Charles Burkett
No Party Affiliation | Florida
Candidate Profile
Leans Conservative
BIOGRAPHY
EDUCATION
University of Miami, Coral Gables, BS, 1979-1983
WORK & MILITARY
The Burkett Companiis, President, 1983-2026
AFFILIATIONS
St. Joseph's Church, congregant, 1996-2026
POLITICAL OFFICES HELD
Surfside Florida Mayor, 2006-2026
POLITICAL OFFICES SOUGHT
Florida Governor, 2026-2026
SELECTED CONTRIBUTIONS
CONSERVATIVE
GIVEN BY CANDIDATE (5)
Donald Trump (2024)
Fabian Basabe (2024)
Rick Scott (2024)
Trump National Committee JFC, INC. (2024)
Empower Parents (2022)
RECEIVED BY CANDIDATE (0)
OTHER INFORMATION
QUESTIONNAIRE
RIGHT TO LIFE
Abortion providers, including Planned Parenthood, should not receive taxpayer funds from federal, state, or local governments (including Title X grants).
Neutral
I have my own detailed plan on abortion which you can read at www.AmericaWantsBetter.org. If Planned Parenthood adopts that plan then I support limited government funding.
Under what circumstances should an elective abortion be allowed?
The circumstances related to the removal of a fetus, or unborn child, that my plan would allow are outlined on www.AmericaWantsBetter.org
Human life deserves legal protection from conception until natural death.
Strongly Agree
How else could one answer this question?
The lives of human embryos created through artificial methods ought to be protected from purposeful destruction.
Agree
All life should be treated lovingly and with respect.
The Comstock Act, which bans interstate transportation of abortion-inducing drugs, should be enforced.
Agree
Read my plan on terminating a pregnancy at www.AmericaWantsBetter.org.
ECONOMY
What is your position on the minimum wage?
There should be a reasonable minimum wage.
Free enterprise and the right to private property are essential elements of a productive economic system.
Strongly Agree
These rights are the key to a free society, one that depends on the wisdom of the people, not the government.
List your top 3-5 priorities to eliminate government waste.
Eliminate all government travel for meetings and use Zoom. Eliminate pensions for politicians. Pay politicians $50 an hour for attending meetings - government service is an honor, not a wealth building opportunity. Stop buying vehicles, and providing unnecessary security for politicians. Stop funding non-profits that cannot demonstrate effective and prudent use of funds.
RELIGIOUS LIBERTY
What does "separation of church and state" mean to you?
This question was answered long ago. It means that we should "render unto Caesar (government) the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's."
Individuals and businesses should be required to provide services even if it would violate their moral and/or religious beliefs.
Strongly Disagree
Americans should have the freedom to associate with those they wish to associate with and not be forced to associate with those they don't. Live and let live. Do no harm.
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) Taxpayer funded health care should be abolished in all forms, and Medicaid and Medicare should be defunded.
All Americans should have a health safety net and that goal was probably achievable in the past. Today, healthcare for all means healthcare for Americans and the entire third world that has illegally crossed our borders. There can be no social security, healthcare or retirement for Americans if our national systems are forced to also provide same to every person in America who should not be here. Right now, the United States is headed for bankruptcy and everyone will then suffer.
The government should keep a database of people with various ongoing medical illnesses to assess the economic burden of treatment.
Neutral
If the government wants to track the costs and economic burdens of illness that's fine. Once the government gets into the business of operating healthcare, like the VA, it has proven that it is an absolute failure and should stay out of that business. Government should however provide intelligent incentives to address and cure illnesses. The government's performance with respect to COVID showed it has much work to do.
NATIONAL SECURITY
The Chinese Communist Party poses serious military, cyber security, intellectual property, and global economic threats to the United States.
Strongly Agree
Strength is the strongest deterrent. It is no surprise that every emerging country wants to be on top. Our best defense against losing our #1 position is to 'not go broke', properly educatd our kids, build our industry back, restore a healthy united culture, discard the destructive and counter-productive insane woke policies, stoke patriotism, return to biblical principles, demand accountability and responsibility from every American and end the number 1 problem, massive government spending.
Is the United States' relationship with Israel important, and if so why?
Our first president said it best. "It is our true policy to steer clear of permanent alliance with any portion of the foreign world." That said, all of world's democratic countries are important to Americans, including Israel.
IMMIGRATION
I support the existence of sanctuary cities to protect undocumented persons.
Strongly Disagree
Sanctuary cities ignore our county's laws, but worse, encourage more lawlessness. Undocumented persons is simply a watered down, feel good term for illegal alien. I support immigration of persons who will come here legally, add value to our country and assimilate fully to the American way of life and culture. Right now, none of that is encouraged or happening, and it is going to eventually take down the United States.
EDUCATION
I support eliminating the U.S. Department of Education and giving control back to states and communities.
Strongly Agree
Since the Department of education was formed, test scores have not done much better. It was not the answer to the problem of educating our kids. Accountability, discipline, tough love, hiring great teachers, firing bad teachers and removing students who will not follow the rules are the answers.
Foreign governments should be prohibited from funding American education.
Strongly Agree
If we have to rely on foreign governments to fund the education of our children it is proof positive that we have lost our way and need to recover that way very quickly by fixing our educational system.
VALUES
Government should recognize and support the fundamental right and essential duty of parents to direct their child's health and educational well-being.
Strongly Agree
Government should only become involve in the sacred relationship between parents and children in the case that one or both parents lose their minds and physically hurt their kids. Never at any other time.
Attempts to physically or socially transition a child to the opposite sex constitute child abuse.
Strongly Agree
Absolutely yes. Children should not have body parts medically or surgically touched until they are of age so they can make that decision for themselves.
Marriage is a God-ordained, sacred and legal union of one man and one woman. No government has the authority to alter this definition.
Neutral
Marriage is God ordained union given the term is found in the bible. Having said that government can and will do whatever it wants to do with respect to defining marriage, so at the end of the day, it's an issue that the voters decide.
I support the expansion of gambling in my state.
Disagree
Our State is already mature. We don't need MORE tourists, gamblers, developers, grifters, housing developers or any others that would turn our beautiful old Florida state into a concrete canyon, paving over everything we hold dear. We do need to fix what we already have that is broken, make it better, more beautiful and continue to enhance the quality of life for Floridians already here.
Briefly describe your spiritual beliefs and values.
I am a believer.
ELECTIONS AND VOTING
People should be able to vote without photo identification.
Strongly Disagree
This question is a joke. I believe our elections are already compromised with the flood of mail in ballots. If we lose our elections to fraud, then we are completely and utterly lost. Elections should be free, fair, transparent and most importantly auditable. Officials should welcome scrutiny and challenges, which should highlight that the election was free, fair and transparent. Unwillingness to invite everyone into the process simply breeds distrust in the system, which is already high.
EQUALITY
Reparations should be given to people on the basis of race.
Strongly Disagree
If the history of every people were studied, it would be shown that at some point all peoples were enslaved. No American alive today participated in the enslavement of any race and no America alive today should be held responsible for any action that they never had a part of. Since President Johnson launched the War on Poverty: The U.S. government has spent between $22 trillion & $30 trillion. America itself ended slavery and has contributed much towards helping give back on the basis of race.
Biological males should not be allowed to participate in women's sports or occupy biological women's spaces whether it be bathrooms, locker rooms, sorority houses, women's shelters, or prison.
Strongly Agree
The insane woke policies of the Left are an embarrassment for which they, and all those who have remained silent, tacitly allowing those policies to continue, should forever be remembered. The crazy, hateful and dangerous policies they foisted on America are a horrible blot on our history.
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT
Man-made climate change is a global threat and requires urgent political action.
Strongly Disagree
The climate has been changing since the begining of time and does not require urgent politican action. What does require urgent political action is the effort to maintain clean, heathy and safe air, water, oceans, forests, natural resources and nature in general.
What do you believe is the most reliable energy source that will supply the growing demand for electricity?
Fossil fuels for the near future and hopefully an amazing scientific breakthrough a little futher beyond that.
ABOUT YOU
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?
Lean Conservative
I want things in my life that work and I value tried and true policies, rules, regulations, values, principles and morals. I believe in common sense, hard work, deferred gratification, saving for the future and the continuation of spiritual, financial, familial and personal growth.
Have you ever been penalized for sexual misconduct in either civil or criminal court? If so, please explain.
No.
Have you ever been convicted of a felony? If so, please explain.
No.
CRIMINAL JUSTICE & PUBLIC SAFETY
What should be the goal of the criminal justice system?
A serious time out for adults where one can reflect on one's past life and spend time trying to change what's bad to what's good. The system now is a breeding/educational system that teaches crime rather than showing why crime does not work. I believe that those in jails should be housed separately, and not subjected to violence by others. More over, I believe interaction between prisioners should be highly monitored, very limited and should not allow prisioners to enhance their crime skills.
Government has a responsibility to protect children from sexual exploitation during online activities.
Strongly Agree
Sharia law should not be accepted or incorporated in any form within the legal framework of the United States.
Strongly Agree
2ND AMENDMENT
What restrictions on gun ownership are needed to protect public safety?
Banning guns, knives, cars or any other dangerous tools isn't the answer to keeping people safe. Law abiding gun owners should never have their 2nd A rights infringed upon, just like law abiding knife, car and other dangerous tool owners shouldn't and probably never would not have theirs attacked. Criminals are never going to comply with gun restrictions, or any laws, and they are the ones mostly causing all the problems. Let's put all violent criminals in jail first and then reevaluate.
