Houck calls fliers on his record an 'abomination'

Virginia Sen. Edd Houck, D-Spotsylvania, said Tuesday that it’s an “abomination” to turn religion into a political weapon as he lashed out at a Christian PAC that has accused him of working to “destroy biblical family values.”

Last week, the Fredericksburg-based No Excuse Ministry PAC held an event at Calvary Christian Church in Fredericksburg during which organizers distributed plastic fetuses and a flier detailing Houck’s voting record on subjects such as abortion, school prayer and embryonic stem-cell research. The flier asks voters to consider whether Houck’s record favors “concerned families” of the 17th District or the “abortion/promiscuity business.”

Houck, a 28-year incumbent who chairs the Senate Committee on Education and Health, faces a GOP challenger this year in Bryce Reeves, a former chairman of the Spotsylvania County Republican Committee. As a result of redistricting, the 17th District now covers all or part of nine precincts in Albemarle County. The district also includes Orange County, Fredericksburg and portions of Culpeper, Louisa and Spotsylvania counties.

During a visit to Charlottesville’s Jefferson Area Board for Aging to reiterate his support for funding to care for the elderly, Houck responded to the PAC’s characterization of his record, saying he has voted in a way that “trusts women to make health-care decisions about themselves without the interference of government.”

“Well this No Excuse PAC has turned those votes protecting rights of women to make their own health care decisions so that I am now an antithesis to traditional biblical values,” Houck said. “I think it’s one interpretation of what the holy scriptures say. I think it is an abomination to pull the Bible and to use churches in the way that my opponent is doing in this campaign. It’s way over the top. The holy scriptures are something that each person finds their own way of understanding and believing in, but to turn that into a political weapon using large amounts of Republican money is repulsive. And I hope the voters will be repulsed by what’s going on.”

The PAC was created in July by pro-life activist and former financial consultant Terry Beatley, of Fredericksburg. The group’s website touts the endorsement of Speaker of the House William J. Howell, R-Fredericksburg, whose campaign committee contributed $10,000 to the PAC, according to the Virginia Public Access Project.

Houck characterized Beatley as a “consultant to the Reeves campaign” and said Reeves’s campaign workers have also been involved.

“His workers wear T-shirts, stickers and are handing out these highly inflammatory and inaccurate statements about me,” Houck said.

Beatley said she is mainly working to draw attention to Houck’s record on abortion-related parental rights, adding that she’s not involved in the Reeves campaign.

“I am not part of his campaign. I certainly know Bryce, but I am not part of his campaign. Bryce does not know what I am up to,” Beatley said. “I know it bothers Edd Houck tremendously, but that’s his problem.”

Beatley, who described herself as a mother of two girls, said Houck shouldn’t put on his “king-politician crown” and override parents’ involvement in their child’s decisions about abortion.

“The only way the abortion industry can keep a pipeline of young people coming into their facilities is to undermine parental rights,” Beatley said. “Everything shows that he’s perfectly aligned himself with Planned Parenthood and the abortion industry. If an 18-year-old wants to go kill her baby, that’s the law. But if that kid’s younger than 18, that’s my child. She’s on my insurance.”

The PAC’s flier pointed specifically to Houck’s 1997 vote against a bill requiring parental notification before allowing abortions to be performed on unemancipated minors, with exceptions in cases of abuse and medical necessity. The flier also highlights Houck’s vote against a controversial new law that requires all clinics that perform first-trimester abortions to be regulated as hospitals, which opponents say could shut down many abortion clinics.

Beatley said she thinks Houck is simply “misguided” rather than “evil,” and rejected his characterization of her group’s infusion of religion into politics as an “abomination.”

“The only thing we have to stand on to know the difference between right and wrong is the word of God,” Beatley said. “And simply put, killing unborn babies and annihilating parental rights is about as anti-biblical as it can get.”

Beatley said she hopes her PAC can influence other elections, but declined to give specifics on further plans.

Reeves said Beatley is not involved in his campaign, and pointed to the creation of a Planned Parenthood phone bank in Roanoke on Houck’s behalf.

“This is an extremely important election. And there are many groups involved in this race,” Reeves said. “But you don’t see me complaining.”

Jessica Honke, the director of public policy for Planned Parenthood Advocates of Virginia, said her group is working across the state to aid Houck’s campaign.

“We are working … to ensure his re-election because he has a 28-year record of being a true champion for women’s rights,” Honke said.

Reeves said the election is about job creation, not social issues.

“There’s only one concern on the mind of our voters right now. And that’s jobs,” Reeves said. “Job creation and job growth, and that’s where we are.”

The two men will face off in the Nov. 8 general election, when Republicans will look to gain three additional seats that would give them the majority in the 40-member Senate.