A September 3 article in the Greeley Tribune uncritically reported that former Fort Collins Mayor Ray Martinez “criticizes Gov. Bill Ritter [D] for changing his position to allow abortion and supporting funding for programs such as Planned Parenthood” in his recent self-published memoir, Baby Boy-R (iUniverse Inc., August 2007). The article, however, failed to point out that -- according to widespread reporting before and since his election -- Ritter has expressed his personal opposition to abortion and has publicly stated his intention to restore funding for Planned Parenthood's family-planning and pregnancy-prevention programs, but not for abortions.

For example, before becoming the 2006 Democratic gubernatorial nominee, Ritter made clear he is “personally opposed to abortion” and that he “intend[ed] to use [his position as governor] to lower the abortion rate ... through prevention, not restriction or criminalization,” according to a November 13, 2006, New Republic article (accessed through the Nexis database). The New Republic article -- “Life Term,” by Amy Sullivan -- further reported that during a campaign meeting with “pro-choice women,” Ritter “made a clear distinction to the gathering of women between being pro-life and pro-life. He would have no agenda to change the current law regarding abortion as governor.” The article reported that Ritter “would overturn an executive order issued by Republican Governor Bill Owens disqualifying women's health clinics from getting state funding for teen pregnancy prevention programs if they also provided abortions. And he would sign legislation allowing emergency contraception, a bill that Owens had vetoed.”

Likewise, as Colorado Media Matters has noted, it was widely reported during the 2006 gubernatorial race that Ritter pledged to reverse Owens' 1999 decision that banned state funding for Planned Parenthood. As The Denver Post reported in a May 21, 2006, article (accessed through Nexis) about Ritter's nomination, Ritter “addressed abortion rights issues by promising to restore state funding to Planned Parenthood that was cut by Gov. Bill Owens and to support access to the so-called morning-after pill.”

According to the article published in the Tribune, “Martinez, 55, is best known as the three-term mayor of Fort Collins with ambitions for higher office. Most recently he was known for riling the political sensibilities of people on both sides of the political aisle through his attempts at influencing the last election with a 527 organization.” The article, by Erin Frustaci, further reported that Martinez's “recent memoir” -- about his search for his biological mother -- is “a literary hodgepodge of factual reports that seem more typical of a police docket, motivational snippets, self-help catch-phrases, passages of faith and religious experiences that could be found on the shelves of Christian book stores and political commentaries because, after all, he is a politician.” The article noted:

“My mother was a victim of rape,” Martinez solemnly said. “When she told me, I flashed back to people who were angry with me for my stance on abortion.”

Martinez sees his beliefs on abortion as “intuition” because as he tells people, being pro-choice would have be like cutting his own throat.

“I can't do that,” he said.

His mother, who was a teenager at the time, delivered the baby at a relative's house and was told that he didn't survive.

And so, his book dips into the political realm. Chapter 15, titled “Politics Gets In the Way of Life,” criticizes Gov. Bill Ritter for changing his position to allow abortion and supporting funding for programs such as Planned Parenthood. He also includes a letter he wrote to First Lady Laura Bush after speaking at a conference for Helping America's Youth. In it, he says, “I am a living example of why mothers of unwanted children should think twice before considering an abortion as the only alternative.”

While Ritter has publicly stated his opposition to abortion, he did say during an August 11, 2006, debate with Republican gubernatorial candidate Bob Beauprez that he would not support legislation to ban abortion if it did not allow abortions for exceptions such as fetal anomalies, incest, and rape.

But in reporting Martinez's criticism of Ritter, Frustaci's article provided no substantiation for the assertion that Ritter “changed his position” on abortion and funding for Planned Parenthood. In fact, an August 12, 2006, Rocky Mountain News article (accessed through Nexis) about the August 11 debate noted, “Ritter stressed that his focus [as governor] would be on preventing unintended pregnancies by reversing Owens' executive order baring (sic) funding of Planned Parenthood for family planning education and teen pregnancy prevention.” Following Ritter's election, the Post reported on January 16 that “Ritter, a Catholic who describes himself as 'pro-life,' wants to lift an order by his predecessor, Republican Bill Owens, also a Catholic. The order restricted groups that perform abortions from getting state money for family planning and pregnancy prevention.”

The Post also reported that, according to Ritter spokesman Evan Dreyer, "[o]nly family-planning groups that show they can segregate state funds from money spent on abortions would be eligible" for funding. Dreyer also “emphasized Ritter is opposed to funding abortions” and stated, " 'The governor believes strongly it is good public policy to attempt to reduce unintended pregnancies, and that is his goal,' " according to the article.

Moreover, Ritter announced in his January 11 State of the State address his intention to fulfill a campaign promise to restore state funding for “pregnancy-prevention and family planning programs.” Ritter has stated that his plan, consistent with the Colorado Constitution, would not fund abortions, as Colorado Media Matters has noted.