Sen. Udall, in The Denver Post, says this: “Colorado’s Western traditions are rooted in a fundamental truth, embodied in our Constitution: that each person has the right to be left alone, to make his or her own choices, and to live life unencumbered.” It would seem to me that this statement perfectly justifies the Hobby Lobby decision. We are free to start a business and free to run it unencumbered by those who would deny our right to operate based on our firmly held religious beliefs. A woman who is deciding whether to work at Hobby Lobby, knowing this, could choose not to work there, or choose to work there with the knowledge that if she needed one of the four birth-control methods that her employer’s insurance didn’t cover, she would pay for it herself. To say that she is being denied “choice” is a deliberate misstatement – what we used to call a lie.

When I was of child-bearing age, I had to pay for my birth control, just like I paid for my thyroid medication. No one was denying me anything. I am deeply disappointed that Sen. Udall is trying to use this deception to influence women’s vote in November’s election. I will be voting for Rep. Cory Gardner.

Marianne Gilliam

Durango