As part of our weekly roundup of articles about political extremism in Colorado, the Colorado Times Recorder is highlighting Jason Salzman’s analysis of evidence showing that GOP congressional candidate Gabe Evans was anti-LGBTQ+ throughout his life. He also reported on a series of misleading ads put out by the Denver Gazette. We are also highlighting Craig Mason’s Letter to the Editor analyzing state Rep. Brandi Bradley’s presidency of an anti-government group and reporting from Colorado Newsline’s Quinton Young on how a counterterrorism exhibit in Denver downplays the events of January 6th.
Anti-Gay Threads Run Through Congressional Candidate Gabe Evans’ Adult Life
Colorado congressional candidate Gabe Evans has been trying to distance himself from his 2004 letter to Colorado Community Media where he compared gay marriage to bestiality and pederasty. However, Evans also worked as a legislative aid for Colorado state Rep. Ted Harvey (R-Colorado Springs), who co-sponsored a resolution defining marriage as being between a man and a woman. Furthermore, the college Evans attended, Patrick Henry College, has students sign an anti-gay honor code. Evans has said that the institution prepared him well for his political career and has embraced the endorsement of the college’s founder, Michael Harris, a staunch opponent of LGBTQ+ rights who co-authored a 2003 Supreme Court brief that argued that gay sex should be “criminally punishable conduct.”
Anshutz’s Denver Gazette Stops Paying for Ads Promoting Falsehoods About Venezuelan Gangs in Aurora
The Denver Gazette was running four Facebook ads falsely claiming that, among other things, a “Venezuelan gang used violence to seize an Aurora apartment complex.” The Gazette’s Editor-at-Large Vince Bzdek did not respond to questions about the ads. The publication was launched in 2020 and is the property of Anschutz’s Clarity Media Group. Anschutz is also a major donor to conservative and Republican causes in Colorado and at a national level.
Should a State Legislator Participate in an ‘Anti-Government Group?’
Colorado state representative Brandi Bradley (R-Larkspur) recently began her presidency of the Douglas County Chapter of Moms for Liberty. Moms for Liberty is an explicitly anti-government group and described by the Southern Poverty Law Center as: “Moms for Liberty and its nationwide chapters combat what they consider the ‘woke indoctrination’ of children by advocating for book bans in school libraries and endorsing candidates for public office that align with the group’s views. They also use their multiple social media platforms to target teachers and school officials, advocate for the abolition of the Department of Education, advance conspiracy propaganda, and spread hateful imagery and rhetoric against the LGBTQ community.”
How a terrorism exhibit in Colorado distorts the story of Jan. 6
The CELL, Counterterrorism Education Learning Lab, is a permanent exhibit in Denver on terrorism and violent extremism. While initially billed as ‘transcending partisanship,’ it surprisingly downplays the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol and former President Donald Trump’s role in the event. Furthermore, one of the members of CELL’s board members, Larry Mizel, was Trump’s Colorado fundraising chairman in 2016 and, according to reports, is planning to host a visit to Denver by Trump’s running mate J.D. Vance next month. The CELL opened as a subsidiary of the Mizel Museum, an institution highlighting Jewish heritage and culture, which Mizel co-founded.
