Political Party Stances on Policies

War on Terror Spending

For Against

Partisan differences are evidenced in federal spending priorities. In an April 2017 survey by Pew Research Center, 61%...

Social Security Spending

Against For

The Democratic Party platform commits to resisting efforts to privatize Social Security. Meanwhile, the Republican platform says that the...

Scientific Research Government Spending

Against For

The parties are split over how much the US government should spend on scientific research. A 2019...

Public Education Spending

Against For

Democrats and Republicans appear to have very differing perspectives on public education spending. On one...

Military Spending

For Against

Military spending seems to be higher of a budget priority for Republicans than for Democrats....

Health Care Government Spending

Against For

Republicans and Democrats have different priorities on health care spending but agree on the need...

Government Spending

Against For

Democrats and Republicans are divided on the issue of federal spending. In a Pew poll, 74%...

War on Drugs

For Against

While the War on Drugs was originally championed by Republican presidents, namely Reagan, Nixon, and...

Trump Imeachment

Against For

Impeachment refers to the process by which a legislature’s lower house brings charges against a...

Qualified Immunity

For Against

Qualified Immunity is a type of legal immunity that “protects a government official from lawsuits alleging...

Prison Reform

Against For

Prison reform has long been a debated issue at all levels of American politics. The...

Police Funding

For Against

A survey on police funding in 2021 by the Pew Research Center found 61% of Republicans and...

Marijuana Legalization for Recreational Use

Against For

Marijuana legalization is becoming increasingly popular among both Democrats and Republicans. While the Republican platform is critical...

Marijuana Legalization for Medical Use

For For

Marijuana legalization for Medicinal Use is supported by the majority of both Republicans and Democrats with 94%...

Mandatory Minimums

For Against

Mandatory prison sentences, or mandatory minimums, require people convicted of certain crimes, often drug related,...

Death Penalty

For Against

In August 2022, President Biden signed into effect the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), a new...

Criminal Justice Reform

For For

Generally, criminal justice reform polls well among both Democratic and Republican voters. 87% of Democrats and...

Clinton Impeachment

For Against

Republican lawmakers who voted for the Clinton impeachment  argued that even though it only concerned...

Universal Basic Income

Against For

Universal Basic Income (UBI) has become a cornerstone in the platform of Democratic presidential candidate, Andrew...

Taxes

Against For

Republicans and Democrats are typically divided on the issue of taxation. While the Democratic Party platform advocates...

Socialism

Against For

The Democratic platform expresses support for systems of socialized healthcare such as Medicare, Medicaid, and the Affordable...

Social Security Privatization

For Against

The Democratic Party platform commits to resisting efforts to privatize Social Security. Meanwhile, the Republican platform says that the...

Public Enterprise

Against For

Democrats and Republicans appear to have very differing perspectives on public education spending. On one...

Protectionist Trade

For Against

Polling suggests that Democrats are more opposed to protectionist trade measures than Republicans are; 63% of...

Private Property

For For

Both the Democratic and Republican platforms advocate for the protection of individual property rights. Polling indicates that 76% of Americans would...

Private Enterprise

For For

Both Democrats and Republicans appear to be in support of private enterprise. Both the Democratic and Republican platforms expressed...

Labor Union

Against For

The labor movement in the United States grew out of the need to protect the...

International Free-Trade

For For

Republicans have traditionally been viewed as pro free trade while Democrats were seen as being...

Infrastructure Investments

For For

Infrastructure appears to be slightly more of a priority for Democrats than for Republicans. While the Democratic...

Income Inequality Laws

Against For

The raising of wages has been a hotly debated topic since the Covid-19 epidemic, specifically...

Government Stimulus

Against For

The Covid-19 Pandemic ravaged the world in late 2019 and early 2020, killing 6.3 million...

Flat Tax Rate

For Against

Polling indicates that flat-rate taxation is a popular concept among Republicans; 59% of Republicans would support...

Eminent Domain

Against Against

Neither the Democratic nor the Republican party platforms mention the topic of eminent domain. Polling, however, suggests that both Democrats...

