Opinions from politicians

Barack Obama, Former President of United States of America

I have long believed that the most elegant way to drive innovation and to reduce carbon emissions is to put a price on it

Barack Obama, Former President of United States of America

agrees AI and robots might cause mass unemployment

The next wave of economic dislocations won’t come from overseas. It will come from the relentless pace of automation that makes a lot of good middle-class jobs obsolete.

Al Gore, 45th vice president of the united states

agrees Climate change is real

As human beings, we are vulnerable to confusing the unprecedented with the improbable. In our everyday experience, if something has never happened before, we are generally safe in assuming it is not going to happen in the future, but the exceptions can kill you and climate change is one of those exceptions.

Newt Gingrich, Professor, speaker of the united states house of representatives

agrees Vaccines

Perhaps no anti-scientific argument is more dangerous today than the claim put forward by radical environmentalists, most notably Robert F. Kennedy Jr., that childhood vaccinations can cause autism.

Rand Paul, American politician, ophtalmologist, and united states senator from kentucky

disagrees Vaccines

I have heard of many tragic cases of walking, talking, normal children who wound up with profound mental disorders after vaccines.

Sarah Sanders,

disagrees Transgender individuals in the army

[Trump's transgender military ban was] developed through extensive study by senior uniformed and civilian leaders, including combat veterans.

Richard V. Spencer,

agrees Transgender individuals in the army

On a fundamental basis, any patriot that wants to serve and meets all the requirements should be able to serve in our military.

John McCain,

agrees Transgender individuals in the army

When less than 1% of Americans are volunteering to join the military, we should welcome all those who are willing and able to serve our country. Any member of the military who meets the medical and readiness standards should be allowed to serve -- including those who are transgender.

Mark Mustio, Republican member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives

disagrees Soda taxes

We’re seeing that those places where families buy their food and groceries are starting to lose money, and we don’t want them to close.

Rosa DeLauro, American politician

agrees Soda taxes

There is a clear relationship between sugar-sweetened beverages and a host of health conditions, including diabetes, heart disease, obesity and tooth decay. We are at a crucial tipping point. The SWEET Act would help correct the path we are currently on.

Jacob Rees-Mogg, British politician

disagrees Soda taxes

The tax system is not there to tell us how to live our lives.

Steve Brine, British politician

agrees Soda taxes

Our teenagers consume nearly a bathtub of sugary drinks each year on average, fuelling a worrying obesity trend. The levy is a ground-breaking policy that will help to reduce sugar intake.

Jane Ellison, British politician

agrees Soda taxes

The soft drinks industry levy is an important step forward in the fight to halt our obesity crisis and create a Britain fit for the future. Obesity is a threat both to the health of children and to our economy, costing the NHS billions of pounds every year.

Sarah Wollaston, British general practitioner and politician

agrees Soda taxes

The childhood obesity strategy needs to tackle the problem from every angle, but to leave out a sugary drinks tax would miss an important opportunity to tackle the single biggest contributor of the sugar in teenagers’ diets. There is compelling evidence it would work and do so quickly.

Benjamin Netanyahu,

agrees Surrogacy

Single mother have the right to the surrogacy process, but single fathers don’t have that right. It simply isn’t fair.

Dianne Feinstein, American politician

agrees Assault weapons should be banned

Our support for assault weapons ban is very broad...I think we've got all the police, we have all the mayors virtually - the conference of mayors, mayors against guns. We have medical experts, we have virtually dozens of religious organizations of every creed supporting us. We have just lists and lists.

Mark Udall, American politician

agrees Assault weapons should be banned

I've come to the conclusion that military style weapons really don't have any place in our society. We ought to reinstate the assault weapons ban that served us well for 10 years from 1994 to 2004.

Al Gore, 45th vice president of the united states

agrees Assault weapons should be banned

I think that we should ban so-called junk guns. I think we should ban assault weapons like the weapons used here [in Fort Worth], yes. I think that the kinds of weapons that have no legitimate use for hunting or the kind of weapon that a homeowner would use, I think they should be banned, yes, those kind of weapons.

Chuck Schumer, U.s. senator from the state of new york

agrees Assault weapons should be banned

The only people who use them [so-called assault weapons] are mass murderers.

Michael Nutter, American mayor

agrees Assault weapons should be banned

We need to ban assault weapons. We need to ban the high-capacity clips and magazines. We need serious background information, system upgrade.

Joe Lhota,

agrees Assault weapons should be banned

There is no reason for anybody to have an assault weapon.

Barack Obama, Former President of United States of America

agrees Assault weapons should be banned

Reinstate the assault weapons plan. Make it harder for terrorists to use these weapons to kill us.

Bernie Sanders, American politician

agrees Assault weapons should be banned

I happen to believe that certain types of assault weapons, which are manufactured and designed for military purposes to kill people very quickly should not be used in civilian society.

Mitt Romney,

agrees Assault weapons should be banned

Deadly assault weapons have no place in Massachusetts.

Leland Yee,

agrees Assault weapons should be banned

It is extremely important that individuals in the state of California do not own assault weapons. I mean that is just so crystal clear, there is no debate, no discussion.

Ronald Reagan, Former US president

agrees Assault weapons should be banned

This is a matter of vital importance to the public safety ... While we recognize that assault-weapon legislation will not stop all assault-weapon crime, statistics prove that we can dry up the supply of these guns, making them less accessible to criminals.

