Preface
The
following is my response to the Movement for a People’s Party’s endorsement
questionnaire, in regard to my candidacy for Illinois State Assemblyman from
the 60th District in 2022.
I wish to
note a few things about the three biggest potential sticking points between the
People’s Party’s platform and views held by libertarians and supporters of the
Constitution; namely, basic income, the Green New Deal, and Medicare for All.
I support
basic income, but only as a temporary solution to poverty and the broken social
safety net. But basic income should also last long enough for people to be able
to rely on it. I support the maintenance of a universal basic income program,
without a work requirement, for ten years. But severe taxation and budgetary
reform must happen concurrently, for the U.B.I. to be able to end without
causing people to become impoverished for lack of alternative solutions
regarding how to obtain resources.
I support a
Green New Deal, as long as it is implemented as locally as possible, and in a
way that brings about more Land Value Taxation in the localities, and results
in the replacement of states with bioregions.
I support
Medicare for All, but only if it is implemented constitutionally; i.e., after
a proper constitutional amendment has been passed, which would authorize
exclusive federal and public involvement in health insurance, and enable a
floor vote on Medicare for All.
I support
an Economic Bill of Rights, and recognizing health and/or health care as a human
right. But these rights should be understood as already existing, and flowing
from our negative liberty to keep our health information private (and between
ourselves and our doctors), rather than from a positive right to government
involvement in our health. Amendment IX implies that the absence of the word
health in the Constitution does not necessarily mean that it is not among our
many rights, so any recognition of health as a human right, in American law,
should be predicated upon that notion.
Questions
(aside from questions about basic contact information)
Q1. Would
you refuse all corporate PAC dollars and contributions?
A1. Yes
Q2. Would you refuse to accept all
money and favors from corporate lobbyists?
A2. Yes
Q3. Are you already running for
office?
A3. No
Q4. Would you like to run for
federal office?
A4. Not running for federal office
Q5. Or would you like to run for a
State or Local office?
A5. State (State House, State
Senate, or elected Administrative position)
Q6. What office would you like to
run for?
A6. Illinois State Assembly, 60th
District
Q7: Would you support an Economic
Bill of Rights?
A7: Yes
Q8: Would you fight to get corporate
money out of politics?
A8: Yes
Q9: Would you work to pass
healthcare as a human right?
A9: Yes
Q10: Do you support the People’s
Party’s racial and social justice policies?
A10: Yes
Q11: Do you support a basic income?
A11: Yes
Q12: Do you support tuition-free college,
quality education and student loan debt forgiveness?
A12: Yes
Q13: Please tell us about your work
and educational background.
A13: I graduated from the University of Wisconsin
at Madison, with a Bachelor of Arts in political science, in 2009. I have been
involved in self-directed study since then, publishing my research on my
blog www.aquarianagrarian.blogspot.com. I have worked as a
janitor, and in restaurants and a law office, and am currently a private
security guard.
Q14: What are your connections to
your community?
A14: I have lived in Waukegan for four years. I
grew up in Lake Bluff and Lake Forest, and have lived in Lake County for most
of my life. I ran for U.S. House of Representatives from Illinois's 10th
district in 2016 and 2020.
Q15: Are there any community projects or
initiatives that you have been involved in?
A15:
- Various spontaneous anti- Iraq War protests, 2005-2009, in Madison WI
- One month of campaign work for Ben Manski's Liberty Tree Foundation, 2014
- Volunteer work for Kash Jackson's 2018 Illinois gubernatorial campaign
- Four of my own independent write-in campaigns for U.S. House (2012, 2014,
2016, 2020)
Q16: Have you ever ran [sic] for office before in a previous election/s?
A16: Yes
Q17: What seat/s did you run for?
A17: U.S. Representative
Q18: Tell us about your previous
run/s. What party did you run under? What were your lessons learned?
A18: 2012: Ran for U.S. House as an independent
write-in, from Wisconsin's 2nd district. Received 6 votes. Learned that
campaigning as an independent is an uphill battle to get noticed.
2014: Ran for U.S. House as an independent write-in, from Oregon's 3rd
district. Dropped out before election. Learned not to run while I am busy
moving to a new state.
2016: Ran for U.S. House as an independent write-in, from Illinois's 10th
district. Received 26 votes. Learned that I needed to take time off from
campaigning to do more writing and research, to be better prepared for my next
run.
2020: Ran for U.S. House as an independent write-in, from Illinois's 10th
district. Sought Libertarian and Green nominations but did not receive either.
Received 21 votes. Learned to plan campaign calendar better, and that I need to
work harder meeting people, finding volunteers, and distributing literature
early.
Q19: Have you ever held office?
A19: No
Q19: How long have you lived in the
state/district/community?
A19: 10 or more years
Q19: Why would you like to run for
office?
A19: I want to help solve the
financial struggles and moral decay that are plaguing Americans, which
paradoxically never seem to be solved through increasing the central
government's power to do something about it. Making taxes more efficient at the
local level, will allow local governments to balance their budgets and be more
effective at alleviating poverty; this will allow state and federal governments
to gradually exercise less and less external authority over people's lives and
productivity. Peace, decentralization, and maximizing respect for the consent
of the governed in all policy areas, will guide disaffected voters towards the
right electoral choices.
Q20: Why do you wan [sic] to run
with the People’s Party[?]