Competitive Capitalism

For Against

Polling indicates that both Republicans and Democrats hold positive views of competitive capitalism; 78% of Republicans...

China Tariffs

For Against

A minority of Democrats (44%) and majority of Republicans (59%) now support keeping existing tariffs...

Student Debt Cancellation

Against For

Both the Democratic, and the Republican platforms acknowledge the severity of the student debt. In August of 2022,...

School Choice Vouchers

For For

School choice has been a defining issue for the Department of Education under the Trump...

Free College Education

Against For

Proposals for tuition-free college are more popular among Democrats than Republicans. The Democratic Party platform advocates for...

Common Core

Against For

While a stance on Common Core education standards is not made clear in the Democratic Party...

Charter Schools

For Against

Both the Democratic and Republican party platforms express support for charter schools, although the Democratic does express some weariness...

Voting Rights

For For

Voting enfranchisement has long been a topic of concern amongst Americans, especially African Americans. Moreso...

Voter Identification

For Against

To preface, a voter identification law is a law that requires a person to show...

Electoral College

For Against

Traditionally, both Democrats and Republicans have favored abolishing the Electoral College. However, support among Republicans...

Campaign Finance Restrictions

For For

Campaign finance and the first amendment have long been intertwined since the decision in Citizens...

The Green New Deal

Against For

The Green New Deal, a proposal originally championed by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, includes a plan to...

Oil Drilling

For Against

Republicans tend to be more supportive of the oil drilling industry than Democrats are. The Democratic...

Non-renewable Energy

For Against

Nationalism, made distinct from patriotism by its propensity to advance one nation to the detriment...

Environmental Regulations

Against For

Environmental regulations are more popular among Democrats than Republicans. Polling shows that while 65% of Democratic voters...

Coal Mining

For Against

Like they tend to be with other non-renewable energy sources, Republicans also demonstrate support for...

Clean Energy

Against For

Polling indicates support for clean energy among both Democratic and Republican voters. 87% of Democrats and...

Brexit

For Against

Brexit refers to the partitional referendum that led to the severance of the United Kingdom...

United Nations

Against For

Democrats tend to regard the United Nations more favorably than Republicans do. While the Democratic Party...

Russia Sanctions

For For

Since the era of the Cold War, the fear of the Russian Government and its...

North Korea Sanctions

For For

Nuclear warfare has long remained a nightmare for those all around the world, and with...

Nationalistic Ideals

For Against

Nationalism, made distinct from patriotism by its propensity to advance one nation to the detriment...

Jewish Nation State and Sovereignty

For Against

The Israel-Palestine Conflict is one with political, economic, and religious roots. While both Palestine and...

Isolationism

Against Against

Isolationism is a government policy or doctrine of taking no role in the affairs of other...

ISIS

Against Against

Since the terrorist attack on the United States by an Islamic extremist group in 2001,...

Iran Sanctions

For For

Since the Iranian takeover of the American Embassy in Tehran in 1979, the United States...

Iran Nuclear Deal

Against For

According to a 2022 Chicago Council Survey, 73 percent of Democrats would support returning to the...

International Involvement

Against For

Presidents are primarily vested with rights and privileges aimed at aiding advances toward alliances with...

European Union

Against For

As the United States is not a part of the European Union (EU), neither party...

China Diplomatic Relations

For For

China’s global investments have increased tremendously and in recent years, it has overtaken the United...

Welfare

Against For

Democrats tend to be supportive of welfare programs, while Republicans are less supportive. The Democratic Party...

Government Regulation

Against For

Democrats are generally more supportive of government regulations, while Republicans are generally more opposed. The Democratic...

Government Intervention

Against For

Democrats are more open to government interference than Republicans are. While the Republican Party platform explicitly condemns...

Government Dependency

Against For

Government dependency appears to be a considerable concern for Republican voters. Polling indicates that 68% of Republicans...

Guns in Classrooms

For Against

The arming of school officials has been floated as a potential solution to school shootings...

