This blog post is obsolete, and has been superseded by updated information accurate as of mid-October 2010, which can be accessed by clicking here.
All of the candidates discussed here have been approached on the subject of Personhood and Amendment 62, which will be on the Nov 2010 ballot. Candidate positions for major statewide or federal offices have been mostly established.
Personhood means support for the God-given Right to Life from the beginning of a human's biological development until natural death -- NO exceptions! It is CRTL's only real standard for judging a candidate's qualifications, though we do challenge candidates on several questions which relate closely to Personhood but which may be considered separate issues. Support for Colorado's Amendment 62 is an easy way to check if a candidate supports Personhood.
See the CRTL 2010 Candidate Questionnaire, which is used to judge the candidates' pro-life credentials.
CRTL will not and cannot support anyone who supports abortion for any reason. They are NOT "pro-life", they are "pro-death with exceptions". Many candidates say they are pro-life, but they are holding back critical "exceptions" where they are willing to see unborn children killed. Beware of these common tactics & lies.
The following is a comprehensive update of what CRTL knows about the major Colorado candidates for U.S. Senate and for Governor. This information supersedes any previous versions.
U.S. Senate
Republican Ken Buck opened communication with Colorado Right to Life early in the election season, and has replied to the CRTL candidate questionnaire with solid responses. He supports Amendment 62, the Personhood concept in general, and understands what's at stake. CRTL considers him 100% pro-life. It's not completely clear that he agrees with CRTL's position on abortion regulations, but he seems willing to dialogue on these issues and we look forward to discussing this with him again in the future.
Republican Jane Norton has declared her support for Amendment 62 also, and has a history as a pro-life leader. However, to the best of our knowledge she still supports abortions in cases of rape or incest. She has not publicly repudiated that stance, even though it conflicts with the Personhood of the unborn child. She expressed a willingness to have someone on her staff meet with CRTL on these issues, and if she is the nominee we would be glad to do so.
Democrats Michael Bennet and Andrew Romanoff both support abortion. In the absence of information to the contrary, we expect Libertarian candidates Maclyn Stringer and John Finger do also, as do most Libertarian candidates.
Colorado Governor
Republican Dan Maes has run as a pro-life, family values candidate, and has endorsed Personhood (Amendment 62) and signed the petition. He answered CRTL's Candidate Survey with strong pro-life answers, and when challenged on his early support for embryonic stem cell research he was willing to discuss the issue with us, and changed his mind. Subsequent mis-statements by him in the press caused us to question, but after meeting with him we are convinced his mistakes are more due to his unfamiliarity with some of the issues. We believe Dan Maes is sincere in his pro-life views, and believe he will support Personhood if it comes to his desk to sign. CRTL considers Dan Maes to be 100% pro-life.
Republican Scott McInnis, despite his claims during his campaign, did not have a solid pro-life record when he was in Congress, at one time voted for taxpayer funding for abortion, and even served as a prominent member of Republicans for Choice (Republicans for Abortion). He more-or-less acknowledges his past on the issue, and has said he has changed his mind after reflection as he has aged and learned more about life and family.
McInnis has not returned his candidate survey, but has agreed to meet with CRTL if he is the nominee. In a private phone conversation he repeated his public support for Amendment 62, the Personhood Amendment, and privately agreed to support a Personhood measure if it came across his desk. If he is the nominee, we look forward to meeting with him, and to seeing more public emphasis on his new pro-life views. CRTL remains skeptical of his conversion, not just because of his past record, but also because of more recent issues that throw question on his forthrightness.
American Constitution Party candidate Ben Goss has resigned from the campaign in order to make room for new candidate Tom Tancredo.
Formerly Republican Congressman Tom Tancredo has joined the American Constitution Party and is expected to become their new nominee for Governor -- a situation that follows developments with the McInnis campaign. As candidate Goss has noted, the Constitution Party carries the Personhood of the unborn child as part of its platform, and Tancredo would not have been allowed to put forth his candidacy without assurances of his support for Amendment 62, which we are assured have been made.
Tancredo's support for Personhood comes as no surprise to CRTL, as his record on pro-life issues has long been very strong. We look forward to a public announcement on Amendment 62, and to talking with him about other issues such as abortion regulations. CRTL considers Tom Tancredo to be 100% pro-life.
Democrat John Hickenlooper is known to be pro-abortion.
