Other GOP follow state Senate leader of the opposition in bid to earn nomination.
By CHARLES ASHBY CHIEFTAIN DENVER BUREAU
October 22, 2009 12:06 am
DENVER
- State Sen. Ken Kester said Republican gubernatorial candidate Scott
McInnis is "absolutely wrong" about his stance on the U.S. Army's
expansion plans of the Pinon Canyon Maneuver Site.
The Las
Animas Republican, who's entering his final year in office, is backing
state Sen. Josh Penry of Fruita as the GOP nominee to challenge
Democratic Gov. Bill Ritter in his re-election bid next year.
Kester,
who's term limited and cannot run for the Colorado Senate again next
year, said McInnis is wrong when he says the Pinon issue isn't a
property-rights matter.
The Army has been trying to find sellers
to expand the 238,000-acre training site, but Southeast Colorado
residents fear it will use condemnation rights to get what it wants.
Despite that, McInnis has repeatedly said the state should actively
embrace expansion because it would mean more jobs.
"I understand
where McInnis is coming from, but I also know that he's on the wrong
side of that issue," Kester said. "It absolutely is a property-rights
issue, whether Scott wants to admit it nor not."
Besides that, the longtime state legislator says he really likes Penry.
He isn't alone.
Penry,
who's Senate minority leader, has the support of most of his Republican
colleagues. Of the 14 senators in the Colorado Legislature, nine are
backing Penry (in addition to himself, of course). Of the 24 GOP
representatives in the Colorado House, 15 are behind him.
McInnis
has endorsements from only four House members, all of whom represent
parts of El Paso County, where most of the support for the Pinon
expansion can be found. Springs legislators fear not expanding the
training area would upset Army officials who could then shift troops to
other posts.
Sean Duffy, spokesman for the McInnis camp, said
the difference in legislative endorsements won't matter in the end. As
governor, McInnis would still be able to get GOP support for his
initiatives, he said.
"We are also blessed with a large and
growing number of county and municipal elected officials as well,"
Duffy said. "There is a big state out there beyond a couple of square
blocks in downtown Denver."
Other Southern Colorado Republican
lawmakers who have thrown their support for Penry include Rep. Tom
Massey, R-Poncha Springs, and Sen. Greg Brophy, R-Wray, whose district
includes Prowers and Kiowa counties.
He also has the support of some El Paso lawmakers, including Sen. Keith King and Rep. Amy Stephens.
Penry
spokesman Andrew Cole said it is a big deal having so many elected
state lawmakers in his camp because it means he won't have any trouble
working with the Legislature and a testament of how well Penry works
with others, regardless of political ideology.
"The people who
have seen Josh do battle with Governor Ritter every day at the state
Capitol, the people who chose him to be the Republican leader in the
Senate, the people who know him well have overwhelmingly come out in
support of his candidacy," Cole said.
Kester said that if
McInnis should become governor, he'd have a hard, if not impossible,
time mending fences with Southeast Coloradans over his Pinon stance.
"I
don't know if he could work well with other people as well as I've seen
Josh work with people," he said. "I think he's pandering to El Paso
County because there's a lot of votes that he'll get there. There's
lots more votes there than there are in the rural area.
"There's
a lot of counties down here that oppose the expansion," he added. "I
don't know how he would patch that up. I question whether it could be
done. They're pretty adamant about their feelings."
After
meeting with McInnis on the subject in Walsenburg earlier this month,
the Pinon Canyon Expansion Opposition Coalition announced it not only
would oppose McInnis' candidacy for governor, but actively campaign
against him.
The group, however, has not taken a stance on
Ritter or Penry, who both have been outspoken in their opposition to
using condemnation to expand the training site.
