This came through today.
MJ Hatfield
GREENS SAY SIERRA CLUB IGNORES THEM
Valerie Richardson
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
DENVER When Dave Chandler decided to run for Congress on
the Green Party ticket, he figured that winning the Sierra
Club's endorsement would be a no-brainer.
Not only is Mr. Chandler a card-carrying member of the club,
he's also the chairman of its Jefferson County, Colo.,
chapter. So he was flabbergasted when the influential
environmental group passed him over in favor of the
Democratic candidate in Colorado's newly created 7th
District, Mike Feeley.
Mr. Chandler's situation isn't unique. In Colorado and
beyond, a deep rift has emerged between the Sierra Club and
Green Party, whose candidates complain they're being
systematically jilted in favor of Democratic foes even
when the Democrats can't match their records on the
environment.
"What people are saying is, if you're a Green Party
candidate running for office and you don't get the Sierra
Club's endorsement, it doesn't mean you're not a good
environmentalist," Mr. Chandler said. "It means you're not a
good Democrat."
All this has Republicans, who have long accused the Sierra
Club of acting as a shill for the Democratic Party, saying
"I told you so."
"It's just another clear piece of evidence that the Sierra
Club is a partisan arm of the Democratic Party," said Dick
Wadhams, campaign manager for Sen. Wayne Allard, Colorado
Republican. "It's bought and paid for by the Democratic
Party."
Sierra Club officials strenuously deny that they
automatically support Democrats. Susan LeFever, director of
the club's Rocky Mountain chapter, said that local
committees, not the national organization, decide which
candidates will receive endorsements.
The committees consider a variety of factors, including a
candidate's experience and "viability," or likelihood of
success.
"We look at a lot of things, not just the candidates'
positions on the issues," Miss LeFever said.
That's why, for example, the Colorado club has endorsed Rep.
Mark Udall, a Democrat, over Republican challenger Sandy
Hume, an officer in the club's Boulder County chapter.
"When Sandy Hume is running against Mark Udall in an area
that votes heavily Democratic, then we have to look at
that," Miss LeFever said.
She pointed out that the club has endorsed a Green Party
candidate in Fort Collins, Colo., and a Republican state
legislator. But Mr. Chandler, who previously sat on the
club's political committee, called such endorsements "window
dressing."
"I remember when I was on the political committee,
scrambling to find a Republican, any Republican, to
endorse," Mr. Chandler said. "That's tokenism mostly."
Dean Myerson, the Green Party's national political
coordinator, said the party has long chafed over the Sierra
Club's Democratic tilt in races throughout the nation.
"It's been a long-term problem in many places," he said.
"Clearly, a lot of Greens feel they're excessively tied to
Democratic Party candidates."
The Chandler race isn't the only Colorado race where
tensions are running high. Last week, the Green Party's
attorney general candidate, Alison "Sunny" Maynard, resigned
from the club after 15 years when she was snubbed in favor
of Democratic incumbent Ken Salazar.
"As to every issue which matters to the Sierra Club, I am on
the right side and Salazar is on the wrong side," said Miss
Maynard in an Oct. 16 press release.
She added that she has devoted 700 hours of free legal work
to the club.
"When the environment has been threatened, I've been the one
in the trenches, without compensation from Sierra Club," she
said.
In at least one race, the Sierra Club has remained silent
rather than back a non-Democrat. Eric Rechel, a Green Party
candidate for state legislature from Grand Junction, said
the group has ignored his endorsement request, even though
he's running against a Republican in a race with no Democrat
and is the chairman of the Sierra Club's regional chapter.
"I would think they'd want to promote candidates that
support that ideal" of protecting the environment, Mr.
Rechel said. "It's like they say one thing and mean
another."
Mr. Rechel assumes his lack of candidate "viability" he
estimates his chances of winning at less than 5 percent
nixed his chances for an endorsement.
But if "winnability" is so important, Mr. Chandler said, the
club would not have endorsed the Democrats' gubernatorial
candidate Rollie Heath, who is trailing Republican incumbent
Gov. Bill Owens in the polls by more than 40 percent.
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This article was mailed from The Washington Times
(http://www.washtimes.com/national/20021021-98505406.htm)
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