Posted on 11/15/2004 6:54:53 PM PST by nickcarraway
Why You Should Vote No on Prop 62 and Yes on Prop 60
The California Pro Life Council's voter's guide for the November 2 election gives information on candidates' support for legal protection of unborn children, opposition to use of taxpayers' funds to pay for abortions, and opposition to physician assisted suicide. (The guide is available at www.californiaprolife.org).
Tricia Hunter, running as a Republican in the 76th assembly district in central San Diego County, rates a no, no, and a "position unclear" on these three issues respectively. It's a stance more typical of Democratic Party candidates. Hunter has also merited an endorsement by the most rabid promoter and committer of pre-natal murder, Planned Parenthood.
The Pro Life Council's voter's guide urges a no vote on Proposition 71, which opponents have dubbed the "Loan to Clone to Kill Initiative." It also urges pro-life voters to vote no on Proposition 62, the open primaries initiative promoted by pro-abortion Republicans such as education secretary Richard Riordan and former State Senator Becky Morgan, and Democratic State Controller Steve Westly. And the Pro Life Council urges a yes vote on Proposition 60.
Voting no on Proposition 62 and yes on Proposition 60 allows the members of each political party to pick their own candidates in primary elections, then have that candidate appear on the general election ballot. In terms of the fight against abortion, defeating Proposition 62 and passing Proposition 60 will protect voters' ability to keep pro-life candidates on general election ballots.
Tricia Hunter's original successful campaign for the California Assembly is a textbook lesson on how Planned Parenthood and the Democratic Party could use open primary elections to elect openly pro-abortion candidates, even in conservative, pro-life districts.
In 1989, pro-life Republican Assemblyman Bill Bradley died of cancer while representing the conservative Republican 76th Assembly District in north San Diego County. When Bradley died, Hunter, a member of the Registered Nurse Board, swept down like a vulture to run in the special election.
In special elections, all candidates run together, and voters can vote for any candidate, regardless of party. If any candidate gets a majority of the vote, which rarely happens since so many candidates usually file for special elections to fill empty seats, that candidate takes the seat immediately for the rest of the term. Otherwise, there is a runoff election, with only the top vote -getting candidates of each party allowed into the runoff, rather than the two top vote-getting candidates.
This "open primary" type election was the ideal opportunity for pro-abortion Tricia Hunter and her Planned Parenthood and Democratic Party allies. Insiders believe Hunter could never have won a Republican primary in such a conservative district. No Democratic candidate could get a majority of the votes in the first round or win the runoff in such a strongly Republican district.
Several conservative, pro-life Republicans entered the race, with the leading candidate being Dick Lyles. No significant Democratic candidate attempted an obviously futile campaign. The stage was thus set for pro-abortion Planned Parenthood and Democrats to throw their support behind Tricia Hunter.
The race was considered crucial and of national significance, because it was the first election after the United State Supreme Court's Casey decision which signaled that state laws providing restrictions on abortion could be passed and not be struck down by activist, pro-abortion federal judges.
Planned Parenthood saw Tricia Hunter's campaign as an opportunity to place a strong abortion advocate in the assembly's Republican caucus in Sacramento. With help from Democratic politicians, Planned Parenthood used phone banks to identify pro-abortion voters, and volunteer drivers with absentee ballots to get their votes cast for Hunter. The conservative Republican vote was split among several candidates. As a result, Tricia Hunter's vote while far from a majority was slightly more than the leading pro-life Republican candidate, Dick Lyles, and she advanced to the runoff election against a non-entity Democrat, running in a strongly Republican District. Even then, Dick Lyles, with considerable help from conservative Republican Assembly Members such as Dick Mountjoy and Bill Baker, almost beat Tricia Hunter by running as a write-in candidate in runoff election.
Planned Parenthood was so delighted with their successful scam that they even produced a training video on how they used sophisticated technology like bar-coded voter identification forms and transportation planning to elect Tricia Hunter. The video showed eager pro-abortion phone bankers using the bar coded computerized voter identification system and upscale Planned Parenthood women picking up and delivering elderly ladies to the polls. The video did not emphasize the really effective work of pro-abortion Democratic leaders in getting pro-abortion Democrats to vote for Hunter rather than a Democratic candidate.
Hunter's ascension is a cautionary tale. This type of campaigning to defeat pro-life Republican candidates in regular primary elections in conservative Republican districts could become commonplace if Proposition 62 passes.
Assemblywoman Tricia Hunter, even though she was a Republican incumbent in a Republican district was challenged in the 1990 regular primary election by pro-life activist Connie Youngkin, whose campaign was well-managed by Steve Baldwin, who himself went on to win three terms in the Assembly. Youngkin did well despite her limited funding and the fact that too many other Republican leaders were now supporting incumbent Hunter.
