Well, that didn’t take long.
On the same day that Republican gubernatorial candidate Bob Beauprez announced Mesa County Commissioner Janet Rowland as his running mate and lieutenant governor nominee, comments from Rowland surfaced in which she compared gay marriage to bestiality. Rowland appeared on the PBS show “Colorado State of Mind” on March 17 to discuss the issue of gay marriage. Here’s what she said:
I just think that this question, and not just tonight, but overall frames it to where it polarizes people. They have to be in a category that if they believe that marriage should be between a man and a woman, then they hate gays. I have friends who are gay. I’ve worked with people who are gay. I have utmost respect for them. I do not hate them, but I believe marriage is between a man and a woman.
Homosexuality is an alternative lifestyle. That doesn’t make it a marriage. Some people have group sex. Should we allow two men and three women to marry? Should we allow polygamy with one man and five wives? For some, bestiality is an alternative lifestyle. Do we allow a man to marry a sheep? At some point, we have to draw a line.
Both The Denver Post and the Rocky Mountain News included the comments in their stories about Rowland’s introduction yesterday, which probably wasn’t the kind of press the Beauprez campaign was hoping to garner from the running mate announcement.
Colorado Confidential had the Beauprez announcement covered on either side of the Continental Divide. Cara DeGette was at the first announcement in Denver, and Leslie Robinson covered the news from Grand Junction later in the day.
———–Secretary of State Gigi Dennis didn’t get selected as Beauprez’s running mate, but she’s still doing her part to help the Republican Party. As The Denver Post editorial board writes:
Secretary of State Gigi Dennis has quietly been issuing “emergency rules” on the eve of Colorado’s heavy campaign season, and guess what – they’re designed to boost Republican chances. So much for the even-handed neutrality that the public expects in the office that oversees state election operations.
Dennis’ explanation for the new rules? That they’re “necessary specifically because various questions have arisen from interested parties.” What she didn’t say is that those interested parties have a partisan political agenda, and she is doing their bidding.
That kinds of makes Gigi sound like Darth Vader.
Darth Dennis?
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Beauprez faced off with Democrat Bill Ritter in another gubernatorial debate this morning in Lakewood at an event sponsored by the Jefferson County Economic Council.
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Democrats say that national security is an issue they can win on in 2006, according to The New York Times “They are not Swift boating us on national security,” says Nancy Pelosi, the Democratic leader in the house.
Pelosi is in Colorado today to discuss the “New Direction for America” Democratic agenda. She’ll hold court at the Denver Pipefitters Local 208, at 6350 N. Broadway, at 4:15 p.m.
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The Denver Post is encouraging Republicans to give up on their legal efforts to reinstate their 2003 “midnight redistricting” plan that would have changed congressional districts in favor of Republican candidates. The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals yesterday threw out the last case still active from the 2003 redistricting effort that was eventually overruled by a Colorado court.
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According to new Census data, Hispanics now make up nearly 20 percent of Colorado’s population. Elizabeth Aguilera of The Denver Post writes that Colorado’s Hispanic population rose from 17.6 percent in 2001 to 19.5 percent in 2005. Hispanics now account for 14.5 percent of the total population in the U.S., up from 13.1 percent in 2001.
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It’s been one week since the primary election, but it’s not over yet for some candidates. As the Pueblo Chieftain reports, a recount in the race for Pueblo County Clerk is scheduled for Thursday and Friday because Gilbert “Bo” Ortiz only defeated Rick Palacio by four votes after the first count (triggering an automatic recount).
And you said your vote doesn’t matter.
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The Denver City Council gave initial approval yesterday to proposed changes to the Denver Election Commission, which is coming off of a less-than-smooth primary election. As George Merritt of The Denver Post reports, the new plan would institute some changes that could be helpful for the next election, but critics think it doesn’t go far enough.
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The gay mooing cow dogs are back in Colorado Springs. As Perry Swanson of the Colorado Springs Gazette reports, some City Council members opposed lightposts being used for political statements…but apparently only if they featured a gay dog.
Focus on the Family is rolling out its latest response to an advertising campaign that claims gay people are “born different.”
The Born Different campaign features Norman, a puppy who says “moo.” It’s funded by a $900,000 grant from the Denver-based Gill Foundation. It included banners on downtown light poles that featured a silhouette of a dog and the word “moo.”
That element of the campaign drew criticism from some Colorado Springs City Council members, who said city light poles shouldn’t be used for political statements.
Focus on the Family said Monday it’s putting up banners on downtown light poles this week featuring the mascot of its campaign, Sherman, a dog who says “woof.” The Colorado Springs-based Christian ministry also plans to start distributing 1,000 yard signs showing a silhouette of Sherman, similar to signs used in the Born Different campaign.
What would Janet Rowland say about this dogfight? Should we allow gay dogs to marry? What about straight dogs? Oh, the humanity!
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