|
|
Books by and about 2020 presidential candidates |
|
Crippled America,
by Donald J. Trump (2015) |
Fire and Fury,
by Michael Wolff (2018) |
Trump Revealed,
by Michael Kranish and Marc Fisher (2016) |
The Making of Donald Trump,
by David Cay Johnston (2016) |
Promise Me, Dad ,
by Joe Biden (2017) |
The Book of Joe ,
by Jeff Wilser (2019; biography of Joe Biden) |
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) |
Our Revolution,
by Bernie Sanders (2016) |
This Fight Is Our Fight,
by Elizabeth Warren (2017) |
United,
by Cory Booker (2016) |
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) |
Becoming,
by Michelle Obama (2018) |
Higher Loyalty,
by James Comey (2018) |
The Making of Donald Trump,
by David Cay Johnston (2017) |
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
Brian Fitzpatrick: Double funding from $4B to $8B at woman's health clinics.
Everett Stern: Legal protection to unborn children.
Josh Shapiro: Defended reproductive rights & woman's right to choose.
Marc Scaringi: Pro-life.
Tom Ridge: Allow abortions, with limits; no partial-birth.
Tom Smith: No abortion under all circumstances, including rape & incest.
Tom Smith: Pro-life, period, but not for rape.
|
Budget & Economy
Brian Fitzpatrick: End waste, fraud & abuse; plus Balanced-Budget Amendment.
Craig Snyder: We believe in democratic capitalism, not socialism.
Everett Stern: Market-led recovery better than federal stimulus.
Jim Christiana: Voted against numerous proposals to spike taxes and spending.
Joe Sestak: Auto & bank bailouts were to clean up Bush's mess.
Joe Gale: I support lower levels of spending, of borrowing, of taxes.
Joe Sestak: Deregulation of banks led to the economic meltdown.
Marc Scaringi: We need a balanced budget amendment.
Pat Toomey: Real threat to economy is billions on bailouts.
Pat Toomey: Strengthen economy via lower taxes & less spending.
Pat Toomey: We can't borrow and spend our way to prosperity.
Tom Smith: Stagnant economy due to over-regulation & complex taxes.
|
Civil Rights
Arlen Specter: Oppose gay marriage but support civil union.
Barack Obama: Apply affirmative action to poor white college applicants.
Betsy Summers: Support gay marriage.
Bob Casey: Right ongoing wrongs in college admissions.
Craig Snyder: Americans should be judged by character, not race/identity.
Doug Mastriano: Bar trans women from playing women's sports.
Ed Rendell: Recognize civil unions.
Ed Rendell: Affirmative action in state contracts and colleges.
Everett Stern: Affirmative action is unconstitutional.
Everett Stern: Federal government out of gay rights issues.
Jim Clymer: Oppose gay marriage and also oppose civil union.
Joseph Hoeffel: Oppose gay marriage but support civil union.
Josh Shapiro: Helped the first LGBT couples in Pennsylvania to marry.
Katie McGinty: Morally wrong to fire gays simply because of who they are.
Katie McGinty: Marriage equality so all can marry the person they love.
Tom Ridge: Opposes Affirmative Action.
Tom Ridge: No special gay laws; no gay marriage.
Tom Smith: Equal pay for equal work.
|
Corporations
Hillary Clinton: Take back $55B in Bush's industry give-aways.
Joe Sestak: The plaque says 'We the People,' not 'We the Corporations'.
Steve Welch: Current tax code punishes small businesses while GE pays 0%.
Tom Smith: Compliance with regulations is strangling business.
|
Crime
Arlen Specter: Toughen sentences for career criminals.
Brendan Boyle: More prisons; less parole.
Ed Rendell: Supports the death penalty.
Ed Rendell: End parole for repeat violent offenders.
Everett Stern: Focus on rehabilitation and prevention.
Josh Shapiro: Helped create statewide Police Misconduct Database.
Tom Ridge: More prisons; more death penalty.
Tom Ridge: Stricter penalties; less parole.
|
Drugs
Ed Rendell: Strengthen penalties for drug-related crimes.
Everett Stern: Continue to fight the war on drugs federally.
Josh Shapiro: Has taken on Pharma over opioid epidemic.
|
Education
Brendan Boyle: More funding for schools, teachers, and colleges.
Brian Fitzpatrick: Interest-free student loans for STEM and trades.
Everett Stern: Let schools display the words "God Bless America".
Everett Stern: Freedom and choice of schools for parents & children.
Hillary Clinton: End predatory student college loan rates over 20%.
Joseph Hoeffel: Voted to increase funding for No Child Left Behind 4 times.
Katie McGinty: Strong Schools; Bright Futures:restore $1B in education cuts.
Tom Ridge: Teacher-led voluntary prayer is OK.
Tom Ridge: State-wide student testing; teacher re-certification.
Tom Ridge: Vouchers for private & religious schools.
Tom Smith: Get rid of the Department of Education.
|
Energy & Oil
Barack Obama: Raise fuel efficiency standards to reduce long-term demand.
Craig Snyder: Climate change is real, requires amelioration not regulation.
