Edward Flanigan III
Libertarian | Arkansas
Candidate Profile*
Moderate
*Additional information appears below for educational purposes; however, only data received prior to the candidate deadline was considered during Panel Evaluation.
BIOGRAPHY
Name
Edward Flanigan III
Party
Libertarian
Election Year
2022
Election
General
Race
State Rep., Dist. 41
Incumbent
No
Links
EDUCATION
Candidate did not provide
WORK & MILITARY
US Army Arkansas National Guard, Sgt, 14.5
AFFILIATIONS
Candidate did not provide
POLITICAL OFFICES HELD
Candidate did not provide
POLITICAL OFFICES SOUGHT
Candidate did not provide
Race
OTHER INFORMATION
QUESTIONNAIRE*
*Additional information was received after the evaluation was assigned and was not considered in the Panel Evaluations, therefore it is for additional educational purposes only.
RIGHT TO LIFE
Under what circumstances should abortion be allowed?
Morally, only in instances of incest, rape, and when medically necessary, but from a medical liberty standpoint, the government should have no say in medical decisions.
Abortion providers, including Planned Parenthood, should not receive funds from federal, state, or local governments (including Title X grants).
Agree
No federal funding should be used to provide services that are not life-saving, i.e. if a mother's life is in danger, and the child would most likely NOT make it, that would be life-saving. More federal funding should be put toward sex education, contraception, and pregnancy prevention rather than pregnancy termination. The foster care system needs to be rebuilt from the ground up, and adoption should be streamlined, and not be so cost-prohibitive.
I support 'aid in dying' laws which legalize assisted suicide and euthanasia.
Agree
I support medical liberty, and I feel assisted suicide falls in that category.
ECONOMY
What changes, if any, should be made to the tax code?
All income, property & real estate tax and sales tax on used items, including vehicles should be abolished. Government should be cut to operate within a budget that can be funded by sales tax on goods and services not necessary to live. such as food clothing and utilities.
What government spending would you reduce in order to balance the budget?
Elected officials' not serving full-time should be paid a per diem rather than a salary AND per diem. Many government agencies have never been audited, and waste hasn't been checked.
Taxpayer-funded public education should be guaranteed through college.
Disagree
College is pushed far too hard on kids, and trades aren't being pushed hard enough. Trade schools could be an OJT type of situation and any public surplus funding could be used there.
RELIGIOUS LIBERTY
Individuals and businesses should be required to provide services even if it would violate their moral and/or religious beliefs.
Strongly Disagree
Freedom to refuse service for any reason should be protected. If a business is known for discrimination, it should be boycotted by those they discriminate against. No one should be forced to provide any service that they have a moral or religious aversion to.
Under what circumstances can government close churches?
None
HEALTHCARE
What most closely matches your view on healthcare: A) Healthcare for all should be guaranteed and funded by the government with no private healthcare option. (includes "universal healthcare," "medicare for all," etc.) B) Healthcare insurance funded by the government should be available for all who want it, along with private healthcare options. C) Medicaid and Medicare should remain available, but no other taxpayer-funded programs are necessary. D)Tax-payer funded health care should be abolished in all forms, and Medicaid and Medicare should be de-funded.
Tax-payer funded health care should be abolished in all forms
Under what circumstances (if any) should a government, school, or employer be allowed to require vaccinations?
None
NATIONAL SECURITY
What should the United States do to help eradicate the threat of Islamic terrorism?
Stay out of other countries' business. We are not and should never aspire to be the world police...
I support the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement to pressure Israel to withdraw from occupied territories, remove the separation barrier in the West Bank, allow full equality for Arab-Palestinian citizens of Israel, and promote the rights of Palestinian refugees.
Neutral
That is not American business.
IMMIGRATION
The U.S. should do more to physically secure the southern border.
Agree
Simply because just anyone should not be able to walk across the border, but the US immigration system needs an overhaul.
Who should be allowed to immigrate to the U.S. and under what circumstances?
Anyone not a threat to American citizens, or that wants to fundamentally change the American way of life.
EDUCATION
I support school choice, including voucher programs, tax credits, charter schools, private schools, and home schools.
Strongly Agree
And one step further, money allotted to a student, no matter what form of schooling the parents choose, should follow the student.
VALUES
Judeo-Christian values established a framework of morality which is necessary for our system of limited government.