If you have any questions about either race, or any candidate, please feel free to contact Colorado Right to Life at 303-753-9394 or at office@coloradorighttolife.org.
Updates to CRTL surveys and information on candidates for the Colorado House and Senate will be forthcoming by this weekend. For the most part, the candidate information provided in May still holds true.
State House and Senate Primaries (GOP) of Note
There are some important House and Senate races where clearly pro-Personhood Republicans are facing Republican primary opponents who are known to be pro-abortion or whose positions are unknown (which likely means they are pro-choice) are these:
SD 2 (Canon City, south Pueblo, Walsenburg, Las Animas)
Kevin Grantham is considered 100% pro-life. His opponent (Matt Heimerich) is known to be pro-abortion.
SD 5 (Delta, Aspen, Gunnison, Buena Vista, Salida, Alamosa)
Wayne Wolf is considered 100% pro-life. His Republican opponent's views are unknown to us (Bob Rankin) but has been identified by some as a socially-moderate libertarian.
SD 6 (southwestern Colorado, including Montrose, Durango & Pagosa Springs)
Dean Boehler is considered 100% pro-life. We consider his Republican opponent (Ellen Roberts) the most pro-abortion Republican legislator.
HD 44 (Parker, Roxborough Park)
Chris Holbert is considered 100% pro-life. We have significant doubts about one of his primary opponents (David Casiano) and the other (Polly Lawrence) is on record opposing Amendment 62 to establish Personhood for the unborn.
HD 54 (Grand Junction, Delta)
Ray Scott is considered 100% pro-life. His opponent (Bob Hislop) has not responded to our survey, his site mentions "family values" while remaining very vague, but he is believed by local pro-lifers to be insincere in his stand, only saying he's pro-life in order to get pro-life votes. Hislop was personally given a survey and asked to support Personhood, and he refused.
Also please see CRTL's recent post about similar clear distinctions between candidates for U.S. Congress in the 7th, 3rd and 2nd Congressional Districts.
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Colorado Congressional Races in 7th, 3rd, 2nd: Three Critical Primaries Between Contrasting Republicans
URGENT information about Congressional candidates follows, some of whom insist on calling themselves "pro-life" when they're not by any reasonable definition.
Scott Tipton and Ryan Frazier called out as falsely trying to get pro-life votes.
Personhood means support for the God-given Right to Life from the beginning of a human's natural biological development until natural death -- NO exceptions! It is CRTL's only real standard for judging a candidate's qualifications, though we do challenge candidates on several questions which relate closely to Personhood but which may be considered separate issues. Support for Colorado's Amendment 62, on the November ballot, is an easy way to check if a candidate supports Personhood.
Every major candidate running for State or Federal office here in Colorado has been approached at least once, often two or three times, by e-mail, in person, and/or by certified mail. If they haven't responded to our survey we must assume they are trying to hide views which do not agree with ours. If they wish to change their mind and respond, they are welcome to do so, and we will post their responses quickly.
Three critical Congressional races with primaries between candidates who disagree on abortion are identified first (2nd, 3rd & 7th):
7th Congressional District
Republican Ryan Frazier claims to be "100% pro-life" BUT HE IS NOT! Frazier has been telling pro-life voters that he is "100% pro-life" but these words conceal the fact that he is on record as a "social moderate" whose own words tell us he isn't interested in using legislative power to stop abortions. He does not support Amendment 62, to the best of our knowledge. He supports certain limits on abortion, such as de-funding Planned Parenthood, but is willing to go no further.
Frazier has not responded to CRTL's repeated attempts to reach him (including by certified letter), and we expect he would score badly on CRTL's candidate questionnaire even if he did respond.
Frazier told Westword, "I am not a fan of abortion, but I struggle with whether it is the appropriate role of the government to place itself there." That's like struggling with the role of government to ban slavery. The Aurora Sentinel said, "Frazier's shown a more liberal bent in his approach on social issues, however, voicing support for same-sex couples and expressing a measured stance on government regulation of abortion."
The statements on his website and in person are cleverly worded to sound like he's on our side, but many of these same things were said by John Kerry and other pro-abortion Republicans and Democrats. You may also find this pro-life blogger's information helpful: Philokalia Republic.
Republican Lang Sias has said he is pro-life, and we have come to believe this is substantially true, even though we have not received his candidate survey or been able to reach him to confirm the extent of his stands. Because of this, we cannot refer to him as a "pro-life" candidate because we cannot confirm this. But we also have no evidence to the contrary, unlike with his opponent. Please encourage Sias to return his survey, or at least to contact CRTL. If you know whether he has taken a stand on Personhood Amendment 62, we would appreciate knowing.
