Martin O'Malley
Historical Details
Position on Issues
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Signed a bill extending a gas tax increase
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"As president, Governor O'Malley will take a public health approach to substance use disorders: developing and implementing a coordinated national strategy to reduce risky prescribing of pain medications, expanding access to effective addiction treatment, and investing in community resources for recovery."
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Signed a bill that classifies using a cell phone while driving as a primary offense
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Signed a bill to expand gambling and authorize a new casino
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"Bringing undocumented immigrants out of the shadows will grow our economy, expand our tax base, create jobs and lift wages-benefiting our country as a whole. We must boldly advance comprehensive immigration reform, while also using executive action to its full authority to end unnecessary detentions and expand deferred action. As Americans, when refugee children arrive on our doorstep, we shouldn't turn them away-we should act like the generous, compassionate people we are."
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Oversaw the implementation of Common Core as Governor of Maryland
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Signed a bill to decriminalize marijuana in Maryland and said, "As a young prosecutor, I once thought that decriminalizing the possession of marijuana might undermine the Public Will necessary to combat drug violence and improve public safety. I now think that decriminalizing possession of marijuana is an acknowledgement of the low priority that our courts, our prosecutors, our police, and the vast majority of citizens already attach to this transgression of public order and public health." O'Malley does not support outright marijuana legalization.
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"While fixing the Citizens United decision is important, we can't afford to wait for a Constitutional amendment to solve the problem of out-of-control money in our political system.
"We should start by embracing citizen-funded elections, to reduce the outsized influence of special interests and the very wealthy in our politics. Small donors should have their contributions matched by six-to-one or more, and be rewarded through a refundable tax credit that encourages more people to give and participate."
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"As Governor of Maryland, O'Malley implemented some of the toughest measures in the nation to reduce gun violence. He put in place licensing, fingerprinting, background checks, and safety training requirements for all buyers. If a firearm was lost or stolen, owners were required to immediately notify law enforcement. And Maryland prohibited the sale of assault weapons and limited the size of magazines-all while protecting the state's proud hunting tradition.
"Governor O'Malley is calling for the nation to adopt similar, commonsense reforms-while also closing loopholes that allow prohibited individuals to easily purchase guns, prevent law enforcement from holding dealers and gun traffickers accountable when they break the law, and lead to the deaths of thousands of children ever year."
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"Clean, renewable sources of energy represent one of the biggest economic opportunities in a century. And the threat of climate change is real and immediate. We must make better choices for a more secure and independent energy future-by limiting carbon emissions, setting renewable energy targets, driving innovation, seeding new industries, and creating good local jobs."
Against| Read My Position
Supports progressive tax, and marginal rate of 45% on those making more than a million dollars. "I did pass a more progressive income tax and asked the highest-earning people to pay another 14 percent. ... If we were to raise the marginal rate to 45 percent for people earning more than a million dollars and if we tax capital gains essentially the same we do earnings from hard work and sweat and toil, you could generate $800 billion over the next ten years."
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Candidate's Twitter Feed, 2015
"[Planned Parenthood] provides critical health care services to millions of women. Today's vote to defund is wrong."
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"Governor O'Malley brought people together, forged consensus, and raised Maryland's minimum wage to $10.10. Hundreds of thousands of Maryland workers will receive a raise, creating stronger customers for local businesses and good-paying, family-supporting jobs."
Other| Read My Position
"In confronting ISIS, we must avoid mission creep-and be mindful that American boots on the ground can be counter-productive to our desired outcome.
"We will not be successful in degrading ISIS if the number of militants taken off the battlefield is exceeded by the number of new recruits replacing them.
"But we must also ensure that our partners have what they need to contain, degrade, and ultimately defeat ISIS.
"In partnership with other nations in the region and across the world, we must counter ISIS propaganda and use our own communications tools more effectively.
"We must do more to amplify credible, local voices in the region to reveal ISIS for what it is: a gang of murderous thugs who have perverted the name of one of the world's great religions.
"And we must make every effort to encourage the Iraqi government to govern more inclusively, as they train up a new army with committed leadership, and a will to defend their own country."
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Signed a bill to allow in-state tuition for undocumented/illegal immigrants
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"Ending fossil fuel use is a public health imperative, and would extend the lives of 200,000 Americans each year. ... We can't meet the climate challenge with an all-of-the-above energy strategy, or from drilling off our coasts, or from building pipelines that bring oil from tar sands in Canada.
