Smaller Government Centrists are those in the Libertarian quadrant but within the center circle.
Guns | Should the Second Amendment stay in force? | ||||
ECONOMIC | |||||
Weighted Percent | Number | Unweighted Percent | Average Weight | Answer Text | Answer Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1.5% | 508 | 1.5% | 75.7 | NO! Private gun ownership is too dangerous. (The 2nd Amendment is an obsolete relic from frontier days.) | 0 |
6.9% | 2374 | 6.9% | 74.6 | No. Ban private handguns. Carefully control hunting weapons. | 24 |
51.7% | 18730 | 54.7% | 70.4 | OK, but require registration and background checks. | 50 |
30.4% | 9832 | 28.7% | 78.9 | Yes. Legal handguns actually prevent crime, save lives, and give women equality. (And registration requirements are a dangerous slippery slope.) | 75 |
9.4% | 2781 | 8.1% | 86.3 | YES! Private MILITARY arms are the last bastion against tyranny. (And gun registration is a dangerous slippery slope) | 100 | 100% | 34225 | 100% | 74.5 | Total | 59.8 |
Subsidies & Tariffs | Should the government help certain "important" industries using subsidies, quotas, and/or tariffs? | ||||
ECONOMIC | |||||
Weighted Percent | Number | Unweighted Percent | Average Weight | Answer Text | Answer Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2.4% | 810 | 2.4% | 71.2 | Yes! It is high time that the US implement an Industrial Policy, guiding industries to our national purpose. | 0 |
6.9% | 2328 | 6.8% | 69.9 | Yes. The Freedom to Farm Act and free trade with Mexico have hurt too many workers. Repeal them. | 27 |
31.1% | 11230 | 32.8% | 65.5 | Some. The current amount of support for distressed industries is about right. | 52 |
50.0% | 16757 | 49.0% | 70.7 | No. Subsidies keep inefficient industries in this country keeping us poorer in the long run. Limit subsidies to help out in short term crises only. | 77 |
9.6% | 3100 | 9.1% | 73.0 | NO! Giving taxpayer money to favored industries is theft, pure and simple! Eliminate all subsidies, quotas and protective tariffs. | 100 | 100% | 34225 | 100% | 69.1 | Total | 66.1 |
Education | Should the public schools be privatized? | ||||
ECONOMIC | |||||
Weighted Percent | Number | Unweighted Percent | Average Weight | Answer Text | Answer Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
6.9% | 2316 | 6.8% | 89.8 | NO! We need to extend the public schools to day care and college. | 0 |
61.2% | 20904 | 61.1% | 87.7 | No. We need continued government ownership of schools. (Reform is possible.) | 45 |
23.4% | 8079 | 23.6% | 86.6 | Yes. Replace government-owned schools with government-provided vouchers for everyone. | 60 |
6.4% | 2206 | 6.4% | 87.4 | Yes! Government vouchers for the poor only. (Let the middle and upper classes write their own checks.) | 80 |
2.1% | 720 | 2.1% | 85.6 | YES! Complete separation of education and state. (Let churches and other charities educate the poor.) | 100 | 100% | 34225 | 100% | 87.5 | Total | 48.8 |
Social Security | Should Social Security be phased out? | ||||
ECONOMIC | |||||
Weighted Percent | Number | Unweighted Percent | Average Weight | Answer Text | Answer Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
3.7% | 1221 | 3.6% | 77.7 | NO! All we have to do is start investing the Social Security trust fund in the stock market. | 0 |
2.3% | 750 | 2.2% | 79.2 | NO! Raise taxes as necessary when the baby boomers retire. | 20 |
30.8% | 10442 | 30.5% | 76.2 | No, but pay down the national debt now, before the baby boomers retire. | 50 |
22.6% | 8069 | 23.6% | 72.4 | Some. Ramp up the retirement age so the average number of years for receiving government checks is brought back down to 5. | 60 |
14.1% | 4836 | 14.1% | 75.5 | Yes. Replace Social Security with a purely aged-based MINIMUM income (comparable to current minimum Social Security payouts) funded out of general revenues. | 68 |
