Beauprez (nearly) jackknifes on Ref C
What to include in my ever-expanding Both Ways Bob Watch? What's a lie and what's a flip-flop? What's cynical political gamesmanship and what's an honest mistake?
For instance, on October 19, 2006, Congressman Bob Beauprez told the Post that he'd "never heard of the NCIC until the current flap erupted." As he turns out, he'd voted to strengthen protections for the database on September 25, 2005. Was Beauprez flip-flopping, lying or just having a convenient memory lapse?
A press release the Beauprez campaign sent to ColoradoPols yesterday yields similar shades of gray. In it, a coalition of Republicans who supported Referendum C voice their support for Beauprez, who opposed the measure:
"Some of us supported Referendum C because we believed it was critical to moving Colorado forward," the letter reads. "Bob Beauprez's Fiscal Accountability Plan is the next step toward keeping our State on course and fulfilling the promise of Referendum C now that it has passed."
Beauprez's incertitude on Referendum C earned him the nickname Both Ways Bob back in 2005. His eventual opposition turned off many anti-tax activists, who saw it as a cynical move to squash Marc Holtzman's uber-conservative primary campaign. And now Beauprez's attempts to attach himself to the popular measure come off as transparently political.
This isn't a flip-flop the way Beauprez's multi-positions on NREL funding, NCIC protections or Amendment 38 were. But it still reeks of weak-willed politicking.
Changing your opinion isn't always a bad thing. Changing it to suit the latest polling data is. Beauprez doesn't have the backbone to be Colorado's next governor.
For instance, on October 19, 2006, Congressman Bob Beauprez told the Post that he'd "never heard of the NCIC until the current flap erupted." As he turns out, he'd voted to strengthen protections for the database on September 25, 2005. Was Beauprez flip-flopping, lying or just having a convenient memory lapse?
A press release the Beauprez campaign sent to ColoradoPols yesterday yields similar shades of gray. In it, a coalition of Republicans who supported Referendum C voice their support for Beauprez, who opposed the measure:
"Some of us supported Referendum C because we believed it was critical to moving Colorado forward," the letter reads. "Bob Beauprez's Fiscal Accountability Plan is the next step toward keeping our State on course and fulfilling the promise of Referendum C now that it has passed."
Beauprez's incertitude on Referendum C earned him the nickname Both Ways Bob back in 2005. His eventual opposition turned off many anti-tax activists, who saw it as a cynical move to squash Marc Holtzman's uber-conservative primary campaign. And now Beauprez's attempts to attach himself to the popular measure come off as transparently political.
This isn't a flip-flop the way Beauprez's multi-positions on NREL funding, NCIC protections or Amendment 38 were. But it still reeks of weak-willed politicking.
Changing your opinion isn't always a bad thing. Changing it to suit the latest polling data is. Beauprez doesn't have the backbone to be Colorado's next governor.
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home