PoliTalk USA
Tulsi Gabbard
Democrat
• Age at Inauguration: 39
• Experience: Hawaii State House of Representatives (2002-2004); Hawaii Army National Guard (2003-2006); U.S. House of Representatives - Hawaii (2012-present)
• Education: Hawaii Pacific University (BSBA)
• Interesting fact: While serving a 12-month tour in Iraq, Gabbard served in a field medical unit and was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal
Key Platform Points
• Supports abortion rights, Medicare for All, and opposes American military intervention overseas
Economy and Taxes
• Raise the federal minimum wage to $15/hour
• Break up big banks and hold Wall Street accountable for their risky investments
• Supports using tax incentives to stimulate job creation
• Opposes the Trans-Pacific Partnership
• Supports passing a modern Glass-Steagall Act
• Fund infrastructure through decrease in military spending
• Repeal the tariffs the Trump administration has imposed on goods from China
Corporations
• Target offshore tax havens and other methods used by corporations to reduce their U.S. tax liabilities
• Supports breaking up big tech companies like Google and Facebook
• Will not accept PAC, lobbyist, or fossil fuel industry donations for her campaign
Criminal Justice and Drugs
• Supports legalization of marijuana federally
• Reduce mandatory minimum sentencing
• Remove marijuana-related convictions from criminal records
• Improve the juvenile justice system
• Grant all formerly incarcerated people the right to vote
• Abolish the death penalty
• Abolish cash bail
• End the War on Drugs
• Eliminate private prisons
Education
• Eliminate tuition and fees at four-year public colleges and universities for families that make up to $125,000 a year
• Make community college tuition free, but not for illegal immigrants
Environment
• Targets net-zero emissions both in the U.S. and globally by 2050
• Has called for 80% of electricity sold to be generated from clean energy resources by 2027 and 100% by 2035
• Supports banning fracking
• Supports closing down existing nuclear power reactors
• Rejoin the Paris Climate Agreement
• Does not support setting a carbon tax
• Ban fossil fuel exports
• End leasing for fossil fuel extraction on federal lands
• Eliminate fossil fuel subsidies
Foreign Policy
• U.S. should focus on fighting terrorism instead of intervening in other countries' affairs
• Supports the Iran nuclear deal
• Has called for sanctions on North Korea
• End U.S. support for the Saudi-led war in Yemen
• Against U.S.'s growing involvement in Venezuela
• Bring troops overseas back home
• End the war in Afghanistan and brings troops home within her first year
Government Reform
• Supports automatic voter registration and lowering the voting age from 18 to 16
• Supports DC and self-determination for Puerto Rico
• Overturn Citizens United v. FEC
• Open to eliminating the Senate filibuster
• Open to replacing the Electoral College with the popular vote
• Make Election Day a national holiday
• Mandate paper ballots
• Against adding justices to the Supreme Court
Gun Control
• Ban military-style assault weapons
• Ban high-capacity ammunition magazines
• Close the "gun show loophole"
• Supports universal background checks
Health Care
• Supports Medicare for All as an end goal
• Ensure universal health care through the creation of a public option
• Supports the Affordable Care Act
• Create a universal, gender-neutral, national paid family and medical leave program allowing for up to 12 weeks of paid leave
• Supports giving the federal government the ability to negotiate drug prices for Medicare
• Incentivize drug companies to charge prices that are comparable to those paid in other developed countries
• Allow the government to break the patents of brand drug companies so that generic companies can produce cheaper knockoffs
• Supports keeping private insurance
• Supports importing drugs from other countries
Immigration
• Supports a pathway to citizenship for the roughly 11 million undocumented immigrants now living in the U.S., including Dreamers
• Against the Trump administration policy of family separation at the border
• Does not support building any more wall along the Southern border
LGBTQ+ Rights
• Supports same-sex marriage
• Lift the ban preventing transgender people from serving in the military
• Supports the Equality Act
National Security & Veterans Affairs
• Supports same-sex marriage
• Lift the ban preventing transgender people from serving in the military
• Supports the Equality Act
Social Security & Welfare
• Supports Social Security expansion
• Top advocate of improving our nation’s food system
• Against work requirement for welfare recipients
• Form a commission to consider reparations proposals for African Americans
Women's Rights
• Pro-choice stance
• Supports the Paycheck Fairness Act
Children
Economic:
• Gabbard has not released any economic policies with respect to children
Health:
• Supports Medicare for All
Education:
• Increase funding for Head Start, a program that provides early childhood education, health, nutrition, and parent involvement services to low-income children and families
• Eliminate tuition and fees at four-year public colleges and universities for families that make up to $125,000 a year
• Make community college tuition-free
Child Welfare:
• Recognize Dreamers as US citizens and end child separation
Other:
• See Gabbard's Environment and Gun Control stances for more related to children's policy