Disagree
Limited government has nothing to do with religious values, no matter how closely they may mirror one another. Religious control of the government was one of many reasons people came to the New World, and we should never allow religious zealots to have power. It's plain to see how bad that idea is by looking at the countries that are run by religious leadership.
I support adding gender identity as a specially protected class in non-discrimination laws.
Neutral
Discrimination of any form is anti-Liberty, and should not be tolerated.
Marriage is a God-ordained, sacred and legal union of one man and one woman. No government has the authority to alter this definition
Choose not to answer
Marriage should have NOTHING to do with government. If income tax was abolished, the state would have 0 business in marriage. People should be allowed to marry anyone they wish that is of the age of consent.
I agree with Critical Race Theory (CRT) which asserts that the institutions in the United States are fundamentally racist.
Neutral
All history, good and bad should be taught, not cherrypicked versions that make any race look better or worse.
Briefly describe your spiritual beliefs and values.
My spiritual beliefs have no bearing on my political beliefs, Liberty must be protected at all costs, including personal safety. My values are loyalty, respect, duty, selfless service, honor, integrity, and personal courage.
ELECTIONS AND VOTING
People should be able to vote without photo identification.
Strongly Disagree
Anyone can get a state-issued ID, if money is the problem, make a simple state ID available to the public for free.
What laws would you propose to change present voting practices?
Mail-in ballots should be serialized and closely tracked, ID should be required for any voting, and felonies should never preclude anyone from voting, in fact, all rights should automatically be reinstated after all time, parole, and/or probation is served.
EQUALITY
Is racism a threat to domestic security in the United States? Why or why not?
No, simply because the media keeps racism stirred up, I firmly believe racism would die if we, as the human race refused to continue to talk about it.
Reparations should be given to people on the basis of race.
Strongly Disagree
Slavery was and still is a horrible institution, however, reparations for any servitude based solely upon race is literally racism.
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT
Which comes closest to your view? A) Stricter environmental laws and regulations cost too many jobs and hurt the economy. B) Stricter environmental laws and regulations are worth the cost.
Environmental protections are necessary, however, it is and should be possible to find ways for good environmental policies while helping create jobs.
I support the use of hydraulic fracking to extract oil and natural gas resources.
Agree
as long as environmental precautions are taken and all environmental concerns are provided for, yes.
ABOUT YOU
What do you think is the general purpose of government?
The only purpose of government is to protect the rights, lives and Liberty of it's citizens.
When you consider your views on a wide range of issues from economic and social matters to foreign policy and religious liberty, which of the following best describes you overall?
Moderate
None of these actually fit me, however, I am Very Liberty-minded, i.e. If I'm not hurting you, or taking your stuff, and you aren't hurting me, or taking my stuff, we should be free to live as we see fit, WITHOUT government interference.
Please provide publicly available information, including interviews and media reports, validating your answer to the previous question (other than your website).
I have no sources other than my friends.
Have you ever been convicted of a felony or been penalized in either civil or criminal court for sexual misconduct? If so, please explain.
No, and there should be harsher punishments for those that do commit those types of crimes.
What else would you like voters to know about you, including your legislative priorities?
Politicians should be the voice of the people, not push their own agenda. I intend to cut as much state government as possible while ensuring Arkansans' Liberties are protected.
CRIMINAL JUSTICE & PUBLIC SAFETY
Police officers should be personally immune from prosecution for conduct consistent with departmental policy (qualified immunity) while on duty.
Strongly Disagree
Qualified immunity, asset seizure, and many other legal crimes should be abolished.
I support redirecting funds from police departments to mental health and community programs.
Neutral
I support more funding for mental health and community programs, but we do need police as well. State-level police do not need to be as prevalent as they are now, so cuts could be possible there.
2ND AMENDMENT
What restrictions on gun ownership are needed to protect public safety?
None, the Founding Fathers were pretty clear on their feelings about individual firearms ownership, and I fully support the abolition of most lettered government agencies: ATF, FBI, NSA, CIA, etc...
Victims of gun violence should be able to sue firearms dealers and manufacturers.
Strongly Disagree
Unless they were hurt because of a malfunction or manufacturer's defect, no. I cannot sue GM if someone uses a Silverado to plow into a crowd, so why should a firearms manufacturer be held liable if someone uses their products improperly?