A20: I want to advance the party's
goals, and achieve change rapidly. The Democratic Party is not remotely
anti-war, anti-imperialism, or against corporate influence on politics, enough,
to be effective in the fight against economic and political domination. Minor
parties are needed, to fight for ballot access, to raise new issues, and to
galvanize support against the major parties that have had a chokehold on
American politics for 180 years.
Q21: What do you know about the
People’s Party and have you been involved in any way with the movement?
A21: have not been involved with the
movement yet, but I became aware of the party, and Nick Brana, from watching
the Jimmy Dore show. I know that the People's Party is trying to form an
alternative to the two major parties, which is a goal I've shared for at least
13 years.
Q22: Tell us why you are driven to
unseat the incumbent you will be challenging?
A22: Assemblywoman Rita Mayfield is
a dedicated public servant, who indisputably has the district's interests at
heart. But Illinois is experiencing severe budgetary problems; it consistently
suffers from a lack of sustainable revenue sources. I would like to use my past
research, writing, and policy proposals regarding tax revenue sourcing and
environmental taxation, to help solve this problem. I firmly believe that
legislators whom have not ever heard of Georgism / Land Value Taxation, are
insufficiently equipped to address Illinois's biggest problem. Nothing personal
against Rep. Mayfield, but I feel that I would be effective in achieving change
for the district, and in representing the 60th district in the state
legislature, because of my studies on revenue, and because of my attention to
detail. I also feel that I am qualified for the position, due to my particular
education in political science (which Rep. Mayfield lacks, having studied
science, organization, and information systems). It's time that we were governed
by someone whom has heard of more than just the two most famous economic
systems.
Q23: Are there any stories that
you’ve heard about life in your district that have motivated you to run?
A23: District 60 is like a lot of
places in America; densely populated, poor, and filled with polluted and
abandoned construction projects and vacant lots. I spent the early 2010s
traveling across the country, and saw that there is very little variation in
terms of these problems, and in terms of drug addiction. I have experienced
temporary homelessness (despite growing up in a modestly wealthy suburban
home), and met others who have struggled with the same problem, and with
perpetually losing wallets and phones. Child abuse, child neglect, and parental
neglect of children's needs to acquire worthwhile marketable skills while in
school, have led to a hollowing-out of the middle class, and increased the
financial disparity and social alienation between the employing/lending class,
and the working poor and the unemployed. Despite living indoors, I and my
neighbors who rent apartments struggle to get consistent heat, due to not fully
owning our homes and having little access to attorneys. Sometimes not owning a
home still feels like being homeless. Nobody should have to work overtime just
to maintain the cheapest apartment they can find. I want to free the economy
from monopoly controls, to create a fairer economy that respects everyone's
opportunity to participate, and which recognizes that everyone has something to
contribute (even if they don't do what's traditionally considered socially
valuable work that deserves monetary pay). I would also like to advance an
in-depth proposal which would reform the laws governing the behavior of
Illinois state police, in order to prevent unjustifiable police shootings like
that of Justus Howell, who was shot to death in Zion (which is near the 60th
district).
Q24: What are some of the most
critical issues that you can change by being a representative in the seat you
are seeking?
A24:
- Health: As long as the federal government refrains from passing Medicare for
All -type legislation, advocate for the creation of a truly optional public
option to insure Illinoisans. Support reforms to enable access to low-cost health
services, such as by 1) reforming medical workers' contracts, 2) urging
non-profits and charities and health cooperatives to work with clinics offering
direct primary care, and 3) relieving taxes on medical goods and services.
- Environment and taxation: Advocate for differential property taxation,
split-rate taxation, or Land Value Taxation, in order to reform property taxes,
and replace self-depleting and unsustainable taxes on production, with taxes on
waste and destruction of public resources. This will help fully fund government
at the local level, allowing many other budgetary problems to be solved,
including the public pensions funding problem.
- Immigration: Support any and all attempts by Illinois and Waukegan to be a
sanctuary state and a sanctuary city. Urge the governor to interpose I.C.E.
agents attempting to act within Illinois, and to nullify the federal law which
unconstitutionally authorized I.C.E..
- Policing: Support reforms which will bring about increased surveillance of,
and transparency into the actions of, the police, while on duty (including more
body cameras, and increased penalties for turning off or interfering with
cameras). I plan to use my experience as a security guard, to help establish a
set of principles by which to delineate the different responsibilities which
should be either split-up among, or shared by, private security guards and
police officers. Replace beat cops with peace officers. Establish a strict
use-of-force continuum, which includes a protocol requiring police to identify
the person who called police, before arriving at the scene, and then finding
that person and ensuring that they're safe, as soon as police arrive on the
scene.
- Education: Support bringing auto and wood shops (and modernizing shop through
other trades courses, such as CAD and 3-D printing) back to high schools. Avoid
the risk of lawsuits against schools arising due to shop injuries, by
implementing lawsuit waiver systems for students wishing to participate, and by
splitting-up high school campuses so that only juniors and seniors attend
school at campuses that have shop (and parking).
Q25: Facebook link
A25: http://www.facebook.com/groups/2908918519377509
Q26: Twitter link
A26: http://twitter.com/JoeKopsick
Q27: Website link/s (personal,
campaign, or other websites that you are associated with)
A27: www.joekopsick.com
Q28: Are
you involved in any People’s Party hubs or in any volunteer capacity? If so
please describe.
A28: Not yet
Published on May 15th, 2021
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