First Congressional District Race.
As you now know, the primary for the House seat in the First Congressional District was decided with no big surprises.
The very well-funded State Senator, Suzanne Bonamici, easily won the Democratic Primary and Rob Cornilles easily won the Republican Primary.
The race to replace disgraced Democrat David Wu is receiving national attention since it is not taking place during a regular election cycle. Of Oregon’s five Congressional Districts, four of them have been held by enemies of gun rights. With David Wu now out of the picture, this race could replace him with another outspoken opponent of the Second Amendment (Bonamici) or a supporter of liberty. But here’s the problem. While we know where Bonamici stands because of her terrible record in the Oregon Legislature, her opponent, Republican Rob Cornilles, has no voting record and has so far refused to say where he stands on gun rights. As of today, November 12,Cornilles’ website makes no mention of the issue.
If he is willing to stand up for liberty, he could be a tremendous asset in Congress. If he is another middle-of-the-road, establishment politician, he will be of no use to gun owners at all.
During the primary, Cornilles would not take a position on gun rights. Some of the other candidates, even those who opposed gun rights, went on the record. Now that the general election is looming, knowing his position on the Second Amendment is more important than ever.
Minor party candidates can file for this race until December 1. It is possible that a minor party candidate may file who is unapologetically pro-gun. That’s why we need to know if the major party candidate actually believes in your rights.
Whether you live in the First Congressional District or not, the winner of this special election will be casting votes that effect your life and your liberty. With two militantly anti-gun senators and three sitting congressman who oppose your rights, this election will be pivotal in the fights ahead.
Please consider contacting Rob Cornilles and urging him to complete our candidate survey so we have some indication if he plans to stand up for your rights, or like Suzanne Bonamici, work to undermine them.
UPDATE 11.25.11
We have received scores of copies of the form email the Cornilles campaign has sent to voters who asked him to answer our survey. Usually the text consists of the following message:
“Rob has taken a consistent position in the last two cycles regarding his strong support for the 2nd Amendment whenever he has been asked about it or whenever it comes up on the stump.
As a rule, due to a lack of sufficient time/staff, we do not respond to any of the myriad of questionnaires sent to this office on a daily basis by the entire spectrum of advocacy groups. If we did so, our staff would be overwhelmed.
However, I would be happy to discuss Rob’s strong support for the 2nd Amendment. Please call HQ at 503.922.2014 and ask for me.
Regards,
Mike C.”
What makes this perplexing is that they have no time to answer a very short survey, but they have time to take many phone calls and send out countless form emails saying they have no time to answer a survey. Unfortunately what this translates into is “Take our word for it, but don’t expect us to go on the record.”
What’s even more troubling is the email one OFF supporter received which said “We did receive an A rating from the NRA last year in our run vs Congressman Wu – without answering their questionnaire. Instead,they spoke with us and we explained our positions.”
So the NRA gives “A” ratings to candidates who have never held office, have no voting record and won’t put their positions on the record.
Politicians make lots of promises. Often they even break the ones they have put in writing, but refusing to even commit to a position is cause for alarm. We encourage you to keep after Cornilles.
Contact info and a sample message follow:
Rob Cornilles
P.O. Box 2272
Tualatin, OR 97062
503.922.2014
______________________________________________________________________
Dear Rob,
I am concerned that you have refused to take a position on Second Amendment rights.
I notice you make no mention of this important issue on your website and you have not responded to requests from the Oregon Firearms Federation to complete their short survey.
In a state where almost all of our Federal representatives are hostile to gun rights, as is your opponent, it is very important to me to know where you stand.
I strongly urge you to respond to OFF’s survey so voters in your district, and potential utors nationwide, have an accurate idea of your position.
Sincerely,
_______________
_____________________________________________________________________