Max Winkels
Democrat | Wisconsin
Candidate Profile
Liberal
BIOGRAPHY
Name
Max Winkels
Party
Democrat
Election Year
2022
Election
General
Race
Repr. to the Assembly, Dist. 61
Incumbent
No
Links
EDUCATION
University of Missouri - Columbia, Columbia, MO, MPA, 1997
University of Wisconsin - Madison, Madison, WI, BA, 1986
WORK & MILITARY
Candidate did not provide
AFFILIATIONS
Kenosha County Democratic Party, Sargent at Arms
POLITICAL OFFICES HELD
Candidate did not provide
POLITICAL OFFICES SOUGHT
Candidate did not provide
Race
ENDORSEMENTS
LIBERAL (1)
Wisconsin State AFL-CIO
REPORTED BY CANDIDATE (1)
Kenosha County Democratic Party
SELECTED CONTRIBUTIONS
LIBERAL
GIVEN BY CANDIDATE (1)
Randy Bryce (2018)
RECEIVED BY CANDIDATE (0)
OTHER INFORMATION
QUESTIONNAIRE
RIGHT TO LIFE
Under what circumstances should abortion be allowed?
When a woman decides in good conscience to do so.
Abortion providers, including Planned Parenthood, should not receive funds from federal, state, or local governments (including Title X grants).
Strongly Disagree
I support 'aid in dying' laws which legalize assisted suicide and euthanasia.
Agree
ECONOMY
What changes, if any, should be made to the tax code?
Closing loopholes in income tax.
What government spending would you reduce in order to balance the budget?
Loopholes in the tax code that are only available to high income people and corporations.
Taxpayer-funded public education should be guaranteed through college.
Strongly Agree
RELIGIOUS LIBERTY
Individuals and businesses should be required to provide services even if it would violate their moral and/or religious beliefs.
Agree
Individuals working for company must be prepared to provide all the goods and services that the company has to offer. If a company has concerns that its activities could create issues of conscience, it should not provide those goods or services.
Under what circumstances can government close churches?
Only temporarily in cases of emergency, such as natural disasters or epidemics. The churches may re-open as soon as possible. Cases of fraud or other criminal activity should be pursued on an individual basis, without closing the church.
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.
B) Healthcare insurance funded by the government should be available for all who want it, along with private healthcare options.
Under what circumstances (if any) should a government, school, or employer be allowed to require vaccinations?
Governments and employers should only be allowed to require vaccinations for key personnel, such as active-duty military, law enforcement and emergency workers, and physician and healthcare staff. Governments and employers should have the ability to set vaccinations standards appropriate to their needs, based on public health guidance. Individuals who can not or will not get vaccinated may be excluded from those organizations.
NATIONAL SECURITY
What should the United States do to help eradicate the threat of Islamic terrorism?
Not relevant to the office I am seeking.
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
IMMIGRATION
Who should be allowed to immigrate to the U.S. and under what circumstances?
1. Refugees from political persecution, including religjous persecution. 2. People seeking work in the US, in an orderly fashion, using work visas and the like. Highly skilled or professional positions such as physicians or computer scientists should be given priority.
EDUCATION
I support school choice, including voucher programs, tax credits, charter schools, private schools, and home schools.
Strongly Disagree
Parents should be allowed to home-school their children if they choose.
Parents are the primary stakeholders in their children's education.
Agree
Parents have primary responsibilities for the care of their children, so they have the primary stake in their children's education. This is also a joint stake, because schools are a joint operation, with other parents, school staff and the taxpayers who support the education. Collaboration is key to assure that schools work effectively to meet the primary goal, the best possible education for children.
VALUES
Judeo-Christian values established a framework of morality which is necessary for our system of limited government.
Disagree
A study of American history clearly shows that the Founders that the moral framework of US was secular in nature. The secular nature of democratic government was a radical change from monarchy, which specifically relied on Judeo-Christian morality to support intrusive government such as the divine rights of kings and the social order of lords and peasants.
I support adding gender identity as a specially protected class in non-discrimination laws.
Agree
I agree with Critical Race Theory (CRT) which asserts that the institutions in the United States are fundamentally racist.
Neutral
I disagree with the premise of this statement. As I understand CRT, it does not assert that American institutions are fundamentally racist. Rather, CRT is an examination of systemic racism within American institutions. There is a lot of evidence that African-Americans and other racial minorities were, and still are, treated as second-class citizens. Housing discrimination, mass incarceration and wage discrepancies are current problems that indicate that institutional problems remain.
Briefly describe your spiritual beliefs and values.
My spiritual beliefs are personal to me. The political and social principles that I most value as a candidate are patriotism, working collaboratively to improve the general welfare and competent government.
Marriage between one man and one woman and the families they form are the foundation of civilization and are fundamental to the well-being and prosperity of Wisconsin.
Strongly Disagree
A brief review of history and current practice around the world demonstrates that societies can function under a number of different marital arrangements.
ELECTIONS AND VOTING
People should be able to vote without photo identification.
Agree
This was the practice in Wisconsin for many years with, few, if any problems. Photo ID laws are an unnecessary bureaucratic barrier to a person's right to vote.
What laws would you propose to change present voting practices?
I support vote by mail, as practiced in several western states and Hawaii. I support registering young adults during the school year in which they turn 18 years old.
EQUALITY
Is racism a threat to domestic security in the United States? Why or why not?
Yes. Extreme right-wing activities almost always have a racial component. Anti-immigrant, antisemitism and anti-Black feelings are rampant among these groups. The rise of Christian Nationalism is also an explicitly White movement. The January 6 insurrectionists consisted of many members from these groups and they were almost exclusively White.
Reparations should be given to people on the basis of race.
Neutral
I support reparations in the form of honoring all treaties with Native American tribes and social benefits to African-Americans such as free college tuition.
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.
B) Stricter environmental laws and regulations are worth the cost. Environmental regulation needs to be put in the context of global climate change, which a real threat to life on the planet. The ultimate goal has to be to stop and reverse warming by getting away from carbon-based energy. There are other very serious environmental threats, such as ground-water pollution from PFAS. There is also great economic opportunity in changing from carbon-based energy to renewables. My preferred solution is not just regulation, but economic incentives for companies and consumers to switch to low or no-carbon energy, such as in the Inflation Reduction Act.
I support the use of hydraulic fracking to extract oil and natural gas resources.
Neutral
In the short run, fracking is necessary to meet our energy needs. In the long run the practice needs to end, as the US and the world transitions away from high carbon sources of energy.
ABOUT YOU
What do you think is the general purpose of government?
I subscribe to the purposes set out in the Preamble of the US Constitution, to ..."establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty".... I can't say it any better than the Founders did.
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
Please provide publicly available information, including interviews and media reports, validating your answer to the previous question (other than your website).
Kenosha News 5/12/22 Kenosha News 8/5/22
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.
What else would you like voters to know about you, including your legislative priorities?
My legislative priority is to work together with like-minded legislators to make the Wisconsin State Assembly functional again. Over time, the Assembly has become radicalized, inefficient and incompetent. In 2020, it was infamously declared to the the laziest legislature. Currently, in 2022, the Assembly has been out of session since April, with only limited committee meetings occurring since. The people in my district and of all Wisconsin deserve better.
CRIMINAL JUSTICE & PUBLIC SAFETY
Police officers should be personally immune from prosecution for conduct consistent with departmental policy (qualified immunity) while on duty.
Agree
I support redirecting funds from police departments to mental health and community programs.
Disagree
Mental health programs have been underfunded for decades. I support funding them appropriately without taking funds from law enforcement.
2ND AMENDMENT
What restrictions on gun ownership are needed to protect public safety?
I agree with the vast majority of Americans about universal background checks; red flag laws for people at imminent risk of harm to themselves or others; restrictions on violent domestic abusers; restrictions on convicted violent felons; and, restrictions on high capacity ammunition clips.
Victims of gun violence should be able to sue firearms dealers and manufacturers.
Agree
