Nonsense in the Ninth: Adam Chaprales needs to come clean

In my time up in Massachusetts, I've had the privilege of getting to know Chris Sheldon, who's running for Congress in the Republican primary for District 9.

Sheldon's primary opponent, Adam Chaprales, has made a number of...odd...statements over the past few years, and continued that pattern during this election cycle. 

A few years ago, the Cape Cod Times documented a series of what we'll just call inaccuracies and misrepresentations in Chaprales' campaign materials when he ran for selectman of Sandwich. Here are a few examples that the Times listed:

• Chaprales listed Big Brothers Big Sisters at the top of the list under "Adam's Community Involvement," but never completed the process to be matched with a child to mentor.
• He also listed Habitat for Humanity, although the organization found no record of him volunteering.
• He listed "Hyannis International Rotary Club," even though he has never been a member. Although it's true that Chaprales did not explicitly make the claim that he was a member, the phrase is clearly misleading, implying that he was a member.

This may sound a little overly picky, but this list gives rise to a broader, and much more important question: why did Adam Chaprales feel the need to exaggerate his qualifications? At 21, he was Sandwich's youngest selectman, and no reasonable person would expect him to have a mile-long resume at that point in his life. I'm also left wondering if there are any other aspects of his public life that he has misrepresented?

In 2006, Chaprales was the sole dissenting vote among the Sandwich selectmen who opposed a home rule petition that would have given them the authority to suspend or revoke the license of any business found to be hiring undocumented workers. Chaprales' excuse was that it would make the town seem "un-business-friendly." 

Now, regarding the current campaign, it's easy to spit out some quick sound bites that appeal to voters, without having any real thoughts or beliefs behind those sound bites (Exhibit A: Joe Kennedy III). It's easy to assume that everyone favors getting rid of government waste; the real trick is defining what is actually waste and the most effective way to get rid of it.

Case in point: the number of candidates, especially moderate Republicans seeking to burnish their conservative credentials, who chatter on about "fiscal responsibility" but when those same candidates are asked about specifics policy ideas, suddenly they just don't sound so conservative anymore. 

Chaprales fits this pattern perfectly. Despite the fact that we are now over $16 trillion in debt (ugh!), Chaprales still supports providing federal funding to Planned Parenthood. Regardless of how you feel about the abortion debate, most people do not support providing government funding for abortions, and this is just not a fiscally conservative position. 

(I'm also not going to give any credit for the argument that it's fine to give funding for other Planned Parenthood services and pretend that none of those funds pay for abortions. At best, any money given to Planned Parenthood for other services allows them to take those general operations funds and use them elsewhere, including for abortions.

Chaprales also recently took an extreme position on gay marriage, saying that he supports recognizing gay marriages at the federal level. Again, regardless of whether you support or oppose civil unions, gay marriage, or any other related issue, Chaprales' support for a top-down, federally-based solution is antithetical to conservative and limited government principles. 

Adam Chaprales says some good things, and seems like he's probably a decent guy. However, when his specific policy positions are examined, they just do not satisfy the basic standards of fiscal conservatism.

The voters of Massachusetts' Ninth District can do better. I encourage you to support Chris Sheldon. He has solid, practical experience in a variety of business areas and is truly and sincerely committed to strong conservative principles that will help get this country back on track. You can learn more about him at www.electsheldon.com.