Stances

Patrick Michael Nyhan is a moderate progressive in his views on politics, and currently a registered Independent. Some of his political idols include Theodore Roosevelt, Ulysses S. Grant, John Marshall, Henry Clay, and Harry Truman.

There are two facts to cash bail:

1 - It needs to be reformed as it unfairly burdens those less fortunate

2 - The reform attempted so far has  actually been fairly successful, and while imperfect, nowhere near the horror story some news outlets have scapegoated it to be.

So what is Patrick's ruling? The new laws are now the laws, and main difference is that much more of a burden falls on justices. If a defendant is deemed a repeat offender or credible flight risk, then a motion quickly comes before a judge to keep said defendant in jail. In many areas where cashless bail has failed, one issue has to do with either local judges or law enforcement not fulfilling their duty. Patrick will make sure anyone who needs to be locked up stays locked up. 

It is of his opinion that schools should be a place of knowledge and learning outside of any predetermined belief systems. There is a reason, for example, that as set by the landmark 1962 Supreme Court case Engel v. Vitale  that it is unconstitutional for state officials to compose an official school prayer and encourage its recitation in public schools, due to violation of the First Amendment. Public schooling is separate from any outside entities or religious affiliation. On top of this, in the state of New York, teachers are highly trained and schooled professionals who have far more experience working with children of specific ages than do most parents. Therefore, there should be as little parental interference in curriculum as possible.

Patrick's stance on gender is that as long as it makes a person happy, their gender and decisions surrounding it do not affect him and therefore are none of his damn business. Their legal right to self-expression was protected in 1789 by the 1st Amendment of the US Constitution. He will respect people the way they wish to present themselves to him.

Abortion is still a legally protected entity in New York State, based on the US Citizen's right to privacy implied by the 4th, 5th, 9th, and 14th Amendments, as well as many case decisions by the US Supreme Court.

It is of the opinion of Mr. Nyhan that Captain James Tiberius Kirk is the better captain of the USS Enterprise, based on his originality, leadership, and barrier breaking. However, Captain Jean-Luc Picard in many cases demonstrated more character and charisma.  To add his own 'hot take,' Chris Pine's take on the young Captain Kirk in an alternate timeline is perhaps his favorite character in the Star Trek canon (that is, until Simon Pegg's young Scotty interrupts him). Captain Ed Mercer from the somewhat related FOX series, Orville deserves an honorable mention.