(Sacramento Bee)
Burbank, Calif., Oct. 1--As state Sen. Tom McClintock collected an endorsement from a well-known conservative leader in California on Tuesday, he distanced himself from a longtime aide after a report raised questions about the aide's religious writings.
McClintock, a GOP gubernatorial hopeful, said the role of deputy campaign manager John Stoos for the remaining days of the recall race was "under discussion." His statement followed a Los Angeles Times report detailing some writings by Stoos, a Christian radio talk show host and longtime GOP strategist, in Chalcedon Report, a journal associated with a movement called Christian Reconstructionism.
In February, Stoos wrote, "I dream of the day when a strong Christian majority is elected to a city council somewhere in America. This council could then pass a resolution declaring that abortion is now illegal in their city."
McClintock, who is among the state Legislature's most conservative members, has counted Stoos among his closest advisers for several years. "As far as his personal religious beliefs, I have never had discussions with any of my staff over their personal religious beliefs," McClintock said. "I believe that personal religious beliefs are just that, they are personal."