Democratic Party Vs Republican Party On the issuesIn

Democratic Party Vs. Republican Party On the issues…In Their own words!

Abortion Campaign Finance Minimum Wage Unions Death Penalty Gays in the Military Education Student Loans Energy Environment Climate Change Gay Marriage Gun Control Healthcare Immigration Taxes

ABORTION Democratic Party Position Republican Party Position HOME PAGE

2012 Democratic Party Platform Abortion The Democratic Party strongly and unequivocally supports Roe v. Wade and a woman’s right to make decisions regarding her pregnancy, including a safe and legal abortion, regardless of ability to pay. We oppose any and all efforts to weaken or undermine that right. [p. 18] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

2012 Republican Party Platform Abortion We support a human life amendment to the Constitution and endorse legislation to make clear that the Fourteenth Amendment’s protections apply to unborn children. We oppose using public revenues to promote or perform abortion or fund organizations which perform or advocate it and will not fund or subsidize health care which includes abortion coverage. We oppose the FDA approval of Mifeprex, formerly known as RU 486, and similar drugs. . [p. 34] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

CAMPAIGN FINANCE Democratic Party Position Republican Party Position HOME PAGE

2012 Democratic Party Platform CAMPAIGN FINANCE Our opponents have applauded the Supreme Court’s decision in Citizens United. . In stark contrast, we believe we must take immediate action to curb the influence of lobbyists and special interests on our political institutions. [p. 12] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

2012 Republican Party Platform CAMPAIGN FINANCE [W]e support repeal of the remaining sections of Mc. Cain. Feingold, support either raising or repealing contribution limits, and oppose passage of the DISCLOSE Act or any similar legislation designed to vitiate the Supreme Court’s recent decisions protecting political speech in Wisconsin Right to Life v. Federal Election Commission and Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission. [p. 19] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

Minimum Wage Democratic Party Position Republican Party Position HOME PAGE

2012 Democratic Party Platform Minimum Wage We will raise the minimum wage, and index it to inflation. [p. 10] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

2012 Republican Party Platform Minimum Wage No official platform listed in the 2012 Publication on this issue. HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

Unions Democratic Party Position Republican Party Position HOME PAGE

2012 Democratic Party Platform Unions Democrats believe that the right to organize and collectively bargain is a fundamental American value. [p. 9] We will continue to vigorously oppose “Right to Work” and “paycheck protection” efforts, and so-called “Save our Secret Ballot” measures whenever they are proposed. [p. 10] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

2012 Republican Party Platform Unions We demand an end to the Project Labor Agreements; and we call for repeal of the Davis-Bacon Act. . [p. 8] We support the right of States to enact Right-to-Work laws. . [p. 8] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

Death Penalty Democratic Party Position Republican Party Position HOME PAGE

2012 Democratic Party Platform Death Penalty We believe that the death penalty must not be arbitrary. DNA testing should be used in all appropriate circumstances, [and] defendants should have effective assistance of counsel. . [p. 20] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

2012 Republican Party Platform Death Penalty Courts should have the option of imposing the death penalty in capital murder cases. [p. 37] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

Gays in the Military Democratic Party Position Republican Party Position HOME PAGE

2012 Democratic Party Platform Gays in the Military The President’s record, from ending Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell in full cooperation with our military leadership. . . reflects Democrats’ belief that all Americans deserve the same chance to. . . serve their country. . [p. 17] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

2012 Republican Party Platform Gays in the Military We will enforce and defend in court the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in the Armed Forces. . [p. 43] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

Education Democratic Party Position Republican Party Position HOME PAGE

2012 Democratic Party Platform Education We are committed to ensuring that every child in America has access to a world-class public education so we can out-educate the world and make sure America has the world’s highest proportion of college graduates by 2020. [p. 5] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

2012 Republican Party Platform Education We support. . . block grants and the repeal of numerous federal regulations which interfere with State and local control of public schools. [p. 36] [W]e support the English First approach. . . [p. 36] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

Student Loans Democratic Party Position Republican Party Position HOME PAGE

2012 Democratic Party Platform Student Loans [W]e doubled our investment in Pell Grant scholarships and created the American Opportunity Tax Credit worth up to $10, 000 over four years of college, and we’re creating avenues for students to manage their federal student loans so that their payments can be only 10 percent of what they make each month. [p. 5] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

2012 Republican Party Platform Student Loans The federal government should not be in the business of originating student loans; however, it should serve as an insurance guarantor for the private sector as they offer loans to students. [p. 37] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

Energy Democratic Party Position Republican Party Position HOME PAGE

2012 Democratic Party Platform Energy [support]…innovation to reach [the] goal of generating 80 percent of our electricity from clean energy sources by 2035. Democrats support making America the world’s leader in building a clean energy economy by extending clean energy incentives. . [p. 7] Democrats will fight to cut tax subsidies for Big Oil while promoting job growth in the clean energy sector. . [p. 7] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

