We hear from friends out in the Springfield area that Rep. Benjamin Swan (D-Springfield) charged his primary opponent at a forum last night with misrepresenting his record. In a campaign pamphlet, challenger Norman Oliver said that Swan supported same-sex "marriage" and abortion.
Rep. Swan said that was not accurate, and he'd never voted that way in the Massachusetts Legislature. But it appears that Swan is fudging his record. Just look at those culture-of-death endorsements (below)! You don't get a group's endorsement unless you fully support its agenda.
Rep. Swan was a co-sponsor of House Bill 977 (2005-6 session) which would create same-sex "marriage" in statute. Not only does this prove he’s pro-same-sex "marriage" -- it proves he knows it’s still not legal. (The SJC ordered the Legislature to bring the statutes in line with their 2003 Goodridge ruling, which it still has not done. This bill is “in study”, meaning the Judiciary Committee shelved it for the session.)
Rep. Swan has been endorsed in 2006 by the Mass. Gay and Lesbian Political Caucus (MGLPC). MGLPC is the main lobbying group in the State House and their chief lobbyist, Bill Conley, was recently arrested for soliciting UMass college boys.
Rep. Swan was endorsed in 2004 by these groups lobbying for same-sex "marriage": MGLPC; Freedom to Marry Coalition; MassEquality; Lesbian-Gay-Bisexual-Transgender Political Alliance of Western Massachusetts; and SupportEquality. In both 2004 and 2005, he voted against the Travaglini-Lees amendment which would have banned same-sex "marriage" but allowed civil unions. And a few years back, he voted to adjourn unconstitutionally the Constitutional Convention without voting on the first citizens' marriage amendment.
Mass.Citizens for Life has detailed voting records, but all you really need to know is that Rep. Swan got 100% ratings for 2005 from Mass. NARAL (National Abortion Rights Action League) and the Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts Advocacy Fund. And he voted for the "buffer zone" around abortion clinics to keep protesters at distance.
Swan also has a serious delinquent tax problem, according to the Springfield newspaper. Add to that his 0% rating for 2005 from Citizens for Limited Taxation -- and this all makes for a losing profile.
