Issues
Read below to see where Doug stands on the issues.
The following are the fundamental principles that make up the Republican Party of Iowa platform, which I wholly support.
I. Our nation is a Constitutional Republic whose Foundation is the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.
We acknowledge our rights derive from God, our Creator, and are therefore unalienable and include Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness (e.g., private property). Further, the Right to Life shall be understood to include all people from conception to natural death. We are a nation governed by people elected to public office that are sent to represent us, the citizens. Our Constitution provides limits to governmental power, explicitly details our fundamental rights, and insures that only the enumerated powers contained within the Constitution are executed by the federal government. All other functions of government are left to the state and local governments.
II. We are a Sovereign Nation.
We are a Sovereign Nation with defined borders, governed by a set of laws determined by our representatives, guided by our Constitution, and protected by a military strong enough to defend our nation and its interests.
III. The Oath of Office of all civil servants, elected and employed, should guide their actions.
As citizens, we demand that our elected officials take their office and their duties and responsibilities to us, our country, and our Constitution seriously and act in accordance with their individual Oaths of Office.
IV. Fiscal Responsibility is a fundamental function of any local, state, or federal entity.
It is a fundamental expectation that government entities act financially responsibly; it follows that limiting the size and scope of government is necessary to achieve this end.
V. Personal Responsibility is the primary duty of all citizens.
We are a nation of individuals held together by a common vision. We are not servants of the government; we are not dependent on the benevolence of society for our survival. Our possibilities are limitless where a free market is allowed to operate without government distortion; they should not be limited by our local, state, and federal governments. We are citizens of our country. We, as individuals, are responsible for our successes and failures.
I aggressively support a “life begins at conception” bill without exceptions. I believe that all human beings, from conception to natural death, have a God-given and constitutionally protected right to life, which cannot be infringed I believe all such issues belong under the constitutional authority of the state, not the federal government.
I oppose using public revenues for abortion or funding organizations that advocate it. I commend those who provide alternatives to abortion by meeting the needs of mothers and offering adoption services.
I re-affirm our support for appointing judges who respect traditional family values and the sanctity of life.
I oppose the non-consensual withholding or withdrawal of care or treatment, including food and water, from people with disabilities, including newborns, as well as the elderly and infirmed, just as we oppose active and passive euthanasia and assisted suicide.
I believe that traditional, two-parent (one male and one female), marriage-based families are the foundation of a stable, enduring, and healthy civilization. Therefore, public policy must always be pro-family, encouraging marital and family commitment and supporting parental rights and responsibilities.
I encourage the repeal of laws allowing any marriage that is not between one natural man and one natural woman.
I support non-embryonic stem cell research, such as promoting adult stem cells, while opposing human cloning and research using fetal tissue from abortions.
I believe the selling, brokering, or marketing of aborted fetal tissue should be illegal.
I support adequate funding for state mental health facilities dedicated to inpatient services and outpatient mental health facilities and services. We support an increase in trained mental health professionals and staff sufficient to meet the needs of our state.
I support the 1st Amendment to allow prayer in Public Schools and Public Places.
I believe that parents are responsible for their children, and I support the rights of parents to be the ultimate authority for their children’s discipline, protection, and education.
I believe money should follow the child in education – whether that child attends public, private, parochial, or home school- to assist parents financially in educating their children using the option best suited to their family’s educational needs. We call on the General Assembly to provide for tuition vouchers, tax deductions, or tax credits to permit parents’ choice in educating their children- without government intervention in the school curriculum.
I strongly believe in individuals’ constitutionally protected natural right to keep and bear arms, as recognized and protected by the Second Amendment. I support the repeal of existing laws that infringe upon those rights. I support the addition of “castle doctrine” provisions to Iowa law.
I support “Conscience Clause” legislation so that no person, business, or organization can be penalized for exercising religious freedom by not providing services that violate their religious beliefs.
