Recent FP articles have detailed Ken Buck's problems with a rape victim while he was Weld County, Colorado, prosecutor:
Buck didn't prosecute after admitted culpability
Buck didn't prosecute because he believed victim had abortion
As the saying goes, "But wait! There's more!"
CBS News
Ken Buck disparaged his opponent in the Republican primary for wearing "high heels".
"Why should you vote for me? Because I do not wear high heels," Buck is shown saying in the spot, in comments he made last week. "I have cowboy boots. They have real bullsh** on them."
These stories point to a man who is not respectful of women. And Buck's positions support that assertion.
Personhood Amendment
Ken Buck can't make up his mind whether or not he supports Colorado Amendment 62, the "Personhood Amendment". This declares legally that life begins at conception.
"I am pro-life and I believe that life begins at conception," he said. "We should do everything we can in this country to promote life."
"I'm dealing with an issue that's out there right now; I am not taking positions on any of the state amendments," he said.
So while he won't take a position on the Amendment, he supports the gist of the amendment. And this amendment has several implications for women.
- While it would not likely withstand a Federal court review wrt Roe V Wade, the clear intent is to limit access to abortion
- Several common forms of contraception work by interfering with the implantation of a fertilized egg
- In-vitro fertilization treatments often result in either excess fertilized eggs, which are not implanted
- Infertility treatments sometimes results in an unsupportable number of embryos, and the number is surgically reduced via abortion
Buck is also clear that, as a result of his belief that life begins at conception, that victims of crimes which result in the victim becoming pregnant should be forced, by law, to bear the criminal's child. Rape victims and incest victims have no recourse in Ken Buck's view.
Buck has also weaseled on a Constitutional Amendment banning abortions - first for it, then against it. Denver Post
So while he definitely does not want to talk about it, at all, it's clear that Ken Buck takes a very hard line view on women's rights.
If you are a Colorado voter and you, or someone you care about:
- May ever be the victim of rape or incest
- May ever desire fertility treatment
- May ever desire an abortion
- May want to use a birth control method that relies on preventing implantation
- May ever have a tubal (ectopic) pregnancy
- May be a woman who wants equal pay for her work
Then you really can't vote for Ken Buck. And, frankly, that list should cover the overwhelming majority of Colorado voters.
Ken Buck does have an opponent. Michael Bennet has an Act Blue page, and you know what to do.