Former mayoral candidate takes parting shots at rivals

In a rambling email sent last week, one-time mayoral hopeful Mitch Christiansen lashed out at nearly everyone in the race but the candidate he endorsed after dropping out.

Christiansen called Richard Skorman and Dave Munger “two of a kind” and then made a homophobic remark.

“Munger will not beat Skorman. He does not have the backing of the Gil foundation (homos),” Christiansen wrote in the email, referring to the Gill Foundation, which advocates for equality for gays.

The email was sent to Sheryl Glasgow, a businesswoman who contacted Christiansen after hearing that he had endorsed Steve Bach for mayor and accepted a job from him in return, which Christiansen denied.

In the email, Christiansen also ripped into mayoral candidates Buddy Gilmore and Brian Bahr as well as two of Bahr’s campaign workers, brothers Kyle and Nathan Fisk.

Christiansen said there was “no way” he could endorse Gilmore.

“He has been feasting at the taxpayers’ expense and wants to bring in more (Department of Defense). I do not like his constant name dropping of people he knows in Washington,” he wrote.

Christiansen said he couldn’t even support Bahr in a run-off: “I would not vote.”

“He is an absolute immature idiot, a rank amateur. We have a rank amateur in the White House do these people want another one to occupy city hall. All Bahr is trying to do is buy an election as a stepping stone to higher office,” he wrote.

Christiansen blasted the Fisks, who have been working on Bahr’s campaign.

“The Fisk brothers along with Bahr are the sleaze operators in this entire campaign,” he wrote.

In response, Kyle Fisk said Christiansen’s email was a disgraceful exit from the race.

“Brian Bahr is running a positive campaign focused on the issues facing our city,” Fisk said in a statement. “It’s unfortunate that Mr. Christiansen has chosen to use lies and name-calling instead of being honorable.

"The Bahr campaign will neither stoop to his level, nor will respond to baseless, untrue attacks. We’re confident that Steve Bach will publicly disavow this vitriol from his supporter.”

Christiansen told Glasgow, who owns and operates Turf Master Industries, Inc., that he dropped out of the race to prevent Skorman from winning.

Glasgow had contacted Christiansen after hearing he had endorsed Bach.

“Being the point blank person I am, from what I have heard, you have endorsed Steve Bach and accepted a job from him. That news is not being well accepted by your friends and colleagues,” she wrote in an email.

Christiansen denied that he had accepted a job from Bach, calling it “absolute bull!”

“I made the decision to endorse Steve so we have a better chance of winning,” he wrote.

He said his decision to drop out was based “upon what is best for this election” and the Republican Party.

“People better get over this nonsense of not going after a fellow Republican,” he wrote. “They had better get after Bahr as he is another Rivera,” a reference to outgoing Mayor Lionel Rivera.

On Monday, Christiansen called himself a “stand in” for Bach at an event hosted by the Colorado Springs Medical Cannabis Council.

Laura Carno, Bach’s chief of staff, said Bach appreciates Christiansen’s endorsement but that he’s not an official spokesman for the campaign.

Bach is running “a clean, issues-oriented campaign,” she said.

“Mr. Christiansen’s endorsement of Steve Bach does not indicate that Steve has co-opted any of Mitch’s views,” she said. “He speaks for himself.”