Tom Steyer on Government Reform Democratic Presidential Challenger; CEO

Russian election interference is cyberwarfare

[President Trump] did stand next to Vladimir Putin. There was a hostile, foreign attack on our election last time and the president sided with the hostile foreign power. That's why I started "Need to Impeach."

That's what we have to do. We have to oppose a president who sides with a hostile foreign power that commits cyber warfare against the United States of America. That's where we are. Where are all these patriotic Republicans who wave the flag, but when we're actually under attack, they side with our enemies? It's outrageous.

That's why he should have been impeached. They covered it up. And I was years before these people. There's something wrong here. We're under attack, and they're not doing a darn thing about it.

GOP is stacking courts, need Dem win to stop it

I'm the only candidate who'll talk about term limits

If you want bold change in the United States, you're going to have to have new and different people in charge. I'm the only person on this stage who will talk about term limits. Vice President Biden won't. Senator Sanders won't. Even Mayor Pete Buttigieg will not talk about term limits and structural change. I would let the American people pass laws themselves through direct democracy. It's time to push the power back to the people and away from D.C.

Electoral victories require high turnout among young people

But what we've found at NextGen America is that is the start of a conversation about why votes are so important. And if you look at 2018 and flipping the House, what really happened was Democratic voting went up. In the 38 congressional districts where NextGen America was turning out young people, the turnout went up by more than 100%, more than double.

So for us to win, for whoever's the candidate, to have a Senate that's Democratic, it's a turnout question. We're going to have to tell the truth and we're going to organize across this country.

The right to vote is gateway to inclusive democracy

Calling out "voter fraud" is an old Republican tactic used to suppress the votes of students, veterans, low-income people, seniors, and people of color. The only ones responsible for creating this breakdown in civil society, are those state legislatures passing voter ID laws, and carrying out voter purges. A healthy democracy depends on the broadest participation possible, one that is of, by and for the people.

12-year Congressional term limits for generational shift

STEYER: What I have done for the last 10 years is to try and organize Americans at the grassroots to push for justice throughout the society. So in this case, I understand that there may be people in the Congress who will push for the wrong thing, and it seems to me the only real way to push back against them is to go to the grassroots and get the people, their constituents, to push. I've also talked about putting in term limits for congresspeople and senators. One of the things that's true in the United States about attitudes towards the LGBTQ community is that there's been a generational shift. And if we, in fact, push through what I've talked about, that people in D.C. find very awkward and unnerving, 12-year term limits for congresspeople and senators, we'd get a wave of new blood into the Congress of the United States.

Government is broken; push power back to people

Opposes Citizens United decision

Opposes Citizens United ruling on corporate donations

In October 2017, Steyer invested $10 million in a television ad campaign calling for the impeachment of President Donald Trump.

It's up to us to un-rig the voting system

Deliberate voter suppression by Republicans, gerrymandering, and corporate money flooding our politics have made it impossible for us to obtain equality in our government. Many people have to travel for hours to get to their polling location. Many more are faced with hours of wait time just to get inside. People worry they'll be penalized at their job for taking time to go to cast their ballot. This isn't fair or democratic, and now we have a president who is doing everything he can to exacerbate this inequality.

Voting must be easy and accessible, for every American. Without that, we are left governed by a democracy of dollars, not voters.

Electoral College votes should reflect popular vote

Report on Steyer's stance and spending on ballot initiatives:
• California Presidential Electoral College Reform Initiative (2008):
• Steyer Opposed; Steyer spent $111,475; outcome: Not on Ballot
• The California Presidential Electoral College Reform Initiative, also known as CERI, or the Presidential Election Reform Act-- PERA--was a proposed ballot measure that would have appeared on the June 2008 California ballot.
• The measure would have changed the way that California allocates its presidential Electoral College votes. Currently, the presidential candidate who wins the popular vote in the state gets all 55 of California's electoral college votes. The winner-take-all system would be replaced with one that awards 53 of the state's 55 electoral votes individually to whichever presidential candidate gets the most votes in each congressional district.
• The effort did not make the deadline for the June ballot, however, and was ultimately abandoned.

Looking for old fashioned values, character and transparency

STEYER: When I look at America today, what I am looking for is people who are willing to be transparent, who have real principles, who go back to what I think of as basic American values. I'm looking for people of character to stand up for the same values that have characterized our country for hundreds of years.