Ed Rendell: Promote alternative fuels & also traditional domestic fuels.
Everett Stern: Strongly opposes prioritizing green energy.
Hillary Clinton: Investigate gas price manipulation; add windfall profits tax.
Joe Sestak: Offshore drilling moratorium; oversight of Marcellus Shale.
Joe Sestak: Championed cap-and-trade; market forces to reduce emissions.
Joe Sestak: Global warming is principally man-made; regulate CO2.
Josh Shapiro: Criminally charged multiple fracking companies.
Katie McGinty: Make Pennsylvania a leader in wind and solar once again.
Marc Scaringi: Make Pennsylvania energy independent via Marcellus Shale.
Pat Toomey: We need oil from deep water wells despite the Gulf spill.
Pat Toomey: Increase domestic supply instead of cap-and-trade.
Pat Toomey: Global warming exists, but not necessarily due to humans.
Tom Smith: Former coal company executive; ease up on coal mining.
Tom Smith: Fossil fuels are key to reasonable energy prices.
|
Environment
Everett Stern: EPA regulations are too restrictive.
Marc Scaringi: Our children will inherit debt from Cash for Clunkers.
Sam Rohrer: Eliminate Department of Energy; scale back EPA.
Tom Ridge: Let industries audit themselves & then clean up.
Tom Ridge: More flexibility in environmental regulation.
|
Families & Children
Josh Shapiro: Exposed predator priests, cover up of child sexual abuse.
|
Foreign Policy
Brian Fitzpatrick: Don't base foreign policy on political correctness.
Everett Stern: Strongly support American Exceptionalism.
Joe Sestak: China is a threat by holding so much of our reserves.
Josh Shapiro: As child, started campaign for Soviet Jewish children.
|
Free Trade
Brian Fitzpatrick: Reform unfair trade deals to put American workers first.
Everett Stern: Strongly support & expand free trade.
Joe Sestak: Tax companies who fire US workers & import goods from China.
|
Government Reform
Brendan Boyle: Limit campaign contributions but not campaign spending.
Brian Fitzpatrick: Congress needs term limits & single-issue bills.
Ed Rendell: Limit campaign contributions but not campaign spending.
Everett Stern: Strongly support making voter registration easier.
Josh Shapiro: Defend 2020 election results all the way to Supreme Court.
Josh Shapiro: Worked on some of the toughest ethics laws in state history.
Katie McGinty: Make it easier for people to participate in our elections.
Steve Welch: Term limits instead of a road to riches.
|
Gun Control
Barack Obama: Ok for states & cities to determine local gun laws.
Ed Rendell: Strengthen existing gun laws; add background checks.
Everett Stern: High capacity magazines ok; decreasing waiting periods ok.
Hillary Clinton: Balance lawful gun ownership & keeping guns from criminals.
Hillary Clinton: Give local police access to federal gun tracking info.
Hillary Clinton: Let states & cities determine local gun laws.
Joe Sestak: Extend the ban on assault weapons.
Marc Scaringi: Pro-second amendment.
|
Health Care
Bob Casey: Shift $700B from Medicare to ObamaCare, but no senior funds.
Brian Fitzpatrick: ObamaCare is failing; focus on uninsured.
Everett Stern: Give choices and power to patients.
Jim Christiana: Repeal ObamaCare in one fell-swoop or brick-by-brick.
Joe Sestak: Ban denying coverage due to pre-existing conditions.
Joseph Hoeffel: Voted against a sweet deal for pharmaceutical companies.
Katie McGinty: Expand Medicaid; embrace ObamaCare.
Marc Scaringi: ObamaCare is profoundly unconstitutional.
Pat Toomey: Allow purchasing insurance across state lines.
Sam Rohrer: ObamaCare is big government mentality.
Steve Welch: Lunacy that consumers don't know real prices.
Tom Ridge: Guaranteed medical care is not a government responsibility.
|
Homeland Security
Bob Casey: Keep the wiretaps and keep the intelligence programs.
Everett Stern: Our country must have the strongest defense in the world.
Joe Sestak: 2005 Navy reassignment: personnel change or morale issue?
Pat Toomey: Economic viability is most important national security issue.
Patrick Morrisey: Strong national defense preserves American freedom.
Rick Santorum: War against Islamic fascism will be won or lost in America.
|
Immigration
Everett Stern: Practical solutions to illegal immigration.
Jim Christiana: Secure our borders; hold sanctuary cities liable.
Marc Scaringi: Secure America's borders.
Steve Welch: Secure America's borders.
|
Jobs
Brian Fitzpatrick: Equal pay for equal work.
Katie McGinty: Raise minimum wage from $7.25 to $9.00 per hour.
Marc Scaringi: Lack of right-to-work harms the people of Pennsylvania.
Pat Toomey: Taxes & spending have a chilling effect on creating jobs.
Sam Rohrer: Washington does not create jobs; but it can destroy jobs.
Steve Welch: National right-to-work make us globally competitive.
|
Principles & Values
Arlen Specter: I’m in the center in this campaign.
Arlen Specter: In 28 years in GOP, stood with Dems on their top priorities.
Betsy Summers: Specter and Hoeffel are both big-government candidates.
Barack Obama: In hard times, people take refuge in traditions, God & guns.
Barack Obama: I am a person of faith; and I reach out to people of faith.
Barack Obama: Blacks are angry; but I dissociate myself from Rev. Wright.
Barack Obama: I revere the American flag; I don’t refuse to wear flag pins.
Bob Casey: We need an independent voice; not a rubber stamp for Bush.
Bob Casey: Optimistic there will be debates; but won't say so on record.
Bob Casey: Declined to respond to League of Women Voters questionnaire.
Craig Snyder: We know that America is a shining city on a hill.
Craig Snyder: We can take back our country from the extremists.
Hillary Clinton: Faith is not just something to cling to in hard times.
Hillary Clinton: Visited Bosnian war zone, but mistake to call it sniper fire.
Jim Clymer: Both major parties are liberal on the major issues.
Joe Gale: Restore "worship" to township welcome signs.
Joe Sestak: TV ad: Toomey's record is same as Sen. Rick Santorum's.
Pat Toomey: TV ad: Sestak served well in Navy; but not on Congress.
Rick Santorum: I agree with Bush 98% of the time, but I say when I don't.
Steve Welch: Voted Democratic in 2008; but renounced support of Obama.
Steve Welch: Switched party from Democrat to GOP in 2005.
Tom Smith: Elected as Democrat as township supervisor for decades.
Tom Smith: Optimistic there will be a debate; but nothing finalized.
Tom Smith: Declined to respond to League of Women Voters questionnaire.
|
Social Security
Arlen Specter: Considered Social Security privatization but saw it unwise.
Barack Obama: Raise $97K cap on payroll tax exempting earnings under $250K.
Barack Obama: Must capture new revenue; no new Social Security Commission.
Bob Casey: Stop these crazy proposals to put benefits in stock market.
Brian Fitzpatrick: Protect and strengthen entitlement programs.
Everett Stern: Create personal retirement accounts.
Hillary Clinton: No lifting cap on payroll tax; that taxes middle class.
Hillary Clinton: Bipartisan commission, like in 1983, to address crisis.
Jim Christiana: Ensure promises to every generation, but change for future.
Tom Smith: AdWatch: divert payroll tax into privately managed accounts.
Tom Smith: Let Social Security payroll tax reduction expire in January.
|
Tax Reform
Barack Obama: No tax increase if earning under $250K; tax cuts under $75K.
Barack Obama: Raise capital gains tax for fairness, not for revenue.
Brian Fitzpatrick: Simplify and flatten the tax code.
Everett Stern: I do not believe in spreading the wealth.
Hillary Clinton: Absolutely no tax increase on people earning under $250K.
Hillary Clinton: Perhaps raise capital gains tax, but at most to 20%.
Joe Sestak: No flat tax; focus on the working family, not Wall Street.
Sam Rohrer: High taxation comes from ignoring the Constitution.
Tom Smith: Supports flat tax; remove loopholes but keep exemptions.
|
Technology
Katie McGinty: Pennsylvania should drive renaissance of manufacturing in US.
|
War & Peace
Arlen Specter: Unwise to ally with an untrustworthy Afghan President.
Betsy Summers: Get soldiers out of Iraq as quickly as possible.
Barack Obama: President sets Iraq mission; give generals a new mission.
Barack Obama: Take no options off the table if Iran attacks Israel.
Bob Casey: Would have voted for Iraq War, but based on false evidence.
Bob Casey: Iraq: No deadline, no timeline, but replace Rumsfeld.
Bob Casey: No withdrawal deadline in Iraq; but we must change course.
Bob Casey: We need more Special Forces and better body armor.
Bob Casey: Sanctions against Iran, but in a tough and skilled way.
Brian Fitzpatrick: Cut off terrorist money; cut off Iranian nuke deal.
Craig Snyder: De facto surrender in Afghanistan a stain on US legacy.
Everett Stern: Prevention instead of containment on Iranian nukes.
Hillary Clinton: Remove a brigade from Iraq every month, no matter what.
Hillary Clinton: Massive retaliation from US if Iran attacks Israel.
Joe Sestak: Put pressure on al-Qaida safe havens in neighboring Pakistan.
Joseph Hoeffel: There was plenty of money for the troops in the pipeline.
Marc Scaringi: Proceed with caution with Iran; they have no nukes.
Rick Santorum: Iraq: We have a great game plan, and Rumsfeld does fine job.
Rick Santorum: War in Iraq is one front in war on Islamic fascism.
Rick Santorum: Iran is at the heart of the Iraq war.
Rick Santorum: Saddam had no new WMDs, but did have old WMDs.
Rick Santorum: Iraq had nothing to do with 9/11, but still a necessary war.
Rick Santorum: My Iraq plan, and my opponent's plan, is same as Bush's.
Rick Santorum: Needed exit strategy & objective in Kosovo, but not in Iraq.
Rick Santorum: Sanctions against Iran, despite Administration disagreement.
Sam Rohrer: Threats by Iran should not be taken lightly.
Steve Welch: Everything needs to on the table with Iran, but not publicly.
|
