Meet the Press
Last week, Meet the Press broadcasted a debate between the Senate candidates for the great red state of Oklahoma. This week, they aired a debate between between the Senate Candidates — Ken Salazar and Pete Coors — of the great purple state of Colorado. Read the transcript here… I did.
What we really need to see is the great debate between Pete Coors and Gene Amondson or Earl Dodge, the presidential candidates of the splintered Prohibition Party. These two candidates have ballot access in Colorado (and one of them is on the ballot in Louisiana), and I guess their big foe would have to be Colorado’s beer magnate… who happens to be running for the Senate.
Nothing too notable, and you don’t want to hitch your wagon to either candidate as the Great Last Ditch Hope for American Democracy. But, here’s the quiz for the day: Which candidate ran this ad?
Announcer #1: Osama bin Laden: Should he face the death penalty for murdering 3,000 Americans? [Other candidate] says no. Unbelievable.
Ugh. While we’re at it, “Patty Murray has a different opinion of Osama Bin Laden.”
The answer, in case you’re curious: Ken Salazar.
We turn to this exchange, after Coors comes out full force against gay marriage and gay adoption, and I’ll take my leave there.:
MR. RUSSERT: Then let me ask you about that. You have a brochure that I’ve read through which you’ve put out and distributed around the state, and you quote this article. “Coors…talked about how his great-grandfather emigrated to the United States and founded the Golden brewery in 1873. `Our company’s values are our family’s values,’ he said. `And our family’s values are Colorado’s values; …These are the values that I will bring to the United States Senate.'”
And then this on Tuesday from the Rocky Mountain News: “Pete Coors’ company will be among the sponsors of the Black & Blue 2004 Festival in Montreal, a weeklong gay benefit”–that begins tonight– “that attracts up to 80,000 people to events such as the Leather Rail, Raunch Fetish Night and a male nude revue. …Coors Light is one of two free beers that will be served at the official launch cocktail party. …Pete Coors is a social conservative who has campaigned against gay marriage.” And yet you oppose gay marriage, you oppose gay adoption. Why the conflict between the marketing your company does, which in effect tries to pander to the gay community, and these positions which are opposed to those taken by the gay community?
MR. COORS: Look, I’m very proud of our company. We’ve done many good things for lots of people in Colorado and around the country. I don’t–you used the word “pandering.” One of the values of our company is that we respect all of our employees and their hard work. We respect their passion, their integrity. One of our qualities or our values include equality, and that’s a company issue. It’s a company position. I feel very strongly that that’s the way it should be. Companies ought to be able to make decisions on how they deal with these issues.
MR. RUSSERT: You see no inconsistency between sponsoring male nude revues and fetish balls, and opposing gay adoption and gay marriage?
MR. COORS: I don’t.
MR. RUSSERT: None whatsoever.
MR. COORS: No.
MR. RUSSERT: And you’re comfortable sponsoring those kinds of events? That’s part of traditional family values?
MR. COORS: Look, this is a very–you know, people are going to have a lot of different ideas about what this is all about. But it is about recognizing that everybody–everyone in this country should be valued for what they are, and I believe that’s the way we recognize it at our company.
Gene Amondson would’ve nailed him.