|
|
Books by and about 2020 presidential candidates |
|
Crippled America,
by Donald J. Trump (2015) |
United,
by Cory Booker (2016) |
The Truths We Hold,
by Kamala Harris (2019) |
Smart on Crime,
by Kamala Harris (2010) |
Guide to Political Revolution,
by Bernie Sanders (2017) |
Where We Go From Here,
by Bernie Sanders (2018) |
Promise Me, Dad ,
by Joe Biden (2017) |
Conscience of a Conservative,
by Jeff Flake (2017) |
Two Paths,
by Gov. John Kasich (2017) |
Every Other Monday,
by Rep. John Kasich (2010) |
Courage is Contagious,
by John Kasich (1998) |
Shortest Way Home,
by Pete Buttigieg (2019) |
The Book of Joe ,
by Jeff Wilser (2019; biography of Joe Biden) |
Becoming,
by Michelle Obama (2018) |
Our Revolution,
by Bernie Sanders (2016) |
This Fight Is Our Fight,
by Elizabeth Warren (2017) |
Higher Loyalty,
by James Comey (2018) |
The Making of Donald Trump,
by David Cay Johnston (2017) |
Higher Loyalty ,
by James Comey (2018) |
Trump vs. Hillary On The Issues ,
by Jesse Gordon (2016) |
Outsider in the White House,
by Bernie Sanders (2015) |
|
|
Book Reviews |
(from Amazon.com) |
(click a book cover for a review or other books by or about the presidency from Amazon.com)
|
| OnTheIssues.org excerpts: (click on issues for details)
|
Abortion
Brett Kavanaugh: Disallow 17-year-old illegal immigrant to seek abortion.
Brett Kavanaugh: Roe is an important precedent, but stricter regulations ok.
Neil Gorsuch: Let Hobby Lobby skip contraceptives on religious grounds.
Merrick Garland: Record on abortion rights entirely blank.
Sonia Sotomayor: Precedents must be given deference in any situation.
John Roberts: Roe v. Wade is more than settled as precedent.
Jon Kyl: Nominees should not reveal pre-determined positions on Roe.
Lindsey Graham: Ginsburg would get rejected today for outspokenness on Roe.
Richard Durbin: Troubled that Alito 1985 memo shows closed mind on abortion.
Richard Durbin: Doesn’t condemn converts to pro-choice, since he did.
Ruth Bader Ginsburg: Government should fund abortion and childbirth equally.
Samuel Alito: Stare decisis is first step; then an open mind on abortion.
Samuel Alito: Was against Roe in 1985, but a lot has happened since then.
Samuel Alito: Roe v Wade is important precedent but not settled law.
John Ashcroft: Opposes Roe v Wade, but accepts it as settled law.
Elena Kagan: Health exceptions for partial-birth abortion ban.
Clarence Thomas: Defining abortion position would prejudge abortion cases.
Clarence Thomas: Personally views back-alley illegal abortions as torture.
Clarence Thomas: Never discussed Roe v. Wade in law school nor since.
Clarence Thomas: Privacy is protected; no comment on application to abortion.
Clarence Thomas: Overruling previous cases is a very serious matter.
|
Budget & Economy
Elena Kagan: 14th Amendment's "liberty clause" includes economic liberty.
|
Civil Rights
Brett Kavanaugh: First Amendment protects religious liberty.
James Mattis: Opposed women serving in infantry; but will allow it.
James Mattis: Not about who soldiers go to bed with, but how they'll fight.
Jeff Sessions: 1986: Denied confirmation as federal judge.
Jeff Sessions: 1986: Called NAACP a "pinko" organization that hates whites.
Merrick Garland: Spotty record on supporting LGBT protests and free speech.
Ruth Bader Ginsburg: Let women sue for gender discrimination without time limits.
Elena Kagan: Military ban on gays is moral injustice of the first order.
Merrick Garland: Let civil rights plaintiffs receive appropriate day in Court.
Sonia Sotomayor: In some situations, race in some form must be considered.
Jeff Sessions: Banning the Pledge of Allegiance is unconstitutional.
Mike DeWine: Disturbed by “free speech zones” in public arena.
Sam Brownback: Robustly religious public square better than naked square.
Samuel Alito: Overturning separate-but-equal OK despite 60-year precedent.
Samuel Alito: Treat religious speech equally with secular speech.
Samuel Alito: Racial profiling violates the 4th Amendment.
