social issues

State Democrats went after Republican gubernatorial candidate Dino Rossi recently with a mocking press release comparing Rossi's policy on emergency contraception with a wistful Shakespearean sonnet.

"Shall I compare thee to a leaky bathtub?" the Washington State Democratic Party rhetorically asked in a press release in an attempt to show Rossi being thoughtless toward women's rights.

They say his position of not requiring pharmacies to carry certain contraceptives is a "crass...patently offensive and insensitive" representation of what Democrats call Rossi's "staunch opposition to a woman's right to choose".

An article in today's Seattle Times by Andrew Garber looks into Democratic Gov. Chris Gregoire and Republican Dino Rossi's positions on so-called social issues, and finds that the two differ more often than they agree.

The story compares the two gubernatorial candidates' positions on so-called social issues like reproductive rights, gay marriage, assisted suicide, stem cell research, the death penalty, emergency contraception and teaching abstinence and creationism in public schools.  

Just as important as the positions they take, the two candidates vary on what they consider to be legitimate campaign issues for the gubernatorial race. Rossi, quite famously, has said on numerous occasions that he is not running on these types of issues, something that has stuck in the craw of many Democrats.

Dino Rossi took questions on KUOW's "The Conversation" radio show this afternoon in Seattle. The main focus of his time was spent talking about his transportation plan, where he reiterated his message that his plan would provide more choices for commuters while his opponent Governor Chris Gregoire, refused to take a stand. Rossi also defended his plan's numbers and maintained that providing for alternate methods of transportation were not under the jurisdiction of the governor.

He was also asked by callers about his position on abortion rights and whether or not he would renounce the support of the Building Industry Association of Washington in response to their repeatedly controversial positions and comments.