Gun Control

Against For

Gun control, a broad category of policies that aim to reduce access to gun ownership,...

Concealed Weapon Carry

For Against

The second amendment has long been a controversial topic, especially when discussing the idea of...

World Health Organization

Against For

In April of 2020, U.S. President Donald Trump accused the World Health Organization  of  mishandling COVID-19 and...

Universal Healthcare

Against For

Medicare, Medicaid, and the Affordable Care Act to demonstrate the party’s commitment to the issue....

Socialized Healthcare

Against For

The Democratic platform expresses support for systems of socialized healthcare such as Medicare, Medicaid, and the Affordable...

Shelter-in-place Mandate

For For

In response to the coronavirus pandemic of 2020, 43 governors ordered residents to stay at...

Private Healthcare

For Against

Both parties support private healthcare. While the Democratic Party does call for a unilateral expansion...

Planned Parenthood

Against For

Support for Planned Parenthood, an organization centered on providing reproductive care including contraception and abortion...

Embryonic Stem-Cell Research

Against For

The Republican Party has traditionally been opposed to the use of embryonic stem cells in...

Drug Price Regulation

Against For

In August 2022, President Biden signed into effect the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), a new...

Covid-19 Vaccine Mandate

Against For

The Covid-19 Pandemic has been a point of contention with respect to the government’s handling...

Covid-19 Stimulus Relief

Against For

The Covid-19 Pandemic has been a point of contention with respect to the government’s handling...

Assisted Suicide

Against For

Doctor-assisted suicide is not a major talking point within the Democratic Party, although it has...

Abortion

Against For

Republicans and Democrats are split on the issue of abortion. Democrats, per their official platform, are...

Travel Ban

For Against

The travel ban, a policy which limits immigration to the United States from several ‘high-risk’ countries,...

Sanctuary Cities

Against For

Sanctuary cities, cities that “[limit] cooperation with federal immigration enforcement agents in order to protect...

ICE

For Against

Neither of the 2016 party platforms speak specifically about ICE. However, as the actions of...

DACA

Against For

Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, is a policy that grants deferred action on...

Border Wall

For Against

The construction of a border wall is a highly partisan issue. The Republican platform explicitly endorses the...

Border Deportations

For Against

Polling indicates that illegal immigration is regarded to be a much bigger issue among Republican voters...

Border Asylum of Refugees

Against For

Democrats tend to regard refugee migration more positively than Republicans. The Republican Party platform assumes the position...

Border Asylum of Undocumented Immigrants

Against For

Democrats tend to regard refugee migration more positively than Republicans. The Republican Party platform assumes the position...

War on Terror

For Against

The War on Terror, an initiative that was originally launched by the Republican G.W. Bush...

Black Lives Matters Politicization

Against For

Black Lives Matters politicization refers to the politicization that precipitated from the Black Lives Matter...

Systemic Racism

Against For

The topic of racial discrimination, particularly among those of African descent, is, unfortunately, a common...

Slavery Reparations

Against For

While Republicans are typically opposed to reparations, Democrats are gradually becoming more supportive of the...

Separation of Church and State

Against For

Separation of Church and State refers to the legal separation between religion and public life.

Religious Freedom

For Against

Both the Democratic and Republican party platforms highlight religious freedom as an important right.  Polling indicates that religious freedom is very...

LGBTQ Equality

Against For

Support for same-sex marriage is higher among Democratic-identifying voters than Republican-identifying voters; 75% of Democrats support same-sex...

Equal Rights Amendment

For For

Unlike nearly all other political issues, both sides of the aisle- Republicans and Democrats- have made it...

Critical Race Theory

Against For

Critical race theory (CRT) is a movement based on the premise that race is a social...

Civil Rights

For For

Since America’s infancy, the topic of racial disparity has long plagued political conversation. While race...

Anti-Discrimination Laws

Against For

Democratic voters are far more likely to be in support of anti-discrimination laws against LGBT...

Affirmative Action

Against For

Affirmative action programs, which enable colleges and universities to consider ethnicity and race as a...