In order to keep you, the voters, as informed as possible, here is a list of key issues and where each candidate stands on these issues. See you at the Caucuses!
Campaign Finance
CLINTON’s VIEW:
- Supports overturning Citizens United
- Would require companies to disclose donations to super PACs
SANDERS’s VIEW:
- Supports overturning Citizens United
- Would require companies to disclose donations to super PACs
Minimum Wage
CLINTON’s VIEW:
- Supports raising the federal minimum wage to $12 an hour.
SANDERS’s VIEW:
- Supports raising the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour.
Immigration
CLINTON’s VIEW:
- Supports path to citizenship
- Supports the DREAM act
- Supports enforcing President Obama’s executive actions on immigration
SANDERS’s VIEW:
- Supports path to citizenship
- Supports the DREAM act
- Supports expanding President Obama’s executive actions on immigration
Family Leave
CLINTON’s VIEW:
- Supports 3 months of paid family leave as 2/3rds wage replacement, paid for by raising taxes on wealthy
SANDERS’s VIEW:
- Supports 3 months of paid family leave paid for by payroll tax on workers and their employers at rate of $1.61/wk, similar to Medicare and Social Security
Taxing Capital Gains
CLINTON’s VIEW:
- Revealed a plan to tax short-term capital gains the same as income from labor
- Supports keeping long-term capital gains tax at 23.8%
SANDERS’s VIEW:
- Voted against upholding reduction of capital gains, says it’s helping people who don’t need it
- Would tax all capital gains and dividends the same as work
Building Border Fence
CLINTON’s VIEW:
- Voted for building a fence along the Mexican border in 2006
SANDERS’s VIEW:
- Voted against building a fence in 2006
Patriot Act
CLINTON’s VIEW:
- Supports the Patriot Act as a way to help America put in place the security needed to keep the country safe
SANDERS’s VIEW:
- Voted against the Patriot Act in 2001 and still opposes
- Americans must find a way to protect America from terrorists without undermining the constitutional rights that keep us free
Plan to Reduce Effects of Climate Change
CLINTON’s VIEW:
- Wants renewable energy to account for 33% of all energy produced in the US by 2027
- Proposes installing half a billion solar panels by 2020
SANDERS’s VIEW:
- Proposes elimination tax breaks for fossil-fuel companies
- Wants to tax coal-powered plants
- In 2010, proposed providing incentives to create 10 million roofs with solar panels by 2020
Health Care
CLINTON’s VIEW:
- Supports leaving Obamacare in place
- Calls for allowing the government to negotiate drug prices with pharmaceutical companies
- Proposes capping out-of-pocket charges for drugs at $250
- Wants to place more restriction on drug advertising
SANDERS’s VIEW:
- Supports replacing Obamacare with a single-payer healthcare system
- Calls for allowing Medicare to negotiate drug prices with pharmaceutical companies
- Calls for restoring prescription-drug discounts for seniors
- Would allow drug imports from Canada
Gun Control
CLINTON’s VIEW:
- Supports background checks
- Has supported legislation that allows victims of gun violence to sue manufacturers
SANDERS’s VIEW:
- Supports background checks
- Has opposed legislation that allows victims of gun violence to sue manufacturers
College Affordability
CLINTON’s VIEW:
- Wants to eliminate federal government profit on student-debt repayment
- Supports plan to help students graduate debt free, but would require family financial contribution and student employment
SANDERS’s VIEW:
- Wants to eliminate federal government profit on student-debt repayment
- Wants to eliminate tuition at 4-year public colleges and universities
Marijuana
CLINTON’s VIEW:
- Supports rescheduling marijuana to a lower drug classification, but does not support legalization
SANDERS’s VIEW:
- Supports states right to legalized marijuana without federal intervention
Criminal Justice
CLINTON’s VIEW:
- Calls for equal sentences for powder crack-cocaine convictions
- Wants to abolish private prisons
SANDERS’s VIEW:
- Wants to require public reports on police shooting or deaths that happen while in police custody
- Wants new rules on “allowable use of force” by the police
- Wants to abolish private prisons
Body Cameras
CLINTON’s VIEW:
- Supports mandating body cameras for all officers
SANDERS’s VIEW:
- Supports mandating body cameras for all officers
Social Security
CLINTON’s VIEW:
- Wants to protect Social Security, but is vague on plans to expand the program
SANDERS’s VIEW:
- Wants to expand Social Security by raising the marginal income-tax rate
Wall Street Reform
CLINTON’s VIEW:
- Supports charging banks a “risk fee” for short-term, high-risk loans
- Wants to tax high-frequency trading
SANDERS’s VIEW:
- Supports taxing speculative trading to fund tuition-free college
- Supports breaking up major financial institutions
ISIS
CLINTON’s VIEW:
- Advocates for strong US involvement to defeat ISIS, but does not support deploying ground troops
SANDERS’s VIEW:
- Has said that the onus in on countries in the region to deal with the problem