15.3% | 5045 | 14.7% | 78.4 | Yes. Replace Social Security with a forced savings plan for the young. | 76 |
11.2% | 3862 | 11.3% | 75.1 | YES! Complete separation of retirement and state. Let people plan their own retirement. | 100 | 100% | 34225 | 100% | 75.5 | Total | 61.9 |
Workplace | Should the government continue to regulate employment relations in the name of Civil Rights? | ||||
ECONOMIC | |||||
Weighted Percent | Number | Unweighted Percent | Average Weight | Answer Text | Answer Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2.6% | 814 | 2.4% | 77.8 | YES! A job is a right. The burden of proof lies on the employer to fire anyone. All firings should be subject to judicial review. | 0 |
8.4% | 2689 | 7.9% | 76.5 | Yes! Workplace equality has not yet been achieved. Clearly more action is required. | 20 |
36.3% | 12677 | 37.0% | 70.2 | Yes. About what it is now. (Sure, some of the lawsuits are ridiculous, but it takes dire threats to bring certain employers into line.) | 44 |
41.6% | 14351 | 41.9% | 71.0 | No. The penalties for discrimination and/or offending people have gotten way out of line. The loss of a job is worth a few months' pay in damages at most. | 79 |
11.1% | 3694 | 10.8% | 73.3 | NO! Hiring and working should be purely voluntary activities. (The marketplace will punish discriminators.) | 100 | 100% | 34225 | 100% | 71.6 | Total | 61.6 |
Taxes & Spending | Should the size of government be significantly reduced (over a period of time)? | ||||
ECONOMIC | |||||
Weighted Percent | Number | Unweighted Percent | Average Weight | Answer Text | Answer Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
0.9% | 361 | 1.1% | 75.6 | NO! Government is too small. There are vital programs that are under-funded. | 0 |
11.2% | 4113 | 12.0% | 79.4 | No. Government is about the right size. | 40 |
50.9% | 17542 | 51.3% | 84.8 | Yes. Cut by 10-20% (eliminate waste, fraud, and abuse...). | 55 |
18.6% | 6099 | 17.8% | 89.3 | Yes! Cut significantly, 30-40%. | 65 |
9.3% | 3048 | 8.9% | 89.0 | Yes! Cut spending roughly in half. | 75 |
7.6% | 2504 | 7.3% | 88.8 | YES! Cut 70% or more. (The rightful function of government is to protect our borders and enforce laws protecting life, liberty and property.) | 86 |
1.5% | 558 | 1.6% | 81.0 | YES!! Taxation is theft! Government should be run from voluntary contributions and user fees only. | 100 | 100% | 34225 | 100% | 85.5 | Total | 59.6 |
The Draft | Should military service be voluntary, or should there be a draft? | ||||
PERSONAL | |||||
Weighted Percent | Number | Unweighted Percent | Average Weight | Answer Text | Answer Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
10.5% | 3477 | 10.2% | 68.5 | Everyone should have the experience of two years of "National Service" (can be non-military). | 0 |
19.2% | 6865 | 20.1% | 63.5 | No draft now, but keep draft registration. | 50 |
43.7% | 15333 | 44.8% | 64.9 | Under extreme circumstances a draft could be acceptable. However, we do not need draft registration now. | 70 |
14.2% | 4703 | 13.7% | 68.9 | In times of crisis the problem is not lack of volunteers; the problem is lack of a prepared populace. Add military training to the basic high school curriculum and make training camps available without further obligation. | 80 |
12.4% | 3847 | 11.2% | 73.4 | The draft is slavery and therefore morally unacceptable. A country that needs a draft to defend itself deserves to lose. | 100 | 100% | 34225 | 100% | 66.5 | Total | 64.0 |
Censorship | Should the FCC regulate the content of broadcast television? | ||||
PERSONAL | |||||
Weighted Percent | Number | Unweighted Percent | Average Weight | Answer Text | Answer Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
