Political positions
LoBiondo was a member of the moderate Republican Main Street Partnership.[11] His record on several issues, particularly the environment and labor union votes, fitted a moderate Republican. In 2005, National Journal ranked him as the most liberal Republican representative in New Jersey and more liberal than most of New York's Republican congressional representatives.[12] Americans for Democratic Action in 2005 placed him in a higher liberal quotient than most of the Republican representatives in those two states.[13]
LoBiondo was ranked as the 13th most bipartisan member of the U.S. House of Representatives during the 114th United States Congress (and the most bipartisan member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New Jersey) in the Bipartisan Index created by The Lugar Center and the McCourt School of Public Policy that ranks members of the United States Congress by their degree of bipartisanship (by measuring the frequency each member's bills attract co-sponsors from the opposite party and each member's co-sponsorship of bills by members of the opposite party).[14]
Abortion
LoBiondo opposes taxpayer-funded abortion except in cases of incest, rape or threat to the life of the mother.[15] He consistently voted against federal funding for abortion whenever it came to a vote.[16]
Environment and energy
LoBiondo has been endorsed by various environmental groups including the League of Conservation Voters. An advocate for alternative energy sources especially nuclear power, he has consistently opposed offshore drilling off the coast of New Jersey, sponsoring legislation in each Congress during the past decade.[21]
Foreign policy
Considered a defense hawk in Congress, LoBiondo was a member of the House Armed Services Committee and joined in the bipartisan support of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.[20] In 2013, LoBiondo opposed President Obama's request for congressional authorization to use force against the Assad regime in Syria.
Gambling
In 2012, LoBiondo, along with Democratic congressman Frank Pallone, introduced legislation allowing states to legalize sports betting, then only allowed in four states, arguing it would strengthen Atlantic City as a venue for tourists’ dollars.[22]
Healthcare
He is in favor of repealing the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare), and voted in favor of the resolution that began the process of repealing Obamacare in January 2017.[15][23] In 2013, he said that Obamacare was "too deeply flawed to implement and ultimately unworkable."[24]
LGBT rights
LoBiondo was endorsed by Garden State Equality in his 2016 election [25] and a cosponsor of the federal Employment Non-Discrimination Act that would bar discrimination against LGBT individuals in the workplace. In 2011, LoBiondo appeared in an It Gets Better Project video, part of a YouTube campaign reaching out to young gay teens who have been bullied and is a cosponsor of the Safe Schools Improvement Act to respond to bullying of LGBT students in schools.[26]
LoBiondo voted against the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017.[27] He opposed the bill due to the $10,000 cap on deductions that he described as being "detrimental in my high-tax state of New Jersey."[28]
Term limits
In 1994, LoBiondo pledged to only serve six terms in Congress.[29] In 2004, he announced that he would break his term limits pledge and allow the voters to decide. He retired after twelve terms.
Veterans
LoBiondo has made improving VA services in South Jersey a top priority while in Congress, including new clinics in Northfield, Vineland and Cape May Court House (to open in late 2018).[30] He has introduced the Veterans Health ID Act,[31] a bill that would allow veterans to receive an ID card that allows them care at VA expense at any non-VA medical facility.