Samuel Alito: I joined CAP to defend ROTC, not to keep out minorities.
Ted Kennedy: Alito joined CAP when CAP’s racism was in the news.
Samuel Alito: Privacy is a question of interpretation of the Constitution.
Samuel Alito: The Constitution protects a right to privacy.
Samuel Alito: The President has to comply with statutes that are passed.
Gale Norton: Top priority to improve Native American schools.
John Ashcroft: As Attorney General, upholds law; no longer an advocate.
John Ashcroft: No American should suffer based on skin color.
John Ashcroft: Opposed Ronnie White on qualifications, not on skin color.
Clarence Thomas: Tension between affirmative help and undermining dignity.
Clarence Thomas: Reaching out to minorities is OK; but no quotas.
Clarence Thomas: Supports scholarships & internships for minorities & women.
|
Corporations
Brett Kavanaugh: Federal regulatory agencies are threat to individual liberty.
Wilbur Ross: CEO of International Coal Group, plus Steel & Textiles.
Neil Gorsuch: Taught law school courses on anti-trust and legal ethics.
Linda McMahon: SBA should respond quickly in emergencies.
Neil Gorsuch: Don't apply "dormant commerce clause" to limit state laws.
Samuel Alito: Bundling goods to large purchasers is not monopolistic.
|
Crime
Brett Kavanaugh: Work to reduce criminal's protections.
Neil Gorsuch: Police can't knock-and-talk if you post No-Trespassing signs.
Neil Gorsuch: Police tasers aren't excessive force, even if person killed.
Neil Gorsuch: Very strict reading of relief criteria for death penalty.
Jeff Sessions: Increase in violent crime might be start of dangerous trend.
Elena Kagan: Death penalty is constitutional, but requires due process.
Sonia Sotomayor: Death penalty is constitutional under certain situations.
Russell Feingold: Death penalty defendants often don’t get adequate counsel.
Russell Feingold: Alito votes more pro-death penalty than most GOP judges.
Samuel Alito: Overruled by Supreme Court on death penalty adequate counsel.
Samuel Alito: Congress limits judicial review of death penalty cases.
Clarence Thomas: Balance victim’s rights with defendant’s rights.
Clarence Thomas: Due process in death penalty cases, but limited restrictions.
Clarence Thomas: Uniform sentencing guidelines have eliminated much disparity.
|
Drugs
Jeff Sessions: Marijuana is not funny and is in fact a very real danger.
Jeff Sessions: We are in the throes of a heroin epidemic.
Merrick Garland: Let DEA decide whether marijuana has any medical benefits.
Elena Kagan: Individual suspicion required before administering drug test.
|
Education
Brett Kavanaugh: The wall between religious schools and states must come down.
Betsy DeVos: Nothing is free; someone has to pay for "free tuition".
Betsy DeVos: No longer believe in one-size-fits-all model of learning.
Joe Biden: Princeton was last Ivy holdout to admit women & minorities.
Sam Brownback: Stare decisis would have upheld separate-but-equal.
Margaret Spellings: No Child Left Behind works.
Clarence Thomas: God in schools creates values; but wall of separation needed.
|
Energy & Oil
Brett Kavanaugh: Favors ethanol & clean energy over fossil fuel.
Ryan Zinke: Climate is changing; Man is an influence but what can we do?
Gale Norton: Balance energy needs with environmental protection.
Gale Norton: Will expedite natural gas exploitation in Alaska.
Gale Norton: Have open mind on global warming; there’s no consensus.
|
Environment
Brett Kavanaugh: Suspicious of regulations on environment and worker safety.
Brett Kavanaugh: Dissents on EPA's blocking permit for strip mining operation.
Neil Gorsuch: Mother ran EPA; accused of being soft on polluters.
Ryan Zinke: Absolutely against transfer or sale of public land to states.
Ryan Zinke: Smokey the Bear should be viewed as helpful, not as police.
Ben Carson: Deregulation includes land use & federal housing policy.
Merrick Garland: Supports EPA's anti-haze regulations.
Sonia Sotomayor: Government taking to develop a blighted area was appropriate.
Dianne Feinstein: Citizens need standing to sue under Clean Water Act.
Samuel Alito: Citizens can only sue under CWA if they suffered injury.
Samuel Alito: Ruling on standing is not ruling against the environment.
Gale Norton: Protecting national parks is a common goal & a priority.
Gale Norton: Decision makers in D.C. should listen to all voices.
