from the denver post
A former professor of French at the University of Northern Colorado has been cited for allegedly making a special delivery to U.S. Rep. Marilyn Musgrave that reeked of political partisanship.
Kathleen Ensz, professor emeritus at UNC, is accused of depositing a Musgrave campaign mailer full of dog feces at the Republican lawmaker's Greeley office. Ensz was charged Thursday by Greeley police with criminal use of a noxious substance, a misdemeanor.
The offending package arrived on May 31 about 1 p.m. The original addressee's name and address were scratched off, but a police officer was able to use the bar code on the envelope to track the sender's vicinity, which eventually led investigators to the 63-year-old Ensz, said Greeley police spokesman Joe Tymkowych.
Ensz, who couldn't be reached for comment Thursday, is a supporter of Angie Paccione, the Democratic challenger for Musgrave's 4th Congressional District seat, Ensz's friends say.
Those who know her say they find it difficult to believe that Ensz would take such a bizarre action to express her opposition to Musgrave. Then again, Ensz has been known to speak her mind on certain subjects, said Carol Burkhart, who has been active in the Weld County Democratic Party for years