Alan Keyes,

disagrees Assault weapons should be banned

The Assault Weapons Ban deals with a fictional distinction. You have guns that are exactly the same guns as are banned, in function, that were banned because of the way they look. And you know, that's the whole truth of this policy: it's to make politicians look as if they are doing something, when in point of fact, they are doing nothing.

Andrea Leadsom, Conservative Member of Parliament for South Northamptonshire

agrees Fracking

In 2003, we were a net exporter of gas. By 2030 we expect to be importing close to 75% of the gas we consume. By making the most of our home-grown gas we can safeguard our own domestic supply whilst also cutting our carbon emissions.

Lisa Jackson, American politician

agrees Fracking

I’m not aware of any proven case where the fracking process itself has affected water.

Barack Obama, Former President of United States of America

agrees Fracking

After years of talking about it, we are finally poised to control our own energy future. We produce more natural gas than ever before – and nearly everyone’s energy bill is lower because of it. … The natural gas boom has led to cleaner power and greater energy independence. We need to encourage that.

Steven Chu,

agrees Fracking

[Fracking] is something you can do in a safe way.

Sally Jewell,

agrees Fracking

[Fracking] has been done for decades and has the potential for developing significant domestic resources and strengthening our economy and will be done for decades to come.

David Cameron, Former UK Prime Minister

agrees Fracking

I passionately believe that there is big potential for fracking and unconventional gas in Britain, which has some shale reserves that could make a real difference.

Theresa May, Prime minister of the United Kingdom

agrees Fracking

I have to say to the honourable gentleman that this is an issue on which we are simply going to have to disagree because I think shale gas does have the potential to power economic growth in this country. I think it will support thousands of jobs in the oil and gas industries and in other sectors and it will provide a new domestic energy source and we have more than 50 years of drilling experie... See More

Caroline Lucas,

disagrees Fracking

If the Government is to match its rhetoric on the climate deal struck in Paris then ministers must urgently rethink their entire approach to energy policy. To have any realistic chance of keeping global warming to well under 2 degrees we need to ban fracking in the UK. “That’s why the decision to allow drilling under protected areas as well as everywhere else is so deeply disappointing. Not onl... See More

Donald J. Trump, President of the USA

agrees Fracking

Fracking will lead to American independence. With price of natural gas continuing to drop, we can be at a tremdendous advantage.

Bob Beauprez,

agrees Fracking

I’m pro-fracking, because I’m pro-good science driving good policy. And the science is overwhelming. It’s, this isn’t brand new. It’s brand new to a lot of people, but as you know, Hugh, we’ve been fracking wells in the United States for over 60 years. Over a million of those wells have been fracked. Even people like Lisa Jackson, when she was the EPA administrator for Barack Obama, far from some ... See More

Mark DeWine,

agrees Fracking

I'm for the fracking. I think its an opportunity for Ohio to really get a lot of jobs. But we have to do it right. We have to really take a deep breath, do it right, make sure the public is protected, make sure our land is protected.

Ken Salazar, American politician

agrees Fracking

Hydraulic fracking is very much a necessary part of the future of natural gas.

Bernie Sanders, American politician

disagrees Fracking

I'm very proud that the state of Vermont banned fracking. I hope communities all over California, and all over America do the same.

Winona LaDuke,

disagrees Fracking

Someone needs to explain to me why wanting clean drinking water makes you an activist, and why proposing to destroy water with chemical warfare doesn't make a corporation a terrorist.

John Campbell, Former US Representative

disagrees Universal Health Care

In school, we were taught that the first 10 amendments to the Constitution were ratified in 1791, and collectively they form our Bill of Rights... Rights are not about giving you something for free; they are about protecting natural liberties from those who would take them away from you. For instance, the Second Amendment guarantees the right to bear arms. It does not however, say that you get gun... See More

Rand Paul, American politician, ophtalmologist, and united states senator from kentucky

disagrees Universal Health Care

With regard to the idea of whether you have a right to health care, you have to realize what that implies. It's not an abstraction. I'm a physician. That means you have a right to come to my house and conscript me. It means you believe in slavery... You’re saying you believe in taking and extracting from another person. Our founding documents were very clear about this. You have a right to pur... See More

Barack Obama, Former President of United States of America

agrees Universal Health Care

I think it [health care] should be a right for every American. In a country as wealthy as ours, for us to have people who are going bankrupt because they can't pay their medical bills -- for my mother to die of cancer at the age of 53 and have to spend the last months of her life in the hospital room arguing with insurance companies because they're saying that this may be a pre-existing condition ... See More

Tedros Adhanom,

agrees Universal Health Care

For me, universal coverage is an ethical issue. Do we want our fellow citizens to die because they are poor? Or millions of families to fall into poverty because they lack financial risk protection? These are very important questions. As you know, today more than 400 million people lack access to essential health services and 40% of the world’s population lack social protection. These people... See More

Guy Ryder,

agrees Universal Health Care

Health protection is central to decent work and must be a reality for all.

Jim Yong Kim,

agrees Universal Health Care

Achieving universal health coverage will make the world a more just and prosperous place.

Agnes Binagwaho,

agrees Universal Health Care

Governments have everything to gain when they prioritize human health – it is an investment. I am hopeful for global progress because universal health coverage has been included in the Sustainable Development Goals.

Peter Piot, Belgian un official

agrees Universal Health Care

Weak links in a health system are deadly fuel to pandemics. Universal health coverage fills gaps and strengthens our defenses.

Margaret Chan, Former Director-General of the World Health Organization

agrees Universal Health Care

UHC [universal health coverage] is the ultimate expression of fairness and one of the most powerful social equalizers among all policy options.

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