Montezuma County Republican Party Chair Lenetta Shull chastised Colorado GOP Chair Dave Williams over the “transphobic email” the state party sent out last week during a Sunday evening “grassroots town hall meeting” held via Zoom. According to a recording of the event obtained by the Colorado Times Recorder, Shull raised concerns about the impact the email is having on the Senate District 6 race.
In another targeted attack against transgender people, the Colorado GOP, represented by Director of Special Initiatives Darcy Schoening, sent an email calling on the state’s school boards to resist enacting recent updates to Title IX that protect transgender students from discrimination on the basis of gender identity.
Williams' fearmongering follows the legacy of the Colorado Ku Klux Klan before him.
Last week, the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) released its annual report of hate and antigovernment groups across the U.S. Among the 30 groups in Colorado identified by the report were four chapters of Moms for Liberty.
Rep. Stephanie Vigil (D-Colorado Springs) responded yesterday to Colorado GOP Director of Special Initiatives Darcy Schoening’s recent party-wide email urging parents to remove their kids from public schools and claiming Democrats want to “turn more kids trans.” Schoening’s email specifically identified legislation sponsored by Vigil, this year’s House Bill 1039, Non-legal Name Changes in Schools.
The 2024 Colorado Republican State Assembly in Pueblo this weekend showcased the priorities of the party heading into the November election — banning gender-affirming care for trans people, continuing to deny the validity of the 2020 election, downplaying the Jan. 6 insurrection, antagonism toward migrants and immigration, and full-throated support for former President Donald Trump. The keynote speakers for the event included Christina Bobb, the former Trump lawyer and subject of a Department of Justice investigation into obstruction of justice connected to Trump’s handling of classified documents, and U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), who is currently under investigation by the House Ethics Committee for alleged sexual misconduct with an underage girl.
The initiatives were denied on the basis that they violated the single subject rule.
This week, the Colorado Title Board approved two ballot initiatives targeting transgender people in Colorado. “Public Athletic Programs for Minors,” which would require transgender athletes to compete according to their sex assigned at birth in school or intramural athletics, and “Prohibit Certain Medical Procedures for Minors,” which would ban gender-affirming care for anyone under 18, had their titles set during Tuesday’s meeting.
The Colorado GOP’s leadership will hold a vote in January to formally endorse former President Donald Trump. This decision takes place despite a number of obstacles, including a longstanding tradition of party neutrality in primaries and the fact that the state’s Supreme Court just ruled Trump is not allowed on the ballot.
Darcy Schoening, co-chair of the El Paso County Moms for Liberty chapter, has announced that she is leaving the organization.
