November 01, 2012
By making these changes and others, seniors at all income levels will have access to and can afford health insurance, financial burdens on future taxpayers will be reduced, reduces and or eliminates payments to wealthy individuals, protects seniors who truly need help, and reduces government involvement in personal health care decisions.
// Would you support increased federal spending on highways and other infrastructure as a way to boost the construction industry? If so, how would you pay for it? //
No. I would support present spending or a reduction but not an increase. We simply do not have the funds to expand now. Where we have critical infrastructure issues we should prioritize, shift and efficiently utilize the resources we have. Most Americans utilize private forms of transportation so I would prioritize federal efforts to focus on such.
To better manage costs to the tax payer, streamline work flows and to get Americans working on projects faster I would push to reduce excessive burdens of permitting processes and eliminate redundant federal regulations and studies that overlap state and local agencies which consume revenues that would otherwise be used for the actual project.
I would also encourage private sector participation where applicable.
// Would you support U.S. military involvement in Iran if there were evidence that it was close to developing a nuclear weapon? //
I would support certain levels of involvement, but not an all out military strike, unless Iran directly engages our allies. Further I would only support an operation which does not encumber our military with rules of engagement which risk our best's lives. Fifty-one percent of Americans would support U.S. military action in Iran for purposes of stopping the country from developing a nuclear weapon. Thirty-six percent say they would oppose such action and 13 percent say they are unsure.
// Describe a specific policy you would pursue in Congress that would have support from members of the opposite party. //
Audit the Federal Reserve. Enforce true Paygo. Pass a Balanced Budget Amendment, and eliminate base line budgeting for zero-based budgeting.
[ 8th Congressional District ]
Previously centered on Montgomery County, the new 8th District now includes large swaths of Frederick and Carroll counties. The incumbent is Rep. Chris Van Hollen, a Kensington Democrat.
George Gluck, Green
- City of residence: Rockville
- Occupation: Computer analyst
- Family: Married, two children, five grandchildren
- Experience: Mathematician, Applied Mathematics Laboratory at the Naval Ship R&D Center, 1967-1975; Computer analyst, Defense and Health and Human Services departments, 1975-1980; director, Statistical Support Branch, Social Security Administration, 1981-1983; Sole proprietor, Free State Systems, 1984; volunteer, Clinton presidential campaign, 1992; Green Party member since 1996; Maryland representative to the 2000 National Green Party Convention in Denver; Montgomery County representative to the Maryland Green Party Coordinating Committee, 2010-2012; Green Party candidate for the Montgomery County Council, 2009 and 2010.
- Education: B.S.,Brooklyn College, 1967; M.S., Johns Hopkins Evening College, 1969; Ph. D., University of Maryland, 1975; M.S.,George Washington University, 1981.
- Have you ever been convicted of a crime (not including minor traffic violations)? No
// As you know, the Bush-era income tax cuts will expire at the end of this year. Do you support extending the cuts for all income levels, only on individual income under $200,000 (under $250,000 for families), or not at all? If you support an extension of some kind, should it be paid for? //
I think that President Regan had the right idea. In a June 6, 1985 speech at Northside High School in Atlanta, Georgia, he explained that tax loopholes allowing a millionaire to pay lower taxes than a bus driver were "crazy," because they allowed the "truly wealthy to avoid paying their fair share."
In 1986, President Reagan signed into law the Tax Reform Act that ended the tax preference for capital gains and taxed all types of income at the same rates.
// Is there any circumstance in which you would support extending a pay freeze on federal employees and/or requiring current federal employees to contribute more to their retirement plans? Please explain. //
The underlying assumption to this question is that the present pay freeze is "supportable." There already exist mechanisms to determine fair pay and benefits for federal employees. Is this pay freeze a result of using these mechanisms or just, as some claim, another example of an orchestrated "race to the bottom?"