Democrat Ed Perlmutter is pro-abortion.
3rd Congressional District
Republican Scott Tipton has not responded to our CRTL candidate survey, and has avoided or ignored multiple requests for details on what he claims are pro-life beliefs. He's been approached in person, made promises to respond to the survey, and been approached by e-mail twice. He also did not respond to inquiries from CRTL in 2008.
For three years now, Scott Tipton has avoided going on the record with any pro-life views, either through us or via the news media (that we can find) other than his mere word. Scott Tipton's website confirms he supports abortion in cases of rape & incest, expecting the innocent child to pay for the crimes of another. Scott Tipton does not meet the standard of being legitimately pro-life.
Republican Bob McConnell has responded to CRTL's survey, and he answered 6 out of 7 questions correctly (enough that we trust his heart is sincerely in sympathy with CRTL's positions). His only reservation was on the matter of supporting "regulatory" laws (which CRTL believes actually undermine the concept of Personhood, even though many pro-lifers believe regulations "save some babies"). Bob McConnell supports Amendment 62, the Personhood Amendment.
This is a long-term discussion, and CRTL will continue to discuss this issue with McConnell. On this particular matter, we believe strongly in a candidate's good intentions.
Democrat John Salazar supports abortion.
2nd Congressional District
Republican candidate Stephen Bailey is pro-abortion. He does not support a God-given Right to Life, and believes abortion should not be restricted in any form, except to ban public funding and partial birth abortion.
Republican candidate Bob Brancato responded to our survey, and supports Personhood (signed the petition). His responses are essentially 5 out of 7 correct. He still supports exceptions for rape and incest, and supports regulations. The rape and incest exceptions greatly concern us, for the same reasons noted above for Scott Tipton. But these responses are promising for a candidate we've not had time to dialogue with, and Brancato has been willing to talk with CRTL -- we have hopes that he will come around on this vital issue. We'll keep working on him -- we believe his heart is in the right place.
Democrat Jared Polis is known to strongly support abortion.
More information later today on other races.
Scott Tipton and Ryan Frazier called out as falsely trying to get pro-life votes.
Personhood means support for the God-given Right to Life from the beginning of a human's natural biological development until natural death -- NO exceptions! It is CRTL's only real standard for judging a candidate's qualifications, though we do challenge candidates on several questions which relate closely to Personhood but which may be considered separate issues. Support for Colorado's Amendment 62, on the November ballot, is an easy way to check if a candidate supports Personhood.
Every major candidate running for State or Federal office here in Colorado has been approached at least once, often two or three times, by e-mail, in person, and/or by certified mail. If they haven't responded to our survey we must assume they are trying to hide views which do not agree with ours. If they wish to change their mind and respond, they are welcome to do so, and we will post their responses quickly.
Three critical Congressional races with primaries between candidates who disagree on abortion are identified first (2nd, 3rd & 7th):
7th Congressional District
Republican Ryan Frazier claims to be "100% pro-life" BUT HE IS NOT! Frazier has been telling pro-life voters that he is "100% pro-life" but these words conceal the fact that he is on record as a "social moderate" whose own words tell us he isn't interested in using legislative power to stop abortions. He does not support Amendment 62, to the best of our knowledge. He supports certain limits on abortion, such as de-funding Planned Parenthood, but is willing to go no further.
Frazier has not responded to CRTL's repeated attempts to reach him (including by certified letter), and we expect he would score badly on CRTL's candidate questionnaire even if he did respond.
Frazier told Westword, "I am not a fan of abortion, but I struggle with whether it is the appropriate role of the government to place itself there." That's like struggling with the role of government to ban slavery. The Aurora Sentinel said, "Frazier's shown a more liberal bent in his approach on social issues, however, voicing support for same-sex couples and expressing a measured stance on government regulation of abortion."
The statements on his website and in person are cleverly worded to sound like he's on our side, but many of these same things were said by John Kerry and other pro-abortion Republicans and Democrats. You may also find this pro-life blogger's information helpful: Philokalia Republic.
