Michael Bennet

Other, 2019

"The Second Amendment protects the right of law-abiding citizens to bear arms. But with any right, there are reasonable limits. This should include background checks, red flag laws, limits on magazines, and a ban on military-style assault weapons."

Other, 2017

Bennet opposed the American Health Care Act (AHCA), which would have added flexibility to essential health benefits and established a block grant system for Medicaid. He wrote, "The latest 'health care' bill has unleashed a wave of anxiety. ... Sadly, the Senate health care bill fails to fix a single, significant problem you have asked us to address.

"Instead, it:

• "Forces Americans to pay more out-of-pocket for worse coverage;
• "Kicks 22 million Americans off their health insurance;
• "Devastates Medicaid with a $770 billion cut;
• "Weakens protections from annual and lifetime caps used by insurance companies to deny care; and
• "Strips the Affordable Care Act's guaranteed coverage for maternity care and addiction treatment.

"You could not design a bill less responsive to what Coloradans want us to do on health care, and I will fight it at every step."

Other, 2019

"We need to fix our broken immigration system in a way that honors our tradition as a nation of immigrants while upholding the rule of law,' Bennet told The Post. 'We must be humane in our immigration enforcement, but we also must focus on reforms like improving the asylum process so we can encourage legal immigration and discourage illegal border crossings."

Candidate's Website, 2019

"Michael has long-supported offering a path to citizenship for individuals who were brought to the United States as children. Michael knows that Dreamers are hard-working Americans who contribute to our economy, strengthen our communities, and are as American as his own children. That's why he cosponsored the Dream Act of 2009 when he first arrived in the Senate, and most recently cosponsored the bipartisan Dream Act of 2017. When Congress failed to pass the Dream Act, Michael urged then-President Obama to create the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program."

Other, 2017

Bennet opposed the American Health Care Act (AHCA), which would have added flexibility to essential health benefits and established a block grant system for Medicaid. He wrote, "The latest 'health care' bill has unleashed a wave of anxiety. ... Sadly, the Senate health care bill fails to fix a single, significant problem you have asked us to address.

"Instead, it:

• "Forces Americans to pay more out-of-pocket for worse coverage;
• "Kicks 22 million Americans off their health insurance;
• "Devastates Medicaid with a $770 billion cut;
• "Weakens protections from annual and lifetime caps used by insurance companies to deny care; and
• "Strips the Affordable Care Act's guaranteed coverage for maternity care and addiction treatment.

"You could not design a bill less responsive to what Coloradans want us to do on health care, and I will fight it at every step."

Candidate's Website, 2019

"Michael believes we cannot accept the gun violence epidemic in this country as a normal condition of American life. Unlike in Washington, Colorado's legislators made tough choices after the state suffered two of the worst mass shootings in the nation's history. After the massacre in Columbine, they closed the gun show loophole. After the tragedy in Aurora, they strengthened background checks. Michael supports legislation in the Senate to similarly close loopholes, improve background checks, and extend mental health services at the national level. Michael views this issue not as taking guns away from people, but from keeping guns out of the wrong hands."

Candidate's Twitter Feed, 2018

"Later today, the Senate is voting on a 20-week abortion ban, jeopardizing a woman's right to make her own healthcare decisions. I have voted against this measure in the past, and I will do so again."

Candidate's Website, 2019

"Invest in Climate Science and Monitoring: To better measure our climate progress and develop innovative technologies to solve our greatest challenges, the Bennet Administration will drive investment to:

• "Bolster federal research in climate science to better reflect the magnitude of the climate problem, including focusing on improving sea-level and heat content measurement systems, minimizing uncertainty around climate sensitivity, and quantifying aerosol forcing.
• "Lead the world to strengthen the global climate monitoring system for greenhouse gas emissions and improve the global warning system for extreme weather events in collaboration with the private sector."

Other, 2017

"The vote today has real costs for Colorado. If this measure passes, it will threaten to cut funding for Title X health centers serving over 52,000 men, women, and teens each year.

"It will also risk funding for the over 20 Planned Parenthood clinics throughout Colorado that provide health care services to more than 86,000 men, women, and teens."

Candidate's Website, 2019

"Raise the minimum wage to $15 or more in high-cost cities, with an exemption for rural and lower-cost communities where $15 would potentially harm employment and small businesses."

