- Abortion issues: Pro-choice. Believes that a woman should have a right to legal abortions, and that they should be "safe and rare." Wants to reinforce security around clinics to protect the doctors who perform abortions, and the patients who seek their services. --Gore campaign website
- Abortion issues: Lieberman has been resolutely pro-choice. He voted against bans on "partial-birth" abortions in 1998, 1997' and 1996. The American Conservative Union scored Lieberman "zero" last year on its issues, such as opposition to abortion, with a lifetime voting average of 19 out of 100.
- Affirmative action: Supports affirmative action. Supports increase in funding for the protection of civil rights laws, including a toughening of fair housing enforcement. Remarked at the Democratic Party Fall Meeting, Washington, DC on 09/25/1999 "I am also for the passage of a hate crimes law in this nation.". --Gore campaign website
- Lieberman was a "Freedom Rider" in the 1960's. However, today, Black leaders including Jesse Jackson, have expressed dismay that Lieberman has not been enthusiastic supporter of affirmative action.
- Campaign finance: Supports reforms to eliminate gray areas in legislation. Backs McCain-Feingold Bill. Does not accept political action committee donations, and no more than $1,000 per person.. --Gore campaign website
- Campaign finance: Lieberman, voted earlier this year for a law that would require so-called 527 political groups to disclose contribution and expenditure information. Gore and Lieberman favor banning all soft money. In contrast Bush would ban corporate and union soft money, but allow individuals to give as much as they want. Reformers maintain that's a huge loophole.
Lieberman, who in 1998 blasted Democrats and Republicans for the way they raised money in the 1996 campaign, said in an interview Friday that while he still considers the system abhorrent, he will help his party raise so-called ``soft money.'' He will abide by the current campaign finance laws. Thus he will raise "soft money"- to do otherwise in this free-spending election would be ``tying one hand behind our backs,'' he said.
- Crime: According to his campaign site, he believes there is no more fundamental responsibility than to make Americans safer and more secure -- in their homes, on the sidewalks, and in their communities. Also according to his campaign site, he helped to design one of the most successful anti-crime strategies in modern history, merging elements that had never before been combined: more community police, tougher punishment, and smarter prevention.
- Crime Lieberman voted for the 1993 Brady Law to mandate criminal background checks on handgun buyers and voted for the 1994 ban on production and sale of 19 semi-automatic assault weapons.
- Defense spending: Newsweek reports that his "sketchy campaign platform" supports a strong military and calls for continued development of advanced weaponry.
1991 On the votes that the JustLife Education Fund - Arms Reduction considered to be the most important in 1991, Then-Senator Gore voted their preferred position 40 percent of the time.
1991 On the votes that the Professional's Coalition for Nuclear Arms Control considered to be the most important in 1991, Gore voted their preferred position 54 percent of the time.
- Defense spending Like Bush, Lieberman has expressed support for investment in a missile defense system. He voted to ratify the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty.
Lieberman is one of the most respected members of Congress, a politician able to work well with members of both parties. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel editorialized that he is not a liberal ideologue, and he has a moderate voting record on defense (issues).
- Drug policy: The hours between 2 & 6 are the most perilous hours of the day for our
children. A teenager is most likely to take up smoking between the hours of 2 & 6. That means we must engage our children in positive, constructive
activities between the hours of 2 & 6, [by expanding] access to quality
after-school care for all our children. . --Gore speech.
- Homosexual issues: Supported ENDA, an annually proposed, yet not yet
passed, federal employment non-discrimination law which would protect
gays and lesbians in the workplace. On record as being
willing to support legal protections for "domestic partnerships."
By Ceci Connolly and Bradley Graham
Washington Post Staff Writers
Tuesday, December 14, 1999, Page A01
Vice President Gore said yesterday that President Clinton's "don't ask,
don't tell" policy on gays in the military should be abandoned and vowed to
"eliminate this unacceptable form of discrimination" if elected president. -- http://www.hrc.org/camp2000/itn.html
- Homosexual Rights Lieberman is a sponsor of a federal bill to prohibit antigay discrimination in the workplace and favors an end to the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy for gay troops. He also sponsored the Employment Non-Discrimination Act in the past two sessions of Congress and was responsible for forcing a vote in 1996 on the measure as part of the consideration of the Defense of Marriage Act, which bans federal recognition of same-sex unions. "Those who are homosexual are also God's children and deserve to be protected from unfairness in our society, particularly from unfairness and discrimination based on sexual orientation in the workplace," Lieberman has said of ENDA, adding, "One does not have to support homosexuality or its morality to support" ENDA. Lieberman has been attacked by other Orthodox Jews for his support of gay issues. -- http://www.advocate.com/html/news/080800/080800news01.html
- Education money: I oppose vouchers, Tim (Russert), is because even if you say it's not going to come from public school budgets, it does because history shows, experience shows there's a set amount of money that communities have been willing to spend on education. And if you drain the money away from the public schools for private vouchers, then that hurts the public schools. --Gore and Bradley Debate the Issues
Meet the Press
12/19/1999
Wants to reduce class sizes in all grades so that there is one teacher for every 20 students. Believes that every classroom should be connected to the Internet, and that all children should be taught the technological skills they need to succeed. --Gore campaign website
- Education money: Sam Brownback, a Republican, the senior senator from Kansas wrote of Lieberman in the New York Times, " We wrote, along with former Sen. Dan Coats, legislation to provide vouchers to disadvantaged children in the public schools of the District of Columbia."
