Rethugs to chicken to attend Darke County League of Women Voters (LWV) Candidates Forum

Meanwhile, up here in our slice of Teabagger heaven...

GREENVILLE – After J.D. Winteregg announced last week that he would not be attending the Darke County League of Women Voters (LWV) Candidates Forum on April 23, Darke County Commission candidate John Kennedy has followed suit and has withdrawn from the forum.

Winteregg called the LWV “too left-wing” to sponsor a Republican Primary debate and called on other candidates to withdraw from the forum.

In a press release, Winteregg said, “The League endorses unrestricted abortion, funded by taxpayers, for any reason at all up to and including the moment of birth. They endorse illegal alien amnesty, increased welfare payments, Common Core, ObamaCare and Medicaid Expansion, new and extreme anti-business environmental regulations and wide-ranging gun control laws that would essentially eliminate our Second Amendment rights.”

Kennedy made the announcement on his Facebook page, John Kennedy for Darke County Commission and said, “After careful consideration I have decided not to participate in the Candidate Night associated with the League of Women Voters. I feel their political views and beliefs are not in line with my own political beliefs. I take a stand on certain issues and feel it is not in my best interest to associate with and support groups that do not share in these beliefs.” He clarified in a response some of the issues where he and the LWV do not agree are “on abortion, gun control, etc.”

Holly Finnarn and Eileen Litchfield, organizers of the Candidates Forum, responded to the accusations, “The League of Women Voters has always conducted their voter service activities in a non-partisan way. It is the League’s policy to never support or oppose a candidate. Locally, we have had candidate nights for about 30 years.”

The organizers continued, “The League only takes action on issues that they have studied and have consensus on among members, Democrats, Republicans, etc.”

With Kennedy’s withdrawal from the event, LWV has been forced modify its upcoming event. “Because of the League’s unbiased treatment of candidates and IRS rules, we will no longer be featuring the Republican Primary race for Darke County Commissioner at our forum since there are just two candidates and one of them, John Kennedy, sent notice that he was withdrawing from the event last night,” they said. “Per the rules sent to all candidates, Mike Stegall, the other candidate, will still have the opportunity for up to two minutes for an introduction as a contested Primary candidate but will not be allowed to be on stage to answer questions.”

The Darke County LWV clarified that Winteregg never accept the League’s invitation in mid-March when all of the other candidates from the 80th and 84th House District did accept.

“We look forward to having the 84th candidates (Travis Faber, Susan Manchester, Aaron Heilers) and the other 80th Candidates (George Lovett, John O’Brien, Jena Powell),” said Litchfield and Finnarn.

The forum will take place on Monday, April 23, 7 p.m., at the American Legion Hall on Ohio St., Greenville and is open to the public.

I heard the rethugs danced around and away from questions with any substance. Not much intelligent debate.