Terry Adams in Survey of 2014 Senate campaign websites
On Budget & Economy:
Income inequality has grown worse in recent decades
When I hear some politician saying the bottom 47% are takers, or lazy, or some other such nonsense, it infuriates me. Both of my parents were in the bottom 47% and they were neither takers nor lazy. They worked, and worked hard.
They were also very proud of their labor and their contributions to this country. In those days, the dream that your children would do better than you because of your hard work was often a reality. Now that reality is fading.
America is one of the most wealth-unequal countries in the world. In fact, out of 141 countries, the United States leads only Russia, the Ukraine, and Lebanon.Adjusting for inflation, from 1966 to 2011, incomes for the bottom 90% of Americans rose
by just $59.00. Meanwhile over the same period, the top 10% saw their incomes grow $116,071. Our economy has grown by leaps and bounds but nearly all of the rewards have gone to the top.
Source: 2014 TN Senate campaign website, AdamsForTN.com
Jun 25, 2014
On Budget & Economy:
Start reinvesting in the American Dream
We have to get back to basics on the economy, starting with reinvesting in the American Dream. The middle-class and small businesses are the bedrock of the economy and new industries are the future of Tennessee and the future of America.-
We must encourage and invest in people who start new businesses that put people to work in Tennessee.
- Investment in new energy sources will create good jobs.
- It's time that "Made in America" tags replace those that say "Made in China."
Source: 2014 TN Senate campaign website, AdamsForTN.com
Jun 25, 2014
On Civil Rights:
Equal work deserves equal pay, period
Equal work deserves equal pay, period. Senator Alexander wants to know what is in it for the men. Well, Senator Alexander, a country that values equal justice under the law, a country that does not discriminate based on a person's gender, and a country
that not only talks the talk but also walks the walk is what is in it for men, women, and every American.A system that is rigged against half the work force is a system that does not work for Tennesseans. Unfair pay practices not only hurts
Tennessee families in the form of lost wages but it also hurts families with reduced pensions, retirement benefits, and diminished Social Security benefits in the future.
Women working in the same jobs as men still make only 77 cents for every dollar a man makes. It is unfathomable that there is a debate on this issue in 2014. This is not the 1950's.
Source: 2014 TN Senate campaign website, AdamsForTN.com
Jun 25, 2014
On Corporations:
Fair tax system without loopholes for corporations & wealthy
If you have been feeling like the game is rigged, like you can't get ahead no matter how hard you work, like the deck is stacked against you, you are right. When all the wealth goes to the top 10%, and increasingly the top 1%, the middle-class does not
have money to buy things, demand for goods and services goes down, tax revenues go down, meaning investments in education go down, and so on into an economic death spiral.What should we do? Well, we don't need some kind of Robin Hood economic policy,
we just need a fair economic policy that works for everyone. We need a fair tax system without loopholes for corporations and the wealthy. We need Wall Street reform.
We need to make intelligent investments in public education, the great equalizer in our country. We need to raise the minimum wage. And we need to get the billionaires, corporations, and special interests money out of politics.
Source: 2014 TN Senate campaign website, AdamsForTN.com
Jun 25, 2014
On Education:
Invest in our public education system
We must invest in our public education system with the aim to be the best in the world so that American workers can compete and win in the global economy. College and tech training must be affordable and we have to get a handle on the student loan debt
crisis before it is too lateLet's get real: a student without a high school diploma earns less than half of the per year average wage in America. 68% of the U.S. prison system is populated by individuals who did not graduate high school.
In a nutshell, if you don't graduate from high school, the deck is stacked against you.
Graduate from college, on the other hand, and see the opportunity to live the American dream unfold for you. In this country, the unemployment rate directly
correlates with your level of education, which makes sense. Earnings for those with a college degree are 32% more than average earnings and over 200% more than someone who fails to graduate from high school.
Source: 2014 TN Senate campaign website, AdamsForTN.com
Jun 25, 2014
On Energy & Oil:
Transition to clean renewable energy
We cannot continue to subsidize the dirty fossil fuel industry to the detriment of 21st century of a transition to clean renewable energy. Fossil fuels are by their very nature limited resources. The long term benefits of leading the world in renewable
energies could be astronomical, the long term costs of not leading on this issue could be catastrophic.The United States has been the leader in every technology revolution in modern history and there is no reason that we cannot lead on clean energy.
Ingenuity is, in fact, America's greatest resource.
We know the science, forty years ago we were warned that pollution would cause the polar ice caps to melt and lead to changes in weather, such as destructive hurricanes, droughts, and forest fires.
We don't need 97% of the world's scientist to tell us this has happened, we can see it with our own eyes, just like the pollution billowing out of smoke stacks, the wild fires and floods in Colorado, and the heat waves in Alaska.
Source: 2014 TN Senate campaign website, AdamsForTN.com
Jun 25, 2014
On Foreign Policy:
Engage abroad with defense, diplomacy, and development
We live in an ever-changing world with ever-changing threats, a world in which our country must be engaged. The use of defense, diplomacy, and development must be used to advance
U.S. interest around the globe. We must be vigilant and we must also be intelligent with our use of force abroad. War is costly, both in treasure and in blood.
Source: 2014 TN Senate campaign website, AdamsForTN.com
Jun 25, 2014
On Free Trade:
Replace "Made in China" tags with "Made in America"
It's time that "Made in America" tags replace those that say "Made in China."Smart economic policy means eliminating wasteful spending in Washington D.C., a loop-hole free tax
policy where everyone pays their fair share, even big corporations, and sending our troops abroad only when the vital national security interests of the United States is threatened.
