What they're saying: Noah McCourt clarifies his RFRA viewpoint, supports police and public safety.

As the weeks go past in route to May's primary election, I'm providing periodic candidate statements of substance, mostly unretouched, as lifted from social media and news reports. Familiar gems such as "yard signs win elections, not people" and "donate to my campaign first, and maybe I'll have something of merit to say much, much later" will be omitted. That's because it is my aim to determine whether our declared candidates have anything to say at all, and I'll quote all candidates, from any and all parties, whether or not they're in a contested race. Just promising change and new ideas without divulging them won't cut the mustard, aspirants.


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On March 31, candidate viewpoints on Indiana's controversial (and since "amended") Religious Freedom Restoration Act were presented in this space. I made a judgment call with respect to 6th district (Republican) city council hopeful Noah McCourt's position.

What they're saying: On RFRA, 8 council and 1 mayoral candidate with viewpoints.

While the 6th district Republican candidate Noah McCourt does not directly address RFRA, his support of Ron Grooms in the context of "principles and values" and the posting date strongly suggests his support for the bill. If this is not the case, please let me know and I'll make a correction.

McCourt messaged me yesterday with a clarification.

I wanted to clarify my stance on the RFRA. When I made the comment on Grooms it wasn't an endorsement of the legislation. It was more so just thanking him for meeting with me. I met with him the day after the bill was signed and as I stated on my page last night as many young conservatives do I stray from the official platform stance. I have a much more libertarian viewpoint on gay rights. I think consenting adults should be free to make their own decisions. I support legalization of gay marriage. There's a lot better discussions to be having nationally and locally.

McCourt quoted Rep. Ed Clere (R-72), one of only five Republicans to buck RFRA in the House.

"Do we want our sign to say ‘Welcome?’ Or do we want our sign to say ‘Closed for Business?’ Or ‘Certain people aren’t welcome?’ Or, as some have suggested, ‘We don’t accept fill-in-the-blank?’"

Later, he posted at his Fb campaign page.

Today I noticed that Governor Mike Pence signed a bill clarifying the Religious Freedom Restoration act. There's been a lot of controversy as of late regarding the intentions of this legislation and it's effect on the LGBT community. Mayoral candidate Roger Baylor inferred from my commentary on my meeting with senator Ron Grooms that I support the RFRA in its entirety.That is not necessarily the case. I merely objected to the entirely inappropriate smear campaign from the left on him and his Facebook page which ultimately accomplished nothing. There are more appropriate ways to handle controversy. I was asked for clarification of my viewpoints on gay marriage and the honest answer is I could never truly find a justification constitutionally for an all out ban. Like a lot of other younger conservatives I stray from the official platform and I tend to look at this issue from a more libertarian viewpoint being "Consenting adults should be free to choose their own sexual practices and personal relationships". I personally believe there are a lot more important discussions to be having both nationally and locally.

Last night, McCourt had cause to consider police and public safety needs (also at Fb).

I had a bit of a public disturbance at work tonight in which we had to call the New Albany police department. The call was responded to by officer hall,who is also the president of the local police union. He couldn't say a whole lot while in uniform but we did talk a little generally about the community and it's concerns. I have made several prior comments concerning municipal government and it's role in public safety. In the future I would like to see an Administration that is more supportive of the officers working diligently to respond to emergency situations. I'd like to see a city that is more responsive to the needs of the police department. Please remember to vote Noah McCourt for a better equipped police department and a safer New Albany.

Thanks to Noah McCourt for following up.