Senator Joseph Lieberman (D-CT)

Q : Both the United States and India have been the victims of international terrorism. Both countries have established working groups and conducted joint anti-terrorism exercises to address this issue. As President, what will you do to support and enhance this relationship?

SEN. JOSEPH LIEBERMAN : As President, I will work to create a special strategic relationship between the United States and India. I will institute regular meetings with the Indian Prime Minister. One of my first foreign trips would be to India to establish this dialogue.

Q : What are your views on India’s bid to gain a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council?

A : I believe India has an important role to play in global issues. It is time for us to review and expand the permanent membership of the U.N. Security Council. If we can accomplish this, India should be one of the new permanent members.

Q : The United States and India have recently conducted a series of joint military exercises. As President, how would you approach the burgeoning defense relationship between the United States and India? Would you support greater U.S. defense sales to India?

A : The special relationship that I will establish with India will include military-to-military exchanges that I hope will deepen into a strong bilateral defense relationship. I would ensure that there are regular meetings between our defense ministers and chiefs of military services. I will support appropriate defense sales that are appropriate to India’s defense needs and the U.S.-Indian military relationship.

Q : As President, would you support establishing a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with India?

A : Yes, I would support a free and fair trade agreement with India.

Q : Following the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, Indian Americans, specifically Sikh Americans, have been the victims of serious hate crimes. Do you support stronger hate crimes legislation? As President, what would you do to curb the occurrence of hate crimes?

A : I am a longtime cosponsor of the leading anti-hate crimes bill. As President, I will fight for enactment of that proposal and ensure that the Justice Department devotes significant energy to helping to prevent such hate crimes from happening in the first place, and ensuring that those who commit them are appropriately prosecuted and punished.

Q : How do you respond to fears that law enforcement’s increased use, or proposed use, of invasive technology is a violation of basic privacy rights?

A : The unprecedented availability of personal information today demands an unprecedented commitment to safeguarding people’s privacy. But right now, we’re walking on shaky ground. In 2002, consumers reported 162,000 incidents of identity theft to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) --- double the number reported in 2001. And government isn’t doing nearly enough to protect citizens’ privacy rights. In nearly one-third of the cases in which federal agencies disclosed personal information to non-federal organizations, the agencies did not have strong privacy protection procedures in place --- as required by law.

I envision a future in which there’s more technology to stop crime and terrorism --- and the privacy of innocent Americans is honored, not invaded. We’ve got to empower innocent citizens against those who want to profit from it or exploit it. We’ve got to renew and revitalize our civil liberties for the information age

As President, I’ll draw clear lines preventing both government and the private sector from exploiting the private information of innocent Americans. I’ll ensure that law enforcement officials have access to the tools they need to fight and win the war against terrorism. But I’ll also ensure that the personal data of American citizens is never unfairly compromised.

Q : Do you support the Department of Homeland Security’s plans to replace the current visa control system (NSEERS)?

A : The special registration requirements implemented by the Administration did not work as intended, were discriminatory, and had unjust results. The Department of Homeland Security was right to scrap the program, although it should have happened sooner. We need to be moving more rapidly towards a system that allows consular and immigration officials to accurately identify suspected terrorists without discriminating against legitimate travelers to the United States.

Q : Some estimates place the number of Indian-American physicians at over 35,000. Given this fact, what are your views on addressing the severe medical malpractice insurance problem facing the industry?

A : I support medical malpractice reform, and am one of the few Democrats who has introduced bills about tort reform. I believe that good physicians should not be driven out of business by skyrocketing malpractice premiums, or practice medicine timidly for fear of litigation. I feel that the MICRA provisions in California are illuminating and worth studying as one possible approach.

Q : What are your views on the efficacy of affirmative action as it has been implemented?

A : I believe that affirmative action is essential to extending the promise of equal opportunity to all Americans. That’s why, as Attorney General, I instituted an aggressive affirmative action policy that resulted in more than half of my office’s full-time workforce consisting of women and minorities. In the Senate, I have voted to protect federal affirmative action programs from Republican efforts to eliminate them, endorsed President Clinton’s “mend, not end” approach, and strongly supported the University of Michigan in defending its affirmative action program from a legal attack. I would continue to take such action as President.