On education issues, Lieberman has angered teachers' unions with his advocacy of experiments with voucher programs. This year, though, he pushed a more centrist program - backed by his colleagues in the Democratic Leadership Council - that would have increased funding for local schools and boosted expectations for performance, but would have given the schools more leeway in how to make improvement. It did not pass.
- Environment: The author of "Earth in the Balance" -- Al Gore has long been associated with environmental protection.
Al Gore was recently quoted in the L.A. Daily News "If you do not want a president who will fight heart and soul to move heaven and Earth, taking the leadership to protect open space and combat global warming, then I'm not your guy."
- Environment: The Sierra Club gave Senator Lieberman a 100% score for voting their preferred positions.
- Evolution: Favors the teaching of evolution in the public schools, adding the decision should be local and "localities should be free to teach creationism as well."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/campaigns/wh2000/stories/creation082799.htm
- Foreign policy: Interventionist. Believes America should lead the way in promoting universal freedom and democracy in this world that is becoming increasingly interdependent. Wants to expand U.S. investments abroad.
- Foreign policy: "On defense and foreign policy, Lieberman supported the expansion of NATO, F-15 sales to Saudi Arabia, the assignment of ground troops to Bosnia and the continuation of funding for the Seawolf submarine. He also is a strong backer of Israel." The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.
- Gun control: Supports gun control legislation, including mandatory background checks at gun shows. (Supported ban on assault weapons, and the Brady Law - which has kept over 300,000 felons from buying guns.) --Gore campaign website.
- Gun control: The Coalition to Stop Gun Violence rated Lieberman 100% on the his votes concerning guns.
- Health care: Supports. Wants to expand the availability of high quality health care to all Americans, especially seniors and children. Supports preventative health care education, and the expansion of biomedical research for AIDS and cancer.
- Health care: American Public Health Association, an organization seeking to protect and promote personal, mental and environmental health agreed with Lieberman on 83% of his votes concerning health care.
- Moral issues: On the votes that the Christian Voice considered to be the most important in 1991-1992, Gore as a US Senator voted their preferred position 9 percent of the time.
- Moral issues ``American evangelicals respect persons of great moral substance and conviction, and we certainly share with Senator Lieberman a great moral heritage,'' said R. Albert Mohler Jr., president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky.
An Orthodox Jew and an outspoken critic of President Clinton's sexual escapades, as his running mate. Lieberman joined forces with Republican and values maven William Bennett as critic of violence in the entertainment industry. He authored the V-chip law that offers parents some control over their children's television viewing. His Golden Sewer awards for movies, television and other entertainment that he believes contain excessive violence or sexuality have angered many in the Hollywood community.
- Social security: Would protect. Wants to invest 62 percent of the budget surplus to keep Social Security going until 2055. Wants to work with Congress to maintain Social Security at least through 2075, but is wary of risky tax schemes.
Acoording to an AP report on May15, 2000``You shouldn't have to roll the dice with your basic retirement security,'' Gore argued that the government ultimately will wind up bailing out those whose investments don't pan out. Gore would use savings from paying down the national debt to pump more money into the program and maintain Social Security much as it is today.
- Social security: G.W. Bush was quick to point our that Lieberman has expressed support for private investment of Social Security funds. However Lieberman is currently deferring to Gore's position on that issue. On the votes that the National Committee to Preserve Social Security & Medicare considered to be the most important in 1997-1998, Senator Lieberman voted their preferred position 69 percent of the time.
- Tax policy: Wants to keep interest rates low and investment rate high. Aims for a balanced budget every year. Wants to continue "reinventing government" to eliminate wasteful spending. --Gore campaign website
- Tax policy. On the votes judged important by the Citizens Against Government Waste in 1999, Senator Lieberman voted with them 14 percent of the time. He backed welfare reform and capital gains tax cuts for small businesses. -- Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
- Trade issues: Free Trader. Plans to open up more foreign markets to U.S. trade.
- Trade issues: Lieberman is a centrist Democrat who voted for the North American Free Trade Agreement against the wishes of major unions. San Francisco Chronicle He voted to extend certain tariff benefits to the nations of the Caribbean, Central America and sub-Saharan Africa (Senate Vote 98).
- Al Gore is the current Vice President. He is seeking the Democratic nomination.
- "Republicans have made much ado about what is little and in some cases nothing." And at a town meeting in Carthage, Lieberman assured the crowd that Gore is the boss.
"What President Gore decides, Vice President Lieberman will support him wholeheartedly, believe me," The Hartford Courant quoted him as saying.
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