Gale Norton: Will use all resources of Interior to make best decisions.
Gale Norton: Norton vows to uphold laws such as Endangered Species Act.
Gale Norton: Clinton designations of national monuments to be reviewed.
Gale Norton: Will balance conservationists’ and off-roaders’ needs.
Gale Norton: Never advocated “right to pollute”.
Gale Norton: Proud of working to protect California condor.
|
Families & Children
Brett Kavanaugh: Allow churches to exclude contraceptives from insurance.
Mick Mulvaney: $15,000 in unpaid nanny taxes from triplets in 2000.
|
Foreign Policy
James Mattis: Putin is trying to break the North Atlantic alliance.
James Mattis: Supports NATO alliance principle of collective defense.
Mike Pompeo: Investigate Russian interference with U.S. election.
Rex Tillerson: Join with NATO allies alarmed at Russian resurgence.
Tom Coburn: Justices citing foreign law is bad behavior.
Samuel Alito: Don’t look to foreign law for civil rights interpretation.
Clarence Thomas: Supported stock divestiture from South Africa.
|
Free Trade
Wilbur Ross: Criticized multinational trade deals: there is no free lunch.
|
Government Reform
Brett Kavanaugh: Upholds Supreme Court's ruling on campaign finance limits.
Brett Kavanaugh: President answers to impeachment, not to criminal charges.
Brett Kavanaugh: Federal agencies follow Congress, not make new regulations.
Neil Gorsuch: Strict originalist: interpret Constitution as Founders meant.
Ryan Zinke: Work with states and rebuild national parks.
Mike Pompeo: Russian hacking impact 2016 election & not the first time.
Neil Gorsuch: Administrative law: end the Chevron deference.
Jeff Sessions: 1986: Voting Rights Act of 1965 is "intrusive legislation".
Jeff Sessions: The South has changed; no longer any need to monitor voting.
Elena Kagan: I believed in opposing Citizens United, but we lost.
John Roberts: States waive sovereign immunity by accepting federal funds.
Merrick Garland: Preference for open & transparent government, like FOIA.
Sonia Sotomayor: The president can veto laws but not make them.
Jeff Sessions: Supreme Court exceeds its authority and needs reining in.
Samuel Alito: Over-reaching by Court undermines respect for law.
Samuel Alito: No one is above the law and no one is beneath the law.
Samuel Alito: Supports one-person-one-vote within a deviation of 10%.
Samuel Alito: Supports stare decisis--following prior precedents.
Samuel Alito: Executive power issues are not often resolved by the court.
Samuel Alito: Constitution is a living thing, with unchanging principles.
Arlen Specter: Nominees only answer as many questions as they have to.
Patrick Leahy: Justices should effectively check government overreaching.
Richard Durbin: Justices should not restrict our rights and freedoms.
Clarence Thomas: Judges should not impose their will, but just interpret law.
|
Gun Control
Brett Kavanaugh: Banning semiautomatic rifles & handgun registration unlawful.
Brett Kavanaugh: Semiautomatic rifles are not a dangerous and unusual weapon.
Betsy DeVos: Let local schools decide about guns in school.
Donald Trump: End gun-free zones in schools & military bases.
Neil Gorsuch: Knowingly possessing a gun illegally isn't a felony.
Jeff Sessions: As US attorney, led nation in gun prosecutions every year.
Elena Kagan: 2nd Amendment confers individual right, not broad principle.
Jeff Sessions: 2nd Amendment is a specific provision, not a broad principle.
Patrick Leahy: Heller case established a fundamental individual right.
Sonia Sotomayor: The Second Amendment gives an individual right to bear arms.
Sonia Sotomayor: Many factors influence Congress's powers on gun control.
|
Health Care
Brett Kavanaugh: Supports big healthcare mergers if they save consumer costs.
Tom Price: Give every American access to affordable health coverage.
Tom Price: No right to Medicaid under state block grants.
Neil Gorsuch: Let Christian nursing home opt out of ObamaCare.
Ben Carson: There's a strong connection between health and housing.
Neil Gorsuch: Wrote book on Assisted Suicide, and opposes it.
Samuel Alito: Ok to refuse medical treatment; but assisted suicide not ok.
|
Homeland Security
Brett Kavanaugh: Government metadata collection prevents terrorist attacks.
Mick Mulvaney: Raise the top line defense number.
James Mattis: Bring business reforms to the Department of Defense.
James Mattis: Don't revisit old issues; let women in combat roles.
