem" |
Vote Smart does not permit the use of its name or programs in any campaign activity, including advertising, debates, and speeches.