2012 Republican Party Platform Energy We will end the EPA’s war on coal. . Further, we oppose any and all cap and trade legislation. [p. 16] We will respect the States’ proven ability to regulate the use of hydraulic fracturing, continue development of oil and gas resources in places like the Bakken formation and Marcellus Shale, and review the environmental laws that often thwart new energy exploration and production HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

Environment Democratic Party Position Republican Party Position HOME PAGE

2012 Democratic Party Platform Environment Democrats are committed to balancing environmental protection with development, and that means preserving sensitive public lands from exploration, like the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Pacific West Coast, Gulf of Maine, and other irreplaceable national landscapes. [p. 7] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

2012 Republican Party Platform Environment We support opening the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) for energy exploration and development and ending the current Administration’s moratorium on permitting; opening the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) for exploration and production of oil and natural gas; and allowing for more oil and natural gas exploration on federally owned and controlled land. [p. 16] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

Climate Change Democratic Party Position Republican Party Position HOME PAGE

2012 Democratic Party Platform Climate Change We affirm the science of climate change, commit to significantly reducing the pollution that causes climate change. . [p. 20] Democrats pledge to continue showing international leadership on climate change, working toward an agreement to set emission limits in unison with other emerging powers. [p. 21] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

2012 Republican Party Platform Climate Change We also call on Congress to take quick action to prohibit the EPA from moving forward with new greenhouse gas regulations. . [p. 19] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

Gay Marriage Democratic Party Position Republican Party Position HOME PAGE

2012 Democratic Party Platform Gay Marriage We support marriage equality and support the movement to secure equal treatment under law for same-sex couples. We also support the freedom of churches and religious entities to decide how to administer marriage as a religious sacrament without government interference. [p. 18] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

2012 Republican Party Platform Gay Marriage We reaffirm our support for a Constitutional amendment defining marriage as the union of one man and one woman. [p. 10] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

Gun Control Democratic Party Position Republican Party Position HOME PAGE

2012 Democratic Party Platform Gun Control [W]e will preserve Americans’ Second Amendment right to own and use firearms. We believe that the right to own firearms is subject to reasonable regulation. [p. 18] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

2012 Republican Party Platform Gun Control We condemn frivolous lawsuits against gun manufacturers and oppose federal licensing or registration of law-abiding gun owners. We oppose legislation that is intended to restrict our Second Amendment rights by limiting the capacity of clips or magazines or otherwise restoring the ill considered Clinton gun ban. [p. 13] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

Healthcare Democratic Party Position Republican Party Position HOME PAGE

2012 Democratic Party Platform Healthcare We believe accessible, affordable, high quality health care is part of the American promise, that Americans should have the security that comes with good health care, and that no one should go broke because they get sick. [p. 3] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

2012 Republican Party Platform Healthcare Congressional Republicans are committed to its [the Affordable Care Act's] repeal. [p. 32] No healthcare professional or organization should ever be required to perform, provide for, withhold, or refer for a medical service against their conscience. [p. 34] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

Immigration Democratic Party Position Republican Party Position HOME PAGE

2012 Democratic Party Platform Immigration [T]he country urgently needs comprehensive immigration reform that brings undocumented immigrants out of the shadows and requires them to get right with the law, learn English, and pay taxes in order to get on a path to earn citizenship. [p. 13] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

2012 Republican Party Platform Immigration [W]e oppose any form of amnesty. . [p. 25] The pending Department of Justice lawsuits against Arizona, Alabama, South Carolina, and Utah must be dismissed immediately. The double-layered fencing on the border that was enacted by Congress in 2006, but never completed, must finally be built. [p. 26] [F]ederal funding should be denied to sanctuary cities that violate federal law. . . and federal funding should be denied to universities that provide instate tuition rates to illegal aliens. . [p. 26] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

Taxes Democratic Party Position Republican Party Position HOME PAGE

2012 Democratic Party Platform Taxes We want to cut tax breaks for companies that are shipping jobs overseas and for special interests, and instead offer tax breaks to companies that are investing right here in the United States of America. . [p. 8] We Democrats support lowering the corporate tax rate while closing unnecessary loopholes, and lowering rates even further for manufacturers who create good jobs at home. [p. 8] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE

2012 Republican Party Platform Taxes [W]e call for a reduction of the corporate to keep U. S. corporations competitive internationally, with a permanent research and development tax credit, and a repeal of the corporate alternative minimum tax. We also support the recommendation of the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform, as well as the current President’s Export Council, to switch to a territorial system of corporate taxation, so that profits earned and taxed abroad may be repatriated for job-creating investment here at home without additional penalty. [p. 2] HOME PAGE TOPIC PAGE