Deborah Kafoury is pro-choice. Ignore the lies.

Kari Chisholm

"Nobody, especially the Oregon Family Council, with the slightest knowledge of my record could possibly think I was anti-choice. This truly is politics at its worst." ~Deborah Kafoury

In the race for Multnomah County Chair, only one candidate has been endorsed by NARAL Pro-Choice Oregon: Deborah Kafoury.

After all, her record on women's health and women's rights as a county commissioner and a state legislator is crystal clear.

Which is why it is so very, very strange that the Oregon Family Council -- an anti-choice, anti-gay organization -- listed Kafoury in their Voter's Guide as being anti-choice. A guide that went to over 30,000 households.

According to the Oregonian's Kelly House, Kafoury called it an "outrageous dirty trick", saying:

"Nobody, especially the Oregon Family Council, with the slightest knowledge of my record could possibly think I was anti-choice," she said. "This truly is politics at its worst."

The Oregon Family Council seems to think a "gee whiz, oops!" is in order. Executive director Jack Louman told the O:

"It's just one of those things that happens when you edit and print a lot of information all at once."

Yeah. Right.

Given that most Democrats are pro-choice and most Republicans are anti-choice, it's not exactly a hard thing to do to run two fingers down the two columns and look for contradictions.

In general, I tend to lean towards incompetence rather than malevolence as an explantion, but I'm not buying it this time. And neither is Kafoury's campaign, according to Willamette Week's Aaron Mesh:

"With voters having ballots in hand," writes Jillian Schoene, Kafoury's campaign manager, "the intent here is clear: falsely represent Ms. Kafoury's position on key issues that put her in direct conflict with the voters of Multnomah County, thus harming her candidacy for chair." ...

"First, none of the answers listed by Ms. Kafoury's name were provided by her," Schoene writes.

"Second, the two most egregious examples, choice and marriage equality, are two issues for which Ms. Kafoury has been a strong public advocate—which undoubtedly is well known by the Oregon Family Council, given its opposing views."

Kafoury may have a legal case against the OFC. ORS 260.532 prohibits the publication or circulation of any "a false statement of material fact relating to any candidate, political committee or measure." A successful plaintiff would be entitled to a minimum of $2500 plus attorney's fees, as well as "additional equitable relief" that may include "a requirement that a retraction of the false statement be disseminated".

By Kari Chisholm May 06, 2014