August 25, 2013 08:15 AM UTC

Chairman Call Distances Self From Unapologetic Sen. Marble

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• by: Colorado Pols

The Denver Post's Lynn Bartels follows up this week's biggest story in Colorado politics:

The chairman of the Colorado Republican Party says a state senator's "careless" remarks about minorities and their eating habits don't reflect the views of the state party…

"Sen. Marble's careless comments do not reflect the views of Republicans," GOP chairman Ryan Call said in a statement issued Thursday.

"Since the time of Abraham Lincoln, the GOP has a proud history of standing up for minorities, and we are committed to fighting for policies that ensure every American has the opportunity to succeed."

But as the Fort Collins Coloradoan's Patrick Malone reports, Sen. Vicki Marble herself sees nothing whatsoever to apologize for:

During a presentation Wednesday on economic disparities between races in Colorado, Marble said minorities such as blacks and Hispanics should be aware that they are at greater risk of certain genetic health problems that are made worse by their dietary preferences. She named barbecue and chicken as favorites of blacks, which drew an angry reaction from Fields.

“I think it’s funny when you show care and try to get down to the nuts and bolts of everything, and all of a sudden you’re a racist,” Marble said Thursday. “I did think about whether I should say what I said. But I thought, ‘If I don’t start this dialogue, who will?’ Nobody else is going to ask that trigger question: What about our diet? I went there because somebody had to start the dialogue.”

Marble had no apology to offer, although she concedes she could have worded things differently.

After the Republican primary in June of 2012, we took note of now-Sen. Marble's victory over the immeasurably more qualified and comparatively moderate GOP Rep. Glenn Vaad of Mead. Marble won that primary with the support of "Tea Party," "9/12" groups, Ken Buck, and perhaps most importantly for today's discussion, the Rocky Mountain Gun Owners. Locals warned us to watch for Marble to become "the new Dan Maes" due to her propensity for free-ranging, rambling monologues running the entire gamut of fringe conservative half-truths and conspiracy theories. Before this incident, Sen. Marble had raised eyebrows on numerous occasions for suddenly injecting a long tirade of blathering nonsense into an otherwise rational debate.

We commend GOP chairman Ryan Call for making no attempt to defend Sen. Marble's clearly indefensible comments. FOX 31's Eli Stokols reports in the video above, however, that other Republicans weren't willing to make a similar statement–perhaps recalling that Marble was elected with the support of the all-powerful Dudley Brown? But privately, there have to be some Republicans today wishing they had stood by Glenn Vaad.