Robert L Mason
Republican | New Mexico
Candidate Profile
Conservative
BIOGRAPHY
EDUCATION
Embry Riddle Aeronautical University, MBA, 2009-2010
WORK & MILITARY
USAF, Airman Basic - Lieutenant Colonel (E1 - O5), 1978-2008
Daedalus Group, Owner, 2009-2026
AFFILIATIONS
Mountainside United Methodist Church, Chair Trustees/Chair Pastor Relations, 2012-2018
New Mexico Chapter National Speakers Association, Board Member/Treasurer/President, 2009-2026
NM/AZ Trusted Advisor Network, Board Member/Secretary/President, 2015-2024
USPS Advisory Council, Memberq, 2010-2011
POLITICAL OFFICES HELD
Candidate did not provide
POLITICAL OFFICES SOUGHT
Candidate did not provide
OTHER INFORMATION
Mason completed the Freedom Voter Guide candidate survey.
QUESTIONNAIRE
RIGHT TO LIFE
Abortion providers, including Planned Parenthood, should not receive taxpayer funds from federal, state, or local governments (including Title X grants).
Strongly Agree
Under what circumstances should an elective abortion be allowed?
Life of the mother.
Human life deserves legal protection from conception until natural death.
Strongly Agree
The lives of human embryos created through artificial methods ought to be protected from purposeful destruction.
Agree
The Comstock Act, which bans interstate transportation of abortion-inducing drugs, should be enforced.
Neutral
I would need more information on the law and subsequent related court findings.
ECONOMY
What is your position on the minimum wage?
Let the market set prices. Government intervention causes a cascade effect. Higher wages result in higher prices and less employment. Higher prices result in higher cost of living and demand for higher minimum wages restarting the cycle.
Free enterprise and the right to private property are essential elements of a productive economic system.
Strongly Agree
List your top 3-5 priorities to eliminate government waste.
1. Reduce the size of state government starting with the governors bloated cabinet. 2. Investigate waste and fraud in all sectors of government, starting with Medicaid and SNAP. 3. Push government budget information to the state's voters. Complete transparency.
RELIGIOUS LIBERTY
What does "separation of church and state" mean to you?
That phrase was used by Jefferson, but is not in the constitution. In the first amendment the constitution says "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free practice thereof." That means congress can't tell you what religion to practice or prevent you from practicing a particular belief. Jefferson was saying the state can't be controlled by a religious entity nor can it control a religious entity. That is how our government should function.
Individuals and businesses should be required to provide services even if it would violate their moral and/or religious beliefs.
Strongly Disagree
There has been a long standing, though I believe unwritten standard that a business can choose to do business, or not to do business with whomever they choose. Attempting to force a business to provide a product or service that violates their moral or religious beliefs is contrary to our American tradition and values.
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.
C. This is too complex a subject for this limited space. Government programs seldom make things better. In fact a large part of our problem lies in years of government intervention in health care. If the medical care industry were allowed to operate in a free market fashion, costs would go down. However, most of this is not something that can be addressed at the state level. What the state needs to do is address the issues that are making medical care difficult to attain.
The government should keep a database of people with various ongoing medical illnesses to assess the economic burden of treatment.
Strongly Disagree
No government needs access to individual medical records.
NATIONAL SECURITY
The Chinese Communist Party poses serious military, cyber security, intellectual property, and global economic threats to the United States.
Strongly Agree
This is primarily a federal issue. At the state level we just need to be cautious of potential foreign influences. This is why we must stop policies that allow foreign criminals sanctuary in our state.
Is the United States' relationship with Israel important, and if so why?
Israel is the only democracy in the Middle East which makes a relationship with them essential for the US. Our state can learn from the Israeli approach to water use.
IMMIGRATION
I support the existence of sanctuary cities to protect undocumented persons.
Strongly Disagree
Why do we voluntarily allow criminals to live here with no fear of legal consequences?
EDUCATION
I support eliminating the U.S. Department of Education and giving control back to states and communities.
Strongly Agree
Along with the idea of eliminating the Department of Education is the education situation in New Mexico. Our Public Education Department controls much of the education policy in the state which relieves local school boards of accountability for poor results.
Foreign governments should be prohibited from funding American education.
Agree
In general yes; however, as in all things a sweeping prohibition may not be appropriate. This is an issue the state should consider for state schools. The question is not just about schools taking foreign money but more importantly what strings come attached to that money.
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
Too often parents are cut out of decision making for their children. Children belong to the parents, not the state.
Attempts to physically or socially transition a child to the opposite sex constitute child abuse.
Strongly Agree
What has become acceptable is medical malpractice. Any attempt to "transition" young people has been shown to be harmful. Although a person of one gender can live as a person of another gender, they cannot actually change their gender. They either have XX chromosomes or XY chromosomes. That cannot be changed.
Marriage is a God-ordained, sacred and legal union of one man and one woman. No government has the authority to alter this definition.
Strongly Agree
Although this remains a hot-button issue, the supreme court has already weighed in and essentially settled the issue. Though we may believe one way or the other, there are many other issues which are a more productive use of our time.
I support the expansion of gambling in my state.
Disagree
There are already plenty of gambling opportunities in New Mexico. However, this is an example of government legislating morality which I do not support.
Briefly describe your spiritual beliefs and values.
I was raised in a Christian home and I adhere to that faith. It is difficult to clearly express and define values in the limited space. In brief, I value integrity, family, law and order, and the freedom guaranteed by our founding documents.
ELECTIONS AND VOTING
People should be able to vote without photo identification.
Strongly Disagree
I agree with the approximately 80% of the public that wants a photo ID for voting. This isn't an attempt to disenfranchise any particular group (photo ID is required for almost everything else) but a necessary step to ensure secure elections.
EQUALITY
Reparations should be given to people on the basis of race.
Strongly Disagree
We are approximately 60 generations away from slavery in this county and at least 2 - 3 generations away from the "Jim Crow" years. In that time there have been many people of "oppressed" races who have been very successful. I fail to see how reparations would accomplish anything productive.
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
This is only common sense. Males and females are different with different abilities. Many people through the years have worked hard to support women's rights. We should support women today instead of returning them to a time when they were inferior to the desires of men.
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT
Man-made climate change is a global threat and requires urgent political action.
Disagree
Even the UN has agreed that climate change is not the emergency they have, for years, complained it was. Although we should treat our atmosphere with care, climate change is not a threat and doesn't require political action.
What do you believe is the most reliable energy source that will supply the growing demand for electricity?
Oil and gas will remain a significant energy sources for the foreseeable future. Small, safe nuclear reactors are a promising development that have the potential to provide needed energy and partially transition from fossil fuels at some point.
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?
Conservative
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?
Address crime. Sounds simple but we aren't doing that very well in New Mexico. We should be holding criminals accountable for their actions not releasing them back into society. Programs like intervention and behavioral health are an important part of the equation, but should never take away from that basic responsibility.
Government has a responsibility to protect children from sexual exploitation during online activities.
Agree
The state government can use law enforcement resources to track these criminals, as they have done; however, parents have the primary responsibility to supervise their children's on-line activities.
Sharia law should not be accepted or incorporated in any form within the legal framework of the United States.
Strongly Agree
The U.S. Constitution is the supreme law of the land and that cannot be supplanted by any other law or legal system.
2ND AMENDMENT
What restrictions on gun ownership are needed to protect public safety?
The constitution does not allow any restrictions on gun ownership. Remember that the 2nd amendment is a restriction of the government, not a restriction of the people.
