The Messenger: Values bus rolls into FD with its message

Presidential candidates should be judged on their views regarding faith, life and marriage, according to some congressmen and leaders of conservative groups who visited Fort Dodge Friday morning.

This article first appeared online at MessengerNews.net on August 13, 2011.

Values bus rolls into FD with its message

King: Base votes on faith and family issues

August 13, 2011, By BILL SHEA, Messenger staff writer, Messenger News

Presidential candidates should be judged on their views regarding faith, life and marriage, according to some congressmen and leaders of conservative groups who visited Fort Dodge Friday morning.

The group, which included U.S. Rep. Steve King, R-Kiron, arrived at the City Square as part of the Values Voter Bus Tour which has traveled throughout Iowa in advance of Saturday’s Republican straw poll in Ames. About 15 members of the public were on hand for a presentation in which King stated his pro-life position.

”I believe that human life is sacred in all of its forms, and it begins at the instant of conception,” he said.

The bus tour was organized by the Susan B. Anthony List, a Washington, D.C.-based group that tries to get pro-life candidates, especially women, elected. Former U.S. Rep. Marilyn Musgrave, R-Colo., a leader of the organization, listed what it is seeking in a president.

She said the group is seeking a president who will appoint pro-life Supreme Court justices and Cabinet members. She added that a president who will end federal funding for Planned Parenthood is desired. Lastly, she said, the group seeks a president who will push for legislation to make late-term abortions illegal.

”Where you stand on the sanctity of human life speaks volumes about you,” Musgrave said.

U.S. Rep. Louie Gohmert, R-Texas, congratulated Iowans for removing three state Supreme Court justices who voted to make same sex marriage legal.

”We ought to be inspiring homes to be composed of a father and a mother,” he said.

Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council, said there is a link between big government and weak families.

”If we want to shrink the size of the federal government, we need to strengthen the family,” he said.

Perkins criticized staffers in the U.S. Department of Education, saying they are ”indoctrinating our children and turning them against the values of our parents.”

Chris Plante, executive director of the Rhode Island chapter of the National Organization for Marriage, said Iowans deserve to vote on the issue of same sex marriage.

Jennifer Bowen, executive director of Iowa Right to Life, criticized Planned Parenthood for providing abortion services.

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