I support legislation prohibiting any organization (for example, Planned Parenthood) from entering public school properties to promote promiscuous behavior and abortion products, videos, or printed material.
The actions of national intelligence agencies must not infringe upon American citizens’ Constitutional rights.
I call for the repeal of sexual orientation as a protected class in the Iowa Civil Rights Code and reject any additional similar legislation to the Local, State, or National Code.
I Support full local control in schools and oppose any forced national education standard.
I support authorized personnel with the proper training and being allowed to carry firearms in our schools.
I support teaching Iowa and US Constitutions in-depth in our schools.
I believe that voting rights be restored statutorily rather than by Executive determination.
I support the elimination of gun-free zones.
I demand that all Iowa DNR game wardens respect landowners’ and hunters’ 4th amendment constitutional rights. They shall have legal probable cause and/or search warrant to be on private property.
I support legislation requiring all regulations by all government agencies (e.g., EPA, Dept. of Ag, Dept. of Interior, etc.) relating to private property and the public good to receive congressional authorization before their implementation.
I support the right of property owners to vote on bond issues in any district where they pay property tax, whether a resident of the district or not.
I support laws prohibiting ownership of United States farmland, property, and other assets by foreign governments or entities controlled by such governments.
I believe anyone moving into or already living in areas zoned previously for a particular use should be prohibited from filing “nuisance lawsuits,” which are antagonistic to such zoning, if defendants comply with all governing laws.
All government fees assessed must be passed by the duly elected governmental body.
I oppose the federal or state government taking private property away from the owner for the use of another private party. Eminent domain should be used only for public use.
We support eliminating all state and federal “estate” taxes but retaining the stepped-up basis for estates to ensure heirs inherit assets with no additional tax burden.
I believe the United States should never sacrifice its sovereignty or relinquish control of its soil to the United Nations or any other international body.
I support legal immigration based on the merit system, common-sense improvements to our immigration process (including ending chain migration and the lottery visa), strict enforcement of our current immigration laws, and no government benefits for illegal aliens (except for emergency medical care), securing of our borders including a wall where needed
We reaffirm our commitment to the State of Israel.
Agreements with foreign nations should only be done by treaty and subject to the approval of Congress.
We assert that bequeathing citizenship to babies born to non-citizens in the United States is a misinterpretation of the 14th amendment.
We believe our servicemen should serve only the United States, our Constitution, and the American Flag. We are adamantly opposed to the United Nations’ oversight of our military units, ceding national sovereignty to any foreign body, or establishing a one-world government.
We call for the government to support “veteran’s issues.” We believe military veterans should be treated with dignity and respect and that “veterans services” should be consistent and delivered with equality and expedience.
We oppose any United Nations initiative, including agenda 21, which restricts or destroys the property rights of Americans.
It shall be deemed illegal for any individual, person, establishment, entity, and government sub-division to enable or aid and abet illegal immigrants to have sanctuary from immigration officials and laws. We support prosecuting those with sanctuary cities or States and withholding federal or State funds from these cities or States.
We support the restoration of the previous congressional EMP commission and the appropriation of money to harden the U.S. electrical grid to protect it from being destroyed by either natural or nuclear weapon-induced EMP and cyber attacks.
We oppose amnesty for any illegal aliens.
We support a free and open choice healthcare and medication voucher system for veterans.
I oppose government distortion of the free market through subsidies and bailouts.
I believe energy independence must be the goal of our public policy.
I call for legislation that would eliminate all public sector unions.
I oppose all mandates associated with alleged global warming or climate control.
I support legalizing industrial hemp for commercial use.
I support a full and exhaustive annual audit of the Federal Reserve.
I support the ban on traffic control cameras.
I support legislation providing for tax-deductible child support paid by the non-custodial parent.
I support amending the current law to exempt agricultural commodity hauling vehicles from excessive electronic logbook regulations.
I support abolishing the Iowa Alcoholic Beverage Division and allowing the free market to take over the distribution of alcohol.