Source: 2014 TN Senate campaign website, AdamsForTN.com
Jun 25, 2014
On Government Reform:
Corporation aren't people and money isn't speech
We simply must get big money out of politics. Not long ago it seemed possible that we would have real campaign reform. Then in 2010, the Supreme Court of the United States made a decision in a case known as Citizens United. In that case, the Supreme
Court decided that, for the purposes of campaigns and elections, corporation are people and money is speech.I beg to differ. The First Amendment of the Constitution of the United States of America is for "We the People" not "We the Corporations."
Allowing corporations to spend as much money as they want to influence elections flies in the face of everything thing our democracy stands for, a government of the people, for the people, and by the people.
That is why I vehemently support
a constitutional amendment stating unequivocally that corporations are not people and money is not "speech." It is time we give our democracy back to the people of Tennessee and the citizens of this country.
Source: 2014 TN Senate campaign website, AdamsForTN.com
Jun 25, 2014
On Homeland Security:
Service to Citizens: more veterans' benefits
Every person who serves honorably in defense of our nation deserves a fair shake. Veterans across the board have had an unemployment rate at 4% above the national rate and that is unacceptable. Our nation needs a Service to Citizens program that begins
in boot camp and continues throughout a military career.It is unacceptable that disabled veterans and their caregivers have a backlog of 500,000 benefit claims for services and benefits already earned. It is equally unacceptable that there are
900,000 veterans who are on food assistance and Congress seeks to cut further.
It is the duty of this Nation to take care of those who have volunteered to, if necessary, make the ultimate sacrifice for this country. Perhaps it is because the number of
veterans in Congress is at the lowest point since World War II that these issues are not at the forefront of the Congressional agenda. This has to change, not only because our national security is at stake but also because it is the right thing to do.
Source: 2014 TN Senate campaign website, AdamsForTN.com
Jun 25, 2014
On Homeland Security:
Dependence on OPEC leads to foreign entanglements & wars
We have been talking about reducing our dependence on oil and gas for a long time now, yet we are still at the mercy of OPEC.
Lest we forget, the members of OPEC are Iraq, Kuwait, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, Libya, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Indonesia, Algeria, Nigeria, Ecuador, Angola, and Gabon.
At this stage in our history, it is unacceptable to be dependent in anyway upon this group of countries. This unholy alliance with OPEC is risky at best and certainly has the potential to lead us into foreign entanglements,
wars, and conflicts that are more about our energy needs than about our long term national and strategic interests.
Source: 2014 TN Senate campaign website, AdamsForTN.com
Jun 25, 2014
On Homeland Security:
Security depends on economic strength AND military might
Our national security not only depends upon our military might but also upon our economic strength in the world.
We cannot live up to our obligations with our allies, spread democracy around the globe, and be a force for good and human rights without an economy that is as strong and powerful as our military.
Source: 2014 TN Senate campaign website, AdamsForTN.com
Jun 25, 2014
On Immigration:
Tough rules to earn citizenship
It is time we stop playing politics with immigration reform. We need reform that is practical, tough, and fair.
We must be tough at the border and tough on employers who are trying to beat the system by hiring illegal immigrants.It is time that we restore the rule of law.
We must also acknowledge that it is impossible to find and deport 12 million people already in this country, if someone says they can, they are not telling the truth.
So for those who are here, they must get in line, earn their way to citizenship, obey our laws, work hard, pay taxes, and become productive, tax-paying citizens.
Source: 2014 TN Senate campaign website, AdamsForTN.com
Jun 25, 2014
On Jobs:
The minimum wage rewards work: increase it
It is no secret, one of the biggest policy differences between me and Senator Alexander is that I want to increase the minimum wage, Alexander wants to abolish the minimum wage.My support in favor of the increasing minimum wage is fundamental.
The minimum wage rewards work. If someone in the United States of America works forty hours per week, they should not live in poverty. In addition, when the minimum wage goes up, it puts money in the hands of people who will spend it locally, often in
small businesses which helps everyone.
Imagine raising a family working forty hours per week, fifty-two weeks per year for the last five years at minimum wage. You would have made $15,080 dollars per year without one day of vacation or a sick day.
You are also likely dependent upon housing assistance, food assistance, and Medicaid provided by the taxpayers. Meanwhile, after-tax corporate profits have averaged 9.2% of the economy, the highest since the 1920s.
Source: 2014 TN Senate campaign website, AdamsForTN.com
Jun 25, 2014
On War & Peace:
No nukes for Iran; two-state solution for Palestine
Israel is one of our most trusted and steadfast strategic allies in the world. A safe and secure democratic state of Israel is absolutely vital to the national security of the United States and the critical element to stability in the region.
We must defend and support Israel and ensure that Israel can defend itself from threats from Hezbollah, Hamas, Iran as well as other terrorist organizations and hostile states.The U.S. should make Israel a "major strategic partner" by passing the
Strategic Partnership Act and support security assistance for Israel. In addition, I support a congressional role on Iran Policy and any deal struck with Iran should make it impossible for Iran to develop a nuclear weapon.
A two-state solution to Israel-Palestinian conflict is in the best interests of all parties, ensuring a democratic state of Israel and a state for the Palestinian people.
Source: 2014 TN Senate campaign website, AdamsForTN.com
Jun 25, 2014
On War & Peace:
War only when vital and supported, and after all other means
We must approach armed conflict with the knowledge and lessons from the past and ask ourselves if our vital national security interests are threatened, do we have clear and obtainable objectives, have we analyzed carefully all costs and risks involved,
have we exhausted all non-violent means to solve a crisis, do we have a clear exit strategy, do we have the support of the American people and broad international support? When affirmative, clear and decisive military action must be taken.
Source: 2014 TN Senate campaign website, AdamsForTN.com
Jun 25, 2014
Page last updated: Dec 07, 2018