PRO LIFE CANDIDATE ANNOUNCES RUN FOR CONGRESS

Two-term Bennington County Senator, Mark Shepard, has announced that he is a candidate for Vermont's lone seat in the US House of Representatives.

Shepard, a Republican, will face a contest with Martha Rainville in the Republican primary this fall. Shepard spoke to the press about his views on abortion last week.

Excepts taken from the AP in a piece by reporter David Gram:

In an hour-long interview last week with reporters from The Associated Press, Shepard said he hoped the race would be more about issues than about a widespread perception that he is more conservative than (Martha) Rainville. "I don't think it serves anybody," Shepard said of the conservative label. "I think what's better to do is talk about what people stand for, talk about the issues, and who they are as people."

One issue on which he disagrees with Rainville is abortion. As she announced her candidacy for Congress last week, Rainville said she supported abortion rights, but also supported efforts to curb the number of abortions.

On that topic, Shepard said simply, "I am pro-life." And even on that score, he questioned whether that makes him a conservative. "I think every human has huge worth. I would be anti-slavery as well,"
he said. "Maybe it is a liberal point of view."