Justin Amash

I am Eastern Orthodox Christian, and I believe that marriage is between one man and one woman. I also believe that government should not define or redefine marriage. Marriage should be a private, religious institution and/or contractual. Government should be no more involved in sanctioning marriage, of any sort, than it should be involved in sanctioning baptism or communion.

The federal government should not criminalize marijuana. The issue should be left to the states. Any "threats to public safety" that result from marijuana use are best handled through the state criminal justice system.

The people elected me based on my principles, and I use my best judgment to analyze legislation based upon those principles.

I support people's right to join together to influence others. Government should not prohibit unions; nor should government pass special legislation to benefit unions at the expense of those who choose not to join.

It is wrong for the federal government to provide special benefits to anyone on the basis of marriage, straight or gay.

Your premise is wrong, I do consider it. Of course, raising taxes on just the wealthy doesn't raise nearly enough revenue to put even a dent in the deficit.

(1) The U.S. should avoid stepping in unless there is an imminent threat to our country.

(2) No. What about books and movies and other forms of "corporate" political spending? Should they be banned? Why a special exemption for certain media, then?

(3) President Obama throws a mean Christmas party. ;)

It's fair to criticize the President, but it's not fair for Republicans to blame everything on Democrats, especially with respect to the debt.

I'll take Mitt Romney over President Obama any day. No candidate is perfect.

I have no reason to believe that the President is not American. Others, of course, feel differently.

I ran for state House in Michigan because I got fed up with the two parties being so ALIKE in voting (even though they always bashed each other publicly).

A lot of the corruption and division is driven by party politics. We can free ourselves through the Internet.

This issue should be handled at the state level until we can move back to the concept of private marriage. Keep the federal government out.

I am always analyzing legislation, but I do lobby my conservative colleagues on this issue. I believe my position is the best conservative position: Get government out.

Yes. It is a pledge to my constituents, not to Grover Norquist. The pledge does not prohibit tax increases on anyone; nor does it prohibit me from voting against tax cuts. It simply says that tax revenue to the government does not need to go up under static analysis (i.e., our real problem is spending). In other words, it is okay under the pledge to increase taxes on the wealthy and reduce taxes on the middle class. I oppose special tax breaks and subsidies that go to politically connected interests. If these special benefits were eliminated, certain large corporations and wealthy individuals would pay substantially more in taxes, but that alone would not violate the pledge.

I think it's best to sign as few pledges as possible to avoid unnecessary constraints. Just follow the Constitution and stick to your principles.

There are Reps who will flat-out lie to get their way-it's far worse than I imagined. My colleagues often don't know the details of the bills, so I'm really battling against committees and bill sponsors. They'll resort to slander and lies when necessary. An uninformed colleague may have great intentions, but it's tough to trust a freshman over a committee chairman.

The Hamdi case provides for habeas, not full due process. In other words, no charge or trial.

I don't get a chance to eat out a lot in Grand Rapids, but I love The Chop House.