Republican Lang Sias has said he is pro-life, and we have come to believe this is substantially true, even though we have not received his candidate survey or been able to reach him to confirm the extent of his stands. Because of this, we cannot refer to him as a "pro-life" candidate because we cannot confirm this. But we also have no evidence to the contrary, unlike with his opponent. Please encourage Sias to return his survey, or at least to contact CRTL. If you know whether he has taken a stand on Personhood Amendment 62, we would appreciate knowing.
Democrat Ed Perlmutter is pro-abortion.
3rd Congressional District
Republican Scott Tipton has not responded to our CRTL candidate survey, and has avoided or ignored multiple requests for details on what he claims are pro-life beliefs. He's been approached in person, made promises to respond to the survey, and been approached by e-mail twice. He also did not respond to inquiries from CRTL in 2008.
For three years now, Scott Tipton has avoided going on the record with any pro-life views, either through us or via the news media (that we can find) other than his mere word. Scott Tipton's website confirms he supports abortion in cases of rape & incest, expecting the innocent child to pay for the crimes of another. Scott Tipton does not meet the standard of being legitimately pro-life.
Republican Bob McConnell has responded to CRTL's survey, and he answered 6 out of 7 questions correctly (enough that we trust his heart is sincerely in sympathy with CRTL's positions). His only reservation was on the matter of supporting "regulatory" laws (which CRTL believes actually undermine the concept of Personhood, even though many pro-lifers believe regulations "save some babies"). Bob McConnell supports Amendment 62, the Personhood Amendment.
This is a long-term discussion, and CRTL will continue to discuss this issue with McConnell. On this particular matter, we believe strongly in a candidate's good intentions.
Democrat John Salazar supports abortion.
2nd Congressional District
Republican candidate Stephen Bailey is pro-abortion. He does not support a God-given Right to Life, and believes abortion should not be restricted in any form, except to ban public funding and partial birth abortion.
Republican candidate Bob Brancato responded to our survey, and supports Personhood (signed the petition). His responses are essentially 5 out of 7 correct. He still supports exceptions for rape and incest, and supports regulations. The rape and incest exceptions greatly concern us, for the same reasons noted above for Scott Tipton. But these responses are promising for a candidate we've not had time to dialogue with, and Brancato has been willing to talk with CRTL -- we have hopes that he will come around on this vital issue. We'll keep working on him -- we believe his heart is in the right place.
Democrat Jared Polis is known to strongly support abortion.
More information later today on other races.
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Updated Information Coming
Some of you have already received your ballots. Please, especially since there are some key races where the truth is not being told, hold on for just a few more days before marking your ballots.
There is important information on a couple of races, including the 3rd Congressional and 7th Congressional races (i.e. not all candidates are as pro-life as they claim), which we will be providing early next week.
There will also be additional information, including positive information about Robert Ramirez in House District 29. Campaign updates, etc. We will also provide updated information on the Governor's race.
We also received a very positive candidate survey from US Senate candidate Ken Buck -- we've known for a long time he was pro-Personhood, but now we do have a survey and he's on record with support for all of our positions except for the life of the mother exception (which as we've noted isn't a conflict, because this is a matter of semantics -- the doctor has a sworn duty to try to save both the mother and the baby, and because of this there's never a situation where the mother's life would be saved by trying to kill the baby -- if the doctor TRIES to kill the baby, that's wrong, but there's never a situation, even with ectopic pregnancies, where the doctor MUST try to kill the baby rather than simply trying to save both the baby and the mother -- it's a matter of the intent of the doctor, which should always be to try to preserve life even when such hopes are futile).
There is important information on a couple of races, including the 3rd Congressional and 7th Congressional races (i.e. not all candidates are as pro-life as they claim), which we will be providing early next week.
There will also be additional information, including positive information about Robert Ramirez in House District 29. Campaign updates, etc. We will also provide updated information on the Governor's race.
We also received a very positive candidate survey from US Senate candidate Ken Buck -- we've known for a long time he was pro-Personhood, but now we do have a survey and he's on record with support for all of our positions except for the life of the mother exception (which as we've noted isn't a conflict, because this is a matter of semantics -- the doctor has a sworn duty to try to save both the mother and the baby, and because of this there's never a situation where the mother's life would be saved by trying to kill the baby -- if the doctor TRIES to kill the baby, that's wrong, but there's never a situation, even with ectopic pregnancies, where the doctor MUST try to kill the baby rather than simply trying to save both the baby and the mother -- it's a matter of the intent of the doctor, which should always be to try to preserve life even when such hopes are futile).
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