0.9% | 307 | 0.9% | 70.4 | Yes! The government should own the air waves. We need a system like the BBC. | 0 |
7.1% | 2368 | 6.9% | 70.9 | Yes. We need less sex, less violence, and/or more "educational" TV. | 25 |
28.8% | 10223 | 29.9% | 67.0 | Yes. The current level of FCC power is about right. | 50 |
46.9% | 15910 | 46.5% | 70.0 | No. Let broadcasters choose content and format. Only require that they scramble the really rude stuff. | 76 |
16.3% | 5417 | 15.8% | 71.7 | No! Any government censorship is intolerable. Give broadcasters the same freedoms of expression enjoyed by publishers of books and magazines -- including how much sex, violence and crude language. | 100 | 100% | 34225 | 100% | 69.4 | Total | 68.1 |
Sex | Should the government have laws regulating sex between consenting adults? Should they be enforced? | ||||
PERSONAL | |||||
Weighted Percent | Number | Unweighted Percent | Average Weight | Answer Text | Answer Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1.1% | 348 | 1.0% | 66.3 | Yes! It is time to actually enforce laws against sex out of wedlock and certain "deviant" acts. | 0 |
3.0% | 905 | 2.6% | 67.8 | Yes. Time to enforce the laws against certain "deviant" acts. | 25 |
3.9% | 1245 | 3.6% | 65.1 | Yes. Time to enforce the laws against sex out of wedlock. | 30 |
16.8% | 5813 | 17.0% | 59.8 | Well, keep current sodomy and fornication laws on the books to make a statement, but don't enforce them. | 50 |
44.4% | 15639 | 45.7% | 58.9 | No. Sodomy and fornication laws are unenforceable and obsolete. Take them off the books. | 76 |
30.8% | 10275 | 30.0% | 62.0 | NO! The government has no right to regulate sex between consenting adults. Take all such laws off the books, including laws against prostitution. | 100 | 100% | 34225 | 100% | 60.5 | Total | 74.9 |
Drugs | Should the War on Drugs continue? | ||||
PERSONAL | |||||
Weighted Percent | Number | Unweighted Percent | Average Weight | Answer Text | Answer Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
4.4% | 1286 | 3.8% | 82.4 | YES! And we need to redouble our efforts! More life sentences! More mandatory drug tests! More no-knock warrants! | 0 |
15.1% | 4826 | 14.1% | 75.7 | Yes! Continue on our present course. | 44 |
26.0% | 8985 | 26.3% | 70.1 | Well yes, but obey the Constitution. Repeal civil asset forfeiture and/or lessen some of the more outrageous punishments. | 59 |
49.8% | 17482 | 51.1% | 69.1 | No. Legalize the safer drugs such as marijuana. Tax and regulate them like liquor. | 81 |
4.8% | 1646 | 4.8% | 71.4 | No! Legalize all recreational drugs for adult use. (What you take is none of the government's business as long as you handle your 'high' responsibly.) | 100 | 100% | 34225 | 100% | 70.9 | Total | 67.1 |
Immigration | Is illegal immigration a serious problem? Does it justify the cost and lost rights necessary to keep people out? | ||||
PERSONAL | |||||
Weighted Percent | Number | Unweighted Percent | Average Weight | Answer Text | Answer Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
18.9% | 6002 | 17.5% | 85.0 | Illegal immigration is a serious problem. Institute a national ID for everyone. | 0 |
51.4% | 16824 | 49.2% | 82.4 | Illegal immigration is a serious problem, but the solution is more border patrol and/or use of the military to guard the borders better. | 40 |
17.2% | 6806 | 19.9% | 68.2 | Keep the current system more or less. | 50 |
8.6% | 3218 | 9.4% | 72.3 | Keep the immigration quotas but keep our Constitutional rights also. Eliminate the proof of legal residency requirement to get a job. | 72 |
3.7% | 1375 | 4.0% | 73.3 | Immigrants are a blessing to this country. Open the gates! Just require that they pay their own way. | 100 | 100% | 34225 | 100% | 78.7 | Total | 39.2 |