Tricia Hunter was so grateful to Planned Parenthood that a newspaper article revealed that she met at least eight times with Planned Parenthood's Sacramento battle axe, chief lobbyist Norma Clevenger, who died there October 2, 2004.
Hunter got only one full term. After the 1991 redistricting, she carpet-bagged to run in a newly drawn district in Riverside and Imperial County. With heavy funding from Pete Wilson pro-abortion Republicans she won the primary over David Dhillon of El Centro. However, a Palm Springs physician, who identified himself as the "real Republican" candidate ran a vigorous write-in campaign in the 1992 general election. Tricia Hunter, in spite of massive Republican campaign spending, lost and Democrat Julie Bornstein won one term in the Assembly. Hunter's campaign was hurt when the physician, a cancer specialist, got prime time TV news coverage of him and his staff, all in white lab coats, revealing that Hunter had received campaign money from the tobacco lobby, which deflated nurse Hunter's pro-healthcare image.
Hunter's defeat set up pro-life Republican candidate Jim Battin's winning of the seat in 1994, 1996, and 1998, and his advance to the Senate in 2000, where he is now running for his second term. Senator Battin in turn helped pro-lifer Bonnie Garcia to win the 80th Assembly district seat in 2002, where she is now campaigning for a second term.
Hunter, after her defeat, worked as a lobbyist for the Flannery Group in Sacramento, but in 1996 she carpetbagged again to run for an Assembly seat in the 78th Assembly District. She won the primary but was defeated by Democrat Howard Wayne who dredged up the tobacco money and carpetbagging by labeling nurse Hunter the "Tobacco Queen from Riverside".
The 76th District was redrawn in 2001 and now stretches from Downtown to State Route 52, And from the ocean to Fairmount Avenue. The seat is open due to one-term incumbent Christine Kehoe running for the 39th District senate seat vacated by termed-out Dede Alpert. Once again, Tricia Hunter is trying to get back to Sacramento by winning an empty assembly seat. She won the primary against poorly-funded neophyte Bill Stamps.
The fact that top Pete Wilson advisor George Gorton is involved in Hunter's campaign shows again the strong ties to the Pete Wilson, "moderate" wing of the California Republican Party. Wilsonite Republicans have long been bent on removing the pro-life plank from the Republican platform in the state and nationally. A Hunter victory would hurt the efforts of Republicans striving to maintain the pro-life plank. This is a woman who was rumored to keep abortion instruments in her assembly office desk in Sacramento to demonstrate to people her pro-abortion credentials.
Hunter's victory would also hurt the party's standing with Latinos. Democratic Assembly Caucus spokesman, Steve Maviglio, former spokesman for Gray Davis, gloated: "She's bad for Latinos." Hinting at her Wilsonite backing, Maviglio said, "Look at where she stands, who's behind her. Voting for her would be turning back the clock."
Sadly, a number of conservative Republican politicians, many of whom profess to be pro-life, have donated more than $54,000 to Hunter's campaign. Among them is Assemblyman George Plescia, of Poway who gave Hunter $3200. On the positive side, quite a number of pro-life Republican legislators have not given any money to Hunter's campaign, according to records available before press time. Asked if these conservative Republican assembly members might be able to influence Hunter's views on abortion, should she win and go to Sacramento, long-time pro-life activist Sylvia Sullivan answered, "No, I think she has the record of a total pro-abort."
Planned Parenthood is likewise very confident of Tricia Hunter's continued support for abortion. Sara Moser, long-time fixture and mouthpiece for Planned Parenthood of San Diego and Riverside Counties, told a News Notes reporter that Hunter would be a strong pro-abortion voice in Sacramento, saying: "she has deep, strong convictions. She first showed her commitment to women's rights when she first ran in North County years ago. She did a great job in the Assembly. She's 100% pro-choice."
100.0% ( 273 of 273 ) precincts reporting as of Nov 15, 2004 at 5:23 pm
Lori Saldana Democratic 87,984 54.1
Patricia Rae Hunter Republican 67,461 41.4
Jennifer Osborne Libertarian 7,363 4.5
ping
Urgent! Fight the Far Right.... Voice Support for Senator Specter Today! (Who is WISH?)I notice that Arnold is at the top of Hunter's endorsers (See website for organizations named).
HunterForAssembly.comEndorsements Elected Officials Arnold Schwarzenegger, Governor State of California Hon. Carol Bentley Hon. Jim Ellis Hon. Shirley Horton, California State Assembly Hon. Jeff Marston Hon. Kevin McCarthy, California State Assembly Hon. Lori Holt Pfeiler Hon. George Plescia, California State Assembly Hon. Larry Stirling Hon. Mark Wyland, California State Assembly Hon. Linda Rhodes -Vista Unified School Board Member (retired)
Thank goodness she is losing.
She lost, but it's important to keep an eye on this kind of thing.
Yes, important to keep an eye on this, but the more I read about these kind of things, the sicker I get, indeed.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.