Other, 2019

"My administration will work to codify Roe v. Wade. We will also ensure that providers who administer abortion services do not have to comply with burdensome restrictions that limit their ability to do so."

Candidate's Facebook Page, 2010

"There is great potential for cost savings in energy efficiency for Colorado small businesses, farmers, ranchers and rural communities and the USDA can help conduct energy audits to see where you can save. It's one more way Colorado's rural communities can help lead the way toward a clean energy economy."

Candidate's Website, 2015

"Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet introduced an amendment to the Senate's budget proposal that instructs Congress to extend expired and expiring tax credits for renewable energy. The tax credits should be extended for a reasonable period of time as a bridge until Congress completes its work on tax reform.

"'Colorado is a leader in clean and renewable energy, and our producers and manufacturers are looking for certainty from Congress,' Bennet said. 'The production tax credit and investment tax credit for wind and solar energy have helped create thousands of jobs in our state. As we work on tax reform, we need to extend these credits to give the clean energy industry the predictability they need.'

"Since coming to the Senate, Bennet has introduced several proposals to improve the tax code for the energy industry. In the absence of energy tax reform, he has pushed to extend the wind energy production tax credit that supports thousands of jobs in Colorado and across the country. Bennet also introduced a bipartisan bill that would allow solar companies to benefit from the investment tax credit as soon as they start construction."

Candidate's Website, 2019

"Enact Free Community College: We will immediately make community college free for all Americans by providing federal funding alongside state support to offset the cost of tuition, so that students can put Pell grants and other financial aid toward their remaining expenses to complete their two-year associate's degree or other community college program.

"Make Four-Year Public Colleges Debt Free: For low- and middle-income families up to 300% of the federal poverty threshold (about $75,000 of income for a family of four), we will immediately increase support through Pell grants and other aid to ensure these students can graduate from a four-year public college debt free. Over time, taking into account families' potential contribution to the costs of education from both income and wealth, we will work to ensure that every student in America can graduate debt free, including tuition, fees, and reasonable costs for room and board."

Candidate's Website, 2019

"Michael has been a champion of comprehensive, fiscally-responsible tax reform that makes our tax code simpler and more fair, while encouraging investment and job creation by American businesses in the United States. That's why he fought against the Republican tax plan in 2017 which overwhelmingly benefitted the wealthiest Americans, not the working families in this country who need relief most, and is projected to add nearly $2 trillion to our debt over the first decade."

Candidate's Website, 2018

"Provoking a global trade war with reckless tweets puts American jobs and businesses at risk and increases costs for American families. We need a thoughtful and aggressive response to China's overproduction of steel and aluminum, but blanket tariffs are not the answer. The President's action, motivated by his political whims rather than effective policy, will invite retaliation and isolate us further from our trading partners."

Candidate's Facebook Page, 2017

"Toured the Eisenhower Tunnel with Colorado Department of Transportation Officials to learn more about the urgent need for infrastructure improvements in our state. CDOT officials were clear: congestion and aging infrastructure pose increasing safety risks and are a burden on our economy. The President should work with Democrats and Republicans to draft and pass a serious infrastructure proposal that addresses our nation's long-term needs. Previous generations worked together to build America-it's our obligation to invest in the nation for our children and grandchildren."

Other, 2019

"Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet today cosponsored the Marijuana Justice Act to end the federal prohibition on marijuana.

"'This long-overdue change will help bring our marijuana laws into the 21st century,' Bennet said. 'It's past time we bring fairness and relief to communities that our criminal justice system has too often left behind.'

"The Marijuana Justice Act seeks to reverse decades of drug policy that has disproportionately affected low-income communities and communities of color. Beyond removing marijuana from the list of controlled substances - making it legal at the federal level - the bill also would automatically expunge the convictions of those who have served federal time for marijuana use and possession offenses, and it would reinvest in low-income and minority communities through a community reinvestment fund. This fund could be used for projects such as job training programs, re-entry services, and community centers."

Other, 2019

"We need to have universal coverage, lower costs, and improve quality - those are the three objectives we should be working toward. The best path to achieve those objectives is with Medicare-X, my plan to create a strong public option that provides people with the choice of buying into that option or keeping the insurance they receive through their employer or union.

"In just four years, Medicare for All would take health insurance away from about 180 million Americans who receive their insurance through their employer or their union, the vast majority of whom like it. And it would take insurance away from another 20 million people who receive insurance through Medicare Advantage."

Other, 2019

"We need to have universal coverage, lower costs, and improve quality - those are the three objectives we should be working toward. The best path to achieve those objectives is with Medicare-X, my plan to create a strong public option that provides people with the choice of buying into that option or keeping the insurance they receive through their employer or union.

"In just four years, Medicare for All would take health insurance away from about 180 million Americans who receive their insurance through their employer or their union, the vast majority of whom like it. And it would take insurance away from another 20 million people who receive insurance through Medicare Advantage."

Candidate's Twitter Feed, 2019

"@realDonaldTrump if you don't like the word 'medieval' to describe your wall, how about ineffective, wasteful, offensive, unpopular..."

Candidate's Website, 2018

"Our work on opioids in Washington should reflect the magnitude of the crisis ravaging communities across our country. The measures signed into law today are a step in the right direction, but they are not enough. Colorado's leadership is evident in programs like the Opioid Safety Collaborative Pilot, which this law will expand. We must keep working on meaningful policies to limit the flow of opioids while investing resources to treat those struggling with substance use disorders.

Candidate's Twitter Feed, 2018

"The administration must ensure any steps taken advance our interests and credibly address the threat without elevating the North Korean regime. That includes working with our partners and allies in the region, enforcing sanctions, and fully resourcing our diplomatic posts."

Candidate's Website, 2010

"Social Security, along with Medicare, has offered security and peace of mind to millions Americans for decades, and we must fight to preserve and strengthen it. We must protect it from those who want to destroy or privatize Social Security and risk the financial security of elderly Americans who have worked to earn and depend on its benefits. As the next generation enters the workforce, we need to ensure that a sustainable Social Security program will be there for them too."

Other, 2019

"I think the key to making sure that Social Security is solvent would be by lifting the payroll cap on the payroll tax, and that's something that I would do, and I think it would go a long way to making Social Security solvent.

Candidate's Website, 2017

"By providing an opportunity for Congressional review, we can ensure that the Administration can't roll back sanctions without justification or for inappropriate reasons. Russia continues to deploy a wide range of tools aimed at harming the United States, and it is clear that, if left unchecked, Russia will continue to undermine our democratic institutions. The Russia sanctions passed today are critical to countering the Kremlin's continued threats to our interests and those of our allies. The House should pass this bill quickly, and the President should sign it into law. This will send a strong message that there are consequences for Russia's interference in our democracy."

Candidate's Website, 2019

"Reduce Student Debt Burdens: Americans currently owe $1.6 trillion in student debt, placing huge burdens on many low-income and middle-class families. We cannot just write off student debt for one generation; we must make college more affordable for ALL students while helping families currently dealing with high debt burdens today. We will cap student loan payments at 8% of income, a 20% reduction in income-based student loan payments from current law, and forgive student loans after 20 years for people who have successfully made payments on time.

"Expand Debt Forgiveness and Allow for Refinancing of Student Loans: We will forgive $10,000 per year in student loan debt for up to four years for public servants and those who work in high-need professions in underserved communities, such as teachers, OB-GYNs, nurses, or primary care physicians in rural areas or high-poverty urban communities where there are shortages of these professionals. We will also allow all student debt holders to refinance their student loans and forgive student debt in bankruptcy."

Candidate's Twitter Feed, 2018

"U.S. intelligence has assessed Iran is in compliance with the JCPOA, and President Trump has offered no alternative path forward to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear capabilities. The President's abandonment of the agreement is reckless."

Candidate's Website, 2019

"In the Senate, Michael has championed efforts to both protect existing policies that address climate change and implement new, forward-looking measures to combat this growing threat. In 2017, he cast the deciding vote that kept in place standards to reduce methane emissions on public lands, which harm Colorado's air quality. He fought sweeping rollbacks of climate policies-including the Paris Agreement, Clean Power Plan, and fuel economy standards-and opposed cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency's budget. He also led an effort to standardize the metric that federal agencies use to measure the cost of climate pollution."