I got a reminder from Project Vote Smart that I hadn’t filled out their issues questionnaire. They warned me that I only had ten days to get it in, and so I filled it out this morning while I waited for India to call and fix my glitchy webpage-generating software. India called but asked for another day to work on the solution.
So I filled out NPAT’s extensive questionnaire. It’s called the National Political Awareness Test. I think I explained in a previous post that I would not be filling things like this out for hot button organizations but this is different. This organization is dedicated to reporting factually how candidates for Congress, state legislatures, and so on, expect to vote on issues. It posts their answers on the Internet. I filled one out four years ago when I ran for the state legislature. They cover a broad range of issues and force candidates to give yes/no answers or to list the degree to which they want to spend more or less on various programs.
This is a fair and necessary thing for the voters to have at their disposal. Of course, there is little room for nuance and there are no guarantees that I can even honor my preferences. If I’m elected I’ll be one of 435 Representatives voting on legislative packages with a cornucopia of things stuffed in them with an up or down vote. Several things could be in each package, some that I promised to support and some that I promised to oppose. So which vote should I take under these circumstances? Still, the survey gives voters a handle on the candidates’ inclinations.
I checked out Jim Oberstar’s page and printed it out for future reference. I didn’t look at his before filling mine out by which time mine was already in an envelope that was sealed shut. I’m not even certain exactly how I answered the questions but as soon as my responses are on the NPAT site I’ll print it out and compare it with Jim’s.
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