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Michael Puskar
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Michael Puskar filed to run for president in 2020 as a Republican candidate.[1]
He was a 2018 write-in candidate for the U.S. Senate from Maryland.
Elections
2018
Puskar ran as a write-in candidate.
General election
General election for U.S. Senate Maryland
Incumbent Ben Cardin defeated Tony Campbell, Neal Simon, and Arvin Vohra in the general election for U.S. Senate Maryland on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Ben Cardin (D) | 64.9 | 1,491,614 |
 | Tony Campbell (R) | 30.3 | 697,017 | |
 | Neal Simon (Independent) | 3.7 | 85,964 | |
 | Arvin Vohra (L) | 1.0 | 22,943 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.1 | 2,351 | ||
| Total votes: 2,299,889 (100.00% precincts reporting) | |||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Maryland
The following candidates ran in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Maryland on June 26, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Ben Cardin | 80.3 | 477,441 |
 | Chelsea Manning | 5.8 | 34,611 | |
 | Jerry Segal | 3.4 | 20,027 | |
 | Debbie Wilson | 3.2 | 18,953 | |
| Marcia Morgan | 2.7 | 16,047 | ||
 | Lih Young | 1.7 | 9,874 | |
 | Richard Vaughn | 1.6 | 9,480 | |
 | Erik Jetmir | 1.4 | 8,259 | |
| Total votes: 594,692 | |||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Mia Mason (D)
Republican primary election
Republican primary for U.S. Senate Maryland
The following candidates ran in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate Maryland on June 26, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Tony Campbell | 29.2 | 51,426 |
 | Chris Chaffee | 24.1 | 42,328 | |
 | Christina Grigorian | 17.5 | 30,756 | |
| John Graziani | 8.8 | 15,435 | ||
 | Blaine Taylor | 5.0 | 8,848 | |
 | Gerald Smith | 4.3 | 7,564 | |
 | Brian Vaeth | 3.1 | 5,411 | |
| Evan Cronhardt | 2.5 | 4,445 | ||
 | Bill Krehnbrink | 2.0 | 3,606 | |
 | Nnabu Eze | 2.0 | 3,442 | |
| Albert Howard | 1.5 | 2,720 | ||
| Total votes: 175,981 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Sam Faddis (R)
- David Pae (R)
2016
Puskar was a 2016 Unaffiliated candidate for President of the United States.
Campaign themes
2018
https://ballotpedia.org/Faauuga_Moliga Puskar’s campaign website stated the following:
| “ |
Taxes As the old adage goes, there are only 2 things guaranteed in life: death and taxes. We will always be taxed in one way or another, but we cannot go by simple arithmetic: the person who makes $30,000/yr does not have the same advantages as the one who makes $3 million/yr. $3,000 hurts the former far more than $300k hurts the latter. So, the rich should have to pay more. As for mega-corporate tax breaks... Breaks only go to those who need them. That is why they are called breaks! Finally, there is the issue of the things on which taxes are spent. It doesn't matter with which political 'side' you associate and the preferences thereof, there are plenty of tax dollars wasted on expenses neither 'side' needs. One big one is federal salaries: no elected or appointed official (who is supposed to be a 'public servant') needs to be paid the extravagant salaries they are in addition to full benefits, all for working far, far less time. #JOBS Jobs are a number-one priority. We cannot look at the numbers spewed out by the government as they are superficial. Low unemployment doesn't necessarily mean everyone is gainfully employed. As for government jobs in particular, vets need to be given first refusal rights. Infrastructure Billions are being sent to other nations while our roads and bridges and plumbing crumble. And guess what? Fixing those would create jobs! Infrastructure is a major priority. Abortion While it may sound contradictory, I am pro-choice & life. Personally, I would not want my partner to get an abortion; however, socially I respect women's rights. One position that is B&W for me is when a pregnancy threatens the life of the mother: if the odds state that the mother could be saved versus both mother and child dying, then there is no question that the mother should be saved. As for Planned Parenthood, one must recognize that the organization provides all sorts of healthcare options for women. There is nothing wrong with governmental funding in that regard, but it should be specified for/against various uses. Environment We live on Earth. Continuing the way we are going, gutting her and poisoning her, we only hurt ourselves. But change takes time. We need to do what we can to protect the environment. Regulations are not a bad thing: only the Bigs want you to think they are because it causes them to lose money. Eventually going to environmentally more friendly sources of energy is a good thing, and it will not hurt the job market. Miners can work into retirement and/or transition into other industries as well. On the same token, though, we cannot just jump to being green. As for climate change, it is real. Whether or not you believe it to be mankind's fault isn't necessarily the issue if you look at it this way... We have 2 choices:
What is worse of the following 2 possible scenarios?
Healthcare Cars are a privilege: Pay for insurance. Health is a natural right: No one should profiteer in the healthcare industry while many suffer. I believe universal healthcare is the way to go, though the current measures being proposed might not be the best fit. Costs would be kept down: nowadays, people cannot always afford to to to the doctor and put things off, sometimes causing things to get worse and more expensive on both the individual and society. If healthcare were completely covered, people could stay more healthy more easily and costs would not be as much (plus more healthy people means more can be accomplished). The pharmaceutical industry also needs to be put in check. Capitalism was intended for the average person to be able to make something of him/herself, not for the Bigs to be able to step on the average person out of greed. Civil Rights Everyone is equal (equitable). Period. Race, religion, orientation, etc. do not make anyone more or less important. As such, a consenting adult should be able to do what he/she/they want as long as it does not directly and adversely affect another. Freedom of Religion An individual should be able to worship (or abstain therefrom) as one wants. But that cuts both ways. A person of one faith cannot claim freedom of religion and then want those tenets to be forced on others. Education #ChildrenFirst. While states have sovereignty, the US Dept of Ed should ensure equal education for all ages. This includes matters of government in order to shatter the fallacies that are disinformation. Eliminating college debt would help make people better able to enter the workforce and grow through careers, but it would also have to be a stable program to ensure it is not taken advantage of. Government Reform Number 1: Public Servants should not make more than their constituents, especially for working far less time. I would aim to remedy this by starting with US Senators for MD salary. Also, term limits must exist for all levels of government. Too many elected officials become complacent and/or smug in their positions when they find they will be able to make a career of that one position. It would also help ensure checks and balances are actually just that. No lifelong benefits for these officials either (i.e., no sucking the taxpayers dry). Military We need to disengage the war machine (i.e., stop overspending on items that more or less aim to enrich big contractors) and focus more on supporting our current troops and veterans alike. Guns I am pro-2A and advocate for some level of gun control. They are not opposite goals. Immigration Legal immigration but it must be asylum-based first - not preferential treatment. We also cannot turn away children in need. Oh, and while infrastructure is needed at borders... #NoWall.[2] |
” |
| —Michael Puskar’s campaign website (2018)[3] | ||
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ FEC, "Puskar, Michael Brandon," accessed September 27, 2019
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Puskar for US Senate 2018, "Issues & Positions," accessed October 19, 2018
