Jim Gilmore for Senate

Tape has surfaced of liberal former Virginia Governor and current Democrat candidate for US Senate Mark Warner attacking conservative members of the Republican Party as “threatening to what it means to be an American.”

At a Democrat event when Warner was running for Governor around 2001, he made the following statement, in a YouTube link released by Republican Jim Gilmore’s campaign.

“you’re going to see a coalition that has just about completely taken over the Republican Party in this state and if they have their way, it’s going to take over state government. It’s made up of the Christian Coalition, it’s made up of the right to lifers, it’s made up of the NRA, it’s made up of the homeschoolers, it’s made up of a whole coalition of people that have all sorts of different views that I think most of us in this room would find threatening to what it means to be an American.”

What compounds the problem further is that Warner denied making the statement in the Richmond Times Dispatch.

Not surprising to hear from Warner what liberal Democrats really think of Christians, NRA members, pro-lifers and homeschoolers. Ranks right up there with the candidate he supports for President who talked about people “clinging to guns and religion.”

The video below contains audio of Democratic Senate candidate (and former Virginia governor) Mark Warner. If you are a Christian, a homeschooler, a Republican, or a gun owner, you’ve every right to be offended.

It’s simply outrageous. If a Republican made statements like this there would be outrage everywhere. But because Mr. Warner is a Democrat, he’ll get a pass. Pass this on to everyone you know. This is what is at stake in this election.

Richmond, VA (LifeNews.com) — Mark Warner is a former Virginia governor who is running for a U.S. Senate seat and is a strong supporter of Barack Obama. A new audio recording has surfaced showing Warner saying that pro-life advocates and other conservatives are “threatening to what it means to be an American.”

The remark is making the rounds of the Internet and reminding pro-life voters of the off-putting comment Obama made in Pennsylvania earlier in the campaign that conservative and pro-life rural voters “cling to guns or religion.”

Warner’s Republican opponent and former Gov. Jim Gilmore has already turned the audio of the comments into a new television commercial.

The comments feature Warner talking about political opponents at a Democratic Party gathering.

“One of the things you’re going to see is a coalition that has just about completely taken over the Republican Party in this state, and if they have their way they’re going to take over state government,” Warner says.

“It’s made up of the Christian Coalition. It’s made up of the right to lifers,” Warner continues.

“It’s made up of a coalition of people that have all sorts of different views that I think most of us in this room would find threatening to what it means to be an American,” he concludes.

Ken Shepherd, a columnist with the media monitoring blog NewsBusters says it will be interesting if the media report on this gaffe and attack on pro-life and other conservative voters.

“With Virginia as a battleground state in the 2008 election and given Democrat Barack Obama’s damaging gaffe earlier this year about rural voters clinging ‘to guns or religion,’ a new gaffe by another Democrat should be worthy of media attention,’ he says.

“It remains to be seen if the mainstream media will even notice.”

Just a tremendous interview with Jim Gilmore over at Bearing Drift, and Gilmore has become one of the most eloquent opponents of reckless government bailouts of failing business – in a sense propping up broken companies that will simply continue on life support. He does a great job of doing the right thing instead of doing some thing.

The “Virginia Politics On-Demand” crew played host to former Virginia governor Jim Gilmore, Republican candidate for U.S. Senate, on tonight’s podcast.

This past week, Gov. Gilmore has called on his opponent, former Virginia governor Mark Warner, to participate in one additional televised debate due to Warner’s support for the bailout bill. Gilmore has also called into question Warner’s comments that he made regarding the NRA, home schooling, and people of faith. Warner called them a “threat to America.”

Gilmore joined Danae Jones, Shaun Kenney, and Jim Hoeft for about 35 minutes, and discussed a myriad of issues ranging from gun control to pro-life issues; the financial bailout to tax rates; energy costs to his views on “bi-partisanship”.

The governor might be a little down in the polls, but he came out swinging in this lively discussion.

Gilmore Campaign Demands Warner Apologize for the Remarks and for Lying About Them

Alexandria – The Jim Gilmore for Senate Campaign released a statement today after Mark Warner admitted this weekend that he made disparaging remarks about people of Christian faith, pro-lifers, home schoolers and NRA members — calling them “threatening” to “what it means to be an American”:

“After repeatedly denying for years that he made these intolerant statements, Mark Warner this weekend finally owned up to the hurtful remarks after an audio recording of him making these demeaning comments was made public, ” said Ana Gamonal, the Gilmore Campaign Communications Director.

“What is even sadder than his admitting that he had lied, after of years of denial, is the best Mark Warner could offer was that his comments were perhaps “over the top” and that he had “learned a lot” since then, with no offer of an apology to the people he attacked by inferring they were un-American,” Gamonal said.[1]

“Mark Warner owes Virginians several apologies. One, for making these statements in the first place; Second, for repeatedly “angrily” denying he did so and calling those who were confronting him on it, “disrespectful”, when in fact he was the one being disrespectful.[2]And third, for his lack of sincerity throughout this entire Senate campaign, where he has attempted to paint himself as a “centrist”, while at the same time attesting to the sentiments expressed in these statements, by affirming he would not support Supreme Court justices like of Justice Scalia or Justice Thomas, calling them “out of the mainstream,” Gamonal declared.[3]

“Now, Virginians will be able to hear first hand and in his own words, how Mark Warner really feels about so many of the values Virginians hold dear.”

“One of the things you are going to see is a coalition that is just about completely taken over the Republican Party in this state and if they have their way it’s going to take over state government. It is made up of the Christian Coalition, but not just them. It is made up of the right-to-lifers, but not just them. It’s made up of the NRA, but not just them. It is made up of the home schoolers, but not just them. It’s made up of a whole coalition of people that have all sorts of differing views that I think most of us in this room would find threatening to what it means to be an American.”

Mark Warner, May 1994