Bob Drach
Libertarian | North Carolina
Candidate Profile
Liberal (Conditional)
BIOGRAPHY
Name
Bob Drach
Party
Libertarian
Election Year
2024
Election
General
Race
Auditor
Incumbent
No
Links
EDUCATION
Stanford University Graduate School of Business, Stanford, MBA, 1989
College of William and Mary in Virginia, Williamsburg, BS, 1983
WORK & MILITARY
US Peace Corps, Physics Teacher, 2
Deloitte, Manager, 4
AFFILIATIONS
VInstitute of Management Accountants, Certified Management Accountant (CMA), Wilmington Waves Basketball Club
Officer, Cape Fear Libertarian Party, Chairman
POLITICAL OFFICES HELD
New Hanover County Board of Equalization and Review - Board member, 3
POLITICAL OFFICES SOUGHT
Candidate did not provide
OTHER INFORMATION
Bob Drach completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection Survey in 2024.
This article shares candidate's reasons for running.
QUESTIONNAIRE
RIGHT TO LIFE
Under what circumstances should an elective abortion be allowed?
Ask the mother, but under no circumstance terminate the life of a viable baby.
Chemical abortion drugs should meet essential safety standards (such as in-person consultation with a medical doctor) and require reporting to gather evidence on reactions and outcomes.
Neutral
See question 1.
I support 'aid in dying' laws which legalize assisted suicide and euthanasia.
Disagree
Abortion providers, including Planned Parenthood, should not receive taxpayer funds from federal, state, or local governments (including Title X grants).
Neutral
Taxpayers should not be forced to fund policies that they are morally opposed to. But reproductive health care can be an appropriate social safety net function of government.
RELIGIOUS LIBERTY
Under what circumstances can government close churches?
No circumstance unique to their status as churches.
Individuals and businesses should be required to provide services even if it would violate their moral and/or religious beliefs.
Choose not to answer
I would focus on the "should be required" part of the statement, I'd apply the non-aggression principle.
Should religious schools which accept state funds be allowed to only admit families and students who agree to adhere to their statement of faith?
Choose not to answer
Private schools should not be getting state funds at all. The state deciding on behalf of parents what schools to fund sounds like the real problem here.
NATIONAL SECURITY
The Chinese Communist Party poses serious military, cyber security, intellectual property, and global economic threats to the United States.
Neutral
We probably threaten them just as much.
Is the United States' relationship with Israel important, and if so why?
Israel is a democracy with a highly developed economy. Their ongoing war with the Palestinians has created an appalling international humanitarian crisis. It is a Jewish state, and the Jews are a historically persecuted and marginalized people. Along with Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, and a few other middle eastern countries, they form a strategic counterbalance to the culturally austere and repressive Iranian regime. For all these reasons, the relationship is important.
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.
E) none of the above. There needs to be a social safety net, and if demand exceeds supply that also means some form of health care rationing. Medicaid and Medicare are how we do that rationing today.
Under what circumstances (if any) should a government, school, or employer be allowed to require vaccinations?
Pre-Covid, there was a more acceptable protocol for vaccinations and handling exceptions. The panic of Covid led to bad policy and lingering conflict. We need to return to a more deliberate approach to proving vaccine efficacy and adoption
ECONOMY
Free enterprise and the right to private property are essential elements of a productive economic system.
Agree
Subject to the non-aggression principle.
What is your position on the minimum wage?
The minimum wage is a bad tool for providing people with a social safety net.
Should environmental and social issues, like ESG (environmental, social, and governance) ratings, be used as criteria in deciding where to invest public monies?
Choose not to answer
I'm not sure what is meant by "public monies." Public employee pension funds belong to the pension beneficiaries and should be managed using standard fiduciary practices. Any other excess taxes collected above immediate cash flow needs should be kept in highly liquid and safe financial instruments, like T-bills.
EDUCATION
The state should fund education by allowing dollars to follow the child through programs which protect parents' freedom to choose their child's school – public, private, or homeschool.
Choose not to answer
The children's guardians should fund education. The states should sponsor that spending as needed to provide all children with a basic education, or provide alternate education when guardians fail in their duties.
CRIMINAL JUSTICE & PUBLIC SAFETY
I support redirecting funds from police departments to community programs.
Choose not to answer
Need to see the data. Do what works.
2ND AMENDMENT
What restrictions on gun ownership are needed to protect public safety?
The mentally ill should be restricted from gun ownership.
ABOUT YOU
What do you think is the general purpose of government?
Provide pure public goods like defense and public safety; set standards for health, workplace safety, commerce, transportation, and the environment; establish civil and criminal courts; facilitate a social safety net.
Have you ever been convicted of a felony? If so, please explain.
No
Have you ever been penalized for sexual misconduct in either civil or criminal court? If so, please explain.
No
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?
Liberal
Liberal like Thomas Jefferson or Rene Descartes.
VALUES
Taxpayer funds should be used to provide gender transition services.
Choose not to answer
There should be a social safety net which includes indigent care. Gender transition services for people in the program who have reached the age of consent where that spending does not displace other care deemed more essential, then of course.
No healthcare diagnosis or treatment, whether mental, reproductive, or otherwise, should be given to a child without first receiving written consent from the parent unless an emergency situation arises risking immediate death.
Choose not to answer
In this question, the operative word is "child." In this context, I think age of consent laws are important.
Children are the most vulnerable members of society and must be protected from abuse, including gender ideology, grooming, and bodily mutilation.
Choose not to answer
Of course we must protect children from abuse. Guardians get to judge what is abuse, except in the situation where the parent is the perpetrator. In that case, it gets complicated.
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
No government should have the authority to tell people what is and is not a marriage.
Briefly describe your spiritual beliefs and values.
Classically liberal values and beliefs - with a bias toward the compassion and cooperation implicit in the world's major religions. Natural law - especially bodily autonomy. Civil liberties - especially freedom of association.
ELECTIONS AND VOTING
Voting absentee by mail ballot should be limited to those meeting at least one of the following criteria: 1) 65 years of age or older on Election Day, 2) sick or disabled, 3) expecting to give birth within three weeks before or after Election Day, or 4) confirmed to be absent from the county of registration during voting.
Disagree
Don't make it so complicated. Just count all votes cast or received on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November.
EQUALITY
Is racism a threat to domestic security in the United States? Why or why not?
Violence related to racism is a problem.
I agree with Critical Race Theory (CRT) which asserts that the institutions in the United States are fundamentally racist.
Choose not to answer
I think racism exists. I also think that people are fundamentally good and that many institutions in the United States reflect that basic goodness.
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.
Choose not to answer
I'm guessing you are asking about biological males who identify as female. If that is what you are asking, that is more complicated.
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT
Which comes closest to your view? (Select all that apply) A) Stricter environmental laws and regulations cost too many jobs and hurt the economy. B) Stricter environmental laws and regulations are worth the cost. C) Stricter environmental laws undermine U.S. energy independence and deter development of reliable electricity sources. D) Climate change is real and requires urgent policy action.
B is closest to my view, with a limiting principle applied.
