George Pataki presidential campaign, 2016/Federalism
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 George Pataki |
Governor of New York (1995 - 2007) |
 Republican candidate: |
2028 • 2024 • 2020 • 2016 |
This page was current as of the 2016 election.
First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution
- George Pataki said on September 10, 2015, he would have fired Kim Davis, the Kentucky county clerk who refused to issue same-sex marriage licenses on religious grounds. “You take an oath when you go into public office -- that you are going to uphold the laws and enforce the laws. And it's not the laws you agree with. It's not the laws you don't have an objection to. It is all the laws. ... I don't think she should have been put in jail. But to stand up there and say I'm going to refuse to do perform my duty because I disagree with the law? Suppose it was a Muslim ... Would we be seeing this outpouring if he had said Sharia law doesn't allow me to provide for a gay wedding, a gay marriage certificate? You have to obey the law. ... You cannot have a clerk that refuses to follow the Supreme Court,” said Pataki.[2]
- Pataki posthumously pardoned comedian Lenny Bruce for his obscenity conviction in 2003. Speaking on the only pardon he ever granted, Pataki said, "Freedom of speech is one of the greatest American liberties, and I hope this pardon serves as a reminder of the precious freedoms we are fighting to preserve as we continue to wage the war on terror."[3][4]
- In a 2010 interview with Chris Matthews of MSNBC regarding Pataki's opposition to the construction of a mosque near Ground Zero, Pataki explained, "We believe in freedom of religion. In New York City, there are over 100 mosques. In New York State, there are over 300 mosques. We believe that religious tolerance is an important part of our Bill of Rights and of our country. But that doesn't mean that we have to tolerate building a center with questionable sources of funds, questionable leadership so close to Ground Zero. It is the wrong thing to do at the wrong site."[5]
Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA)
- George Pataki criticized Indiana's Religious Freedom Restoration Act in April 2015. Pataki said, "No private sector business should be allowed to deny service, to discriminate, on the basis of sexual orientation. I urge Governor Pence and the Indiana Legislature to amend the bill to ensure these protections are made.”[6]
Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution
- In a 2015 interview with The New York Post, George Pataki said, "I think the federal gun laws are fine. There are those on the left who don’t understand that the Second Amendment matters." Pataki singled out efforts to ban armor-piercing ammunition as particularly concerning.[7]
- As governor of New York, Pataki signed into law bipartisan gun control legislation in 2000. In addition to banning large-capacity ammunition clips already banned under federal law, the new law increased the age for handgun ownership to 21, required background checks for purchases at gun shows and mandated new guns for sale have trigger locks.[8] According to The New York Times, the National Rifle Association saw the law "as infringing on the rights of gun owners, while the firearms industry has dismissed it as meaningless posturing that will have no real effect on violence."[9]
Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution
- At the fifth GOP primary debate on December 15, 2015, George Pataki discussed his position on surveillance programs: “You know, I think it's very important that we do everything in our power to prevent radicalization of Americans right here. And it is happening, not just overseas, but it's happening here from Mosques on social media. ... New York police department had a very active group, aggressively monitoring and using intelligence to—in certain Muslim communities, consistent with our constitution, consistent of our civil rights, so they could have the intelligence as to where these sermons are being given, and who is being radicalized. And, they stopped and prevented dozens, and dozens of attacks in New York. You know, I'm a great believer in the First Amendment, of Freedom of Speech. I wish we had more of it on our college campuses, but you can't shout fire in a crowded theater. Calling on Americans to engage in violence against their fellow Americans in the name of jihad is crying fire in a crowded theater. It is not constitutionally protected speech, it should be shut down. And, by the way, the two murders who went to Garland, Texas to massacre many Americans before the Texas police officer courageously killed them, had been radicalized here. Getting to that metadata question, one of those terrorists, the day before the attacks, had sent 109 message to a known terrorist overseas. We could not read those messages, we can not read those today. We have got to do far better.”[10]
Tenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution
- In an April 2015 interview, George Pataki called himself "a great believer in the 10th Amendment."[11] Pataki illustrated this belief in an interview with Girard at Large in April 2015 when he applied it to the Common Core. Pataki said, "Education has always been a state and local issue. It's not a Washington issue, and the idea that we're going to have one national testing system imposed on students in every community across America is wrong."[12]
Crime and justice
- George Pataki has been a consistent supporter of capital punishment. After signing a bill into law that reinstated the death penalty in New York in 1995, Pataki said, "What demeans society is when too many police officers respond to a call risking their lives to protect us and we as a society don't do everything in our power to protect them and save their lives. This bill is going to save lives."[13] After a state court suspended the law in 2004 and the New York state legislature refused to reinstate it in again 2005, Pataki condemned them. Pataki said, "The Assembly leadership's 'so what?' attitude toward criminals, whether they're sex offenders, deadly drivers or heinous murderers, is simply shameful. They need to stop protecting criminals and start protecting New Yorkers."[14]
- In 1998, Pataki "eliminated parole release for all violent felony offenders" in New York.[15]
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term George + Pataki + Government
See also
Footnotes
- ↑ The Boston Globe, "George Pataki to end presidential campaign," December 29, 2015
- ↑ Newsday, "Pataki: I would've fired Kentucky clerk," September 10, 2015
- ↑ The New York Times, "Lessons in DNA and Mercy," December 29, 2011
- ↑ The New York Times, "No Joke! 37 Years After Death Lenny Bruce Receives Pardon," December 24, 2003
- ↑ MSNBC, "Hardball with Christ Matthews Transcript for Wednesday, August 25, 2010," August 26, 2010
- ↑ The Boston Globe, "Many N.H. Republicans won't care about Mike Pence or his new Indiana law," April 3, 2015
- ↑ New York Post, "George Pataki to join potential GOP presidential candidates at events," March 4, 2015
- ↑ The New York Times, "Pataki Signs Nation's Strictest Gun Controls," August 10, 2000
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedNTYgun - ↑ The Washington Post, "Transcript: CNN undercard GOP debate," December 15, 2015
- ↑ Hugh Hewitt, "Former New York Governor George Pataki on 2016," April 23, 2015
- ↑ Girard at Large, "Governor Pataki Champions States Rights," April 16, 2015
- ↑ The New York Times, "Death Penalty in New York Reinstated After 18 Years; Pataki Sees Justice Served," March 8, 1995
- ↑ Washington Post, "In N.Y., Lawmakers Vote Not to Reinstate Capital Punishment," April 13, 2005
- ↑ New York State Division of Parole, "Frequently Asked Questions," accessed May 13, 2015