"Meeting the climate challenge requires a commitment to one simple concept: a full transition to clean, renewable energy and an end our reliance on fossil fuels altogether."
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O'Malley outlines a detailed plan for reforming the Veterans Administration on his website. Although he acknowledges the role of vouchers in veterans' health care, his plan does not include increased privatization. His website states, "Over the last few years, we have all seen the headlines about decrepit facilities, long waiting periods and veterans who may have died before their time because of them. It's extreme to say the VA should be eliminated, but it's also wrong to say the agency's problems are not widespread. ... Specifically, the VA should take steps to integrate physical and behavioral health care; further promote preventive services; view health care delivery as a holistic process, with greater cooperation between the Armed Services and the VA; deal with veterans health care as a continuum, from active service to post-service; devise a strategy to recruit and retain America's best medical talent; and promote a climate of continuous improvement using a systems approach."
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Signed a bill authorizing medicinal marijuana
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O'Malley is open to new taxes on corporations. For example, as part of his proposal to reform Wall Street, Gov. Malley is proposing a financial transaction tax.
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O'Malley identifies as pro-choice
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Signed a bill that removes some restrictions on driver's licenses for illegal immigrants
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"The death penalty is a racially biased and ineffective deterrent, and the appeals process is expensive and cruel to surviving family members. O'Malley has long opposed the death penalty as a matter of principle and as a matter of policy. As president, he will continue to oppose capital punishment and work to abolish death sentences under federal laws."
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Supports greater public oversight of NSA surveillance and bulk data collection programs
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Supports universal pre-K education
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"Governor O'Malley supports immediately boosting monthly benefits in a progressive manner for all ... The solvency of Social Security is not in crisis: Social Security has adequate funds to pay full benefits through 2034. But to pay for expanded benefits, Governor O'Malley supports lifting the cap on the payroll tax for workers earning more than $250,000.In addition, Congress should implement policies to lift the wages of all workers, which will make meaningful contributions to Social Security's long-term balance sheet. ... Governor O'Malley believes that raising the retirement age is a back-door way to cut benefits for lower-income workers. ... Governor O'Malley views proposals to privatize Social Security for what they are-a massive benefits cut that will gut Social Security, add to the federal debt, and leave future generations without the critical protections Social Security has provided for decades."
Against| Read My Position
"Under Governor O'Malley, the number of Marylanders added to the state's health system increased nearly 650,000. Maryland now enrolls more than 100,000 each year to the private health exchange. Maryland's uninsured rate dropped 40%, the 9th largest drop in the United States, between 2013 and 2014."
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"While the Dodd-Frank Act made important strides forward in reforming the financial industry, there is still much work to be done-both in terms of structural AND accountability reforms."
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Signed a bill to authorize same-sex marriage
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Candidate's Facebook Page, 2015
"No woman should have her health care decisions made by her boss. Period. This decision is wrong and a setback for women's health."
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"we should make it easier, not harder, to vote - by modernizing registration, restoring the Voting Rights Act, and tearing down barriers like ID requirements that make it difficult for people to exercise their most fundamental right."
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Signed a bill requiring public school teachers to pay labor union fees
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O'Malley outlines a detailed plan to address student debt on his website. He supports allowing students to refinance loans, basing loan payments on a percentage of income, providing matching federal grants for state funding to universities, and increasing Pell Grants.
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"I believe a good trade deal would be a trade deal that actually creates the level playing field and without diminishing our standards for labor, and workers, and our standards when it comes to the protection of the environment. And I also believe that there is a real threat contained within the lines of this agreement that would create a precedent for multi-national companies to sue their government in order to avoid those sorts of regulations that protection the environment and protect workers."
Other| Read My Position
"I believe negotiations are the best way to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon,...the best way to avoid even greater conflict in the region,...and the best way to stop widespread nuclear proliferation across the Middle East.
"It was for this purpose that the United States forged an unprecedented international partnership-including Russia and China-to apply the strongest set of sanctions Iran has ever faced.
"Those sanctions brought Iran to the negotiating table.
"If we reach a verifiable, enforceable agreement that cuts off Iran's multiple pathways to a weapon-and its ability to sprint to a bomb-Congress would be wise to support it.
"And if Iran is found to be cheating, its leaders must know that we stand ready to reinstate the full array of sanctions that decimated their economy."