Mike Pompeo: No torture, including coercive methods like waterboarding.
Merrick Garland: Let Abu Ghraib torture victims sue their torturers.
Elena Kagan: Al Qaeda suspects should be held under indefinite detention.
Elena Kagan: Oppose Solomon Amendment: let colleges bar ROTC recruiting.
Elena Kagan: 2009: Ok to detain enemy combatants in wartime without trial.
Patrick Leahy: Bush thinks anti-torture statue doesn’t apply to him.
Samuel Alito: President can be challenged for not following Congress’ laws.
Samuel Alito: Government needs to justify domestic spying.
Ted Kennedy: All-powerful executive branch is genuinely troubling.
Elena Kagan: Apply rule of law to Guant namo detainees.
Donald Rumsfeld: Deploy missile defense at home and for allies abroad.
Donald Rumsfeld: Involve Russia in negotiations about SDI & nukes.
|
Immigration
Brett Kavanaugh: Two cases shine light on leaning towards anti-immigration.
Herbert Kohl: Alito sided against immigrants 88% of the time.
Samuel Alito: Voted against immigrants because Congress set law that way.
|
Jobs
Brett Kavanaugh: Congress decides worker safety issues, not regulatory agency.
Merrick Garland: Regulatory agency decides worker safety issues, not Congress.
Elena Kagan: Let Congress fix problems like Ledbetter Act, not judges.
Jeff Sessions: Courts shouldn't overrule Congress on job discrimination.
Sonia Sotomayor: The Supreme Court's Ricci decision set a new standard.
|
Principles & Values
Sally Yates: AG should say no to president in order to obey the law.
Neil Gorsuch: Ok to display donated Ten Commandments in public park.
James Mattis: Dislikes nickname Mad Dog Mattis.
Jeff Sessions: Total fidelity to the laws and the Constitution.
Arlen Specter: Senate speaks to entire Supreme Court during hearings.
Charles Schumer: Alito responds, but doesn’t really answer questions.
Samuel Alito: Pledge of recusal does not last for 12 years.
Samuel Alito: Constitution doesn’t change but the factual situations do.
Samuel Alito: All the courts should be insulated from public opinion.
Charles Schumer: Nominees must prove they’re not extreme.
John Cornyn: Justices should respect law, not impose political agendas.
Samuel Alito: 1960s Princeton: “privileged people behaving irresponsibly”.
Samuel Alito: Good judges can change their minds during a case.
Samuel Alito: Attorneys want results; judges want only the rule of law.
Samuel Alito: Pledges to administer justice without respect to persons.
Gale Norton: Proud of being conservative and a conservationist.
Gale Norton: Promises to enforce nation’s environmental laws.
Gale Norton: Consult with affected people before making decisions.
|
Social Security
Brett Kavanaugh: Enthusiastic preference to privatize social security.
Samuel Alito: Disability benefits apply if job category dissapears.
|
Technology
Brett Kavanaugh: Allow sweeping surveillance of Americans' phone records.
Brett Kavanaugh: Net neutrality regulations violate the First Amendment.
Mike Pompeo: Re-establish collection of all metadata; make it searchable.
James Mattis: Cyber domain presents new challenge to maintain US advantage.
Arlen Specter: Supreme Court proceedings should be televised.
Samuel Alito: Voted to televise 3rd Circuit court.
|
War & Peace
Brett Kavanaugh: Congressional authority needed for major foreign conflicts.
James Mattis: Iran is single most enduring threat to stability and peace.
Mike Pompeo: I opposed Iran deal; I'll gather clear-eyed info about it.
James Mattis: ISIS has metastasized & remains a resilient movement.
James Mattis: Iran is the leading state sponsor of terror.
James Mattis: Supports the Iran nuclear agreement.
Rex Tillerson: Opposed US sanctions against Russia over Crimea annexation.
Rex Tillerson: Destroy the Islamic State; be wary of China's behavior.
Samuel Alito: President does not have a blank check in time of war.
|
Welfare & Poverty
Ben Carson: Housing integration is ok, but why must residents solve it?
Ben Carson: Ideal is every person in a home; but we don't have the funds.
Jeff Sessions: Basic tradition is opportunity to work hard & keep fruits.
Jeff Sessions: Eminent domain for private development is Court over-reach.
Samuel Alito: Eminent domain affects emotions, not just money.
Clarence Thomas: Public housing entitlements are good programs.
|
