We followed the Colorado governor’s race just a bit. The winner, Bill Ritter, is a Catholic (whose participation in a Mass in celebration of his office on his inauguration day was a matter of some controversy) and this was his campaign stance on abortion:

Based on my faith, I am personally opposed to abortion. But I recognize that people who disagree with me on this issue hold equally strong convictions. We all would like to see fewer women facing an unintended pregnancy. To reach this common ground, we must:

• Make a stronger commitment to family planning. I will restore the funding to Planned Parenthood.
• Ensure better access to health care for all women, including birth control and emergency contraception without a doctor’s prescription.

Because, you see, women are pretty, pretty stupid and need Planned Parenthood and the government to help them figure stuff out.

But that’s not the point. Just a month after his election, Ritter announced his intention to see funding restored to Planned Parenthood. In his most recent column, Archbishop Chaput criticizes this:

Governor Bill Ritter packed a great deal of good will, good sense and hope into his first “state of the state” message to Colorado legislators on Jan. 11. This is consistent with the man. His desire to improve

Colorado

health care and education is admirable. So is his emphasis on judging all potential legislation by the same standard — specifically, in his words, “How does this [bill] create a better future for our children and our children’s children?”

Now comes the hard part: governing. In the long run, all of us — homemakers, shopkeepers, clergy, athletes and public officials — are judged by what we do, not by what we say. How our words translate into action shapes what we accomplish and what we become.

In that light, Mr. Ritter’s stated commitment to “restore eligibility requirements for state funding for pregnancy prevention and family planning programs” is seriously flawed public policy. It’s hard to have a future “for our children and our children’s children” without children, and in practice, Planned Parenthood specializes in the business of preventing them. Even more troubling is Planned Parenthood’s long involvement in abortion “rights” and the lethal services associated with them. Helping women kill their unborn children abuses the real well-being of women. It also violates the dignity of unborn children in a brutally intimate and permanent way.

The day after Governor Ritter’s speech,

Denver

’s Channel 9 reported that he “would take steps to allow organizations such as Planned Parenthood to get state funding again if they can prove state money isn’t used to fund abortions [emphasis added].” Mr. Ritter ran as a pro-life candidate and has always stated that he opposes abortion. As he begins his public service, it’s reasonable to believe him. The new governor has been engaged and active in his Catholic faith for many years, and remains so.

Nonetheless, it’s very hard to reconcile anyone who is “pro-life” with any support for Planned Parenthood and its destructive record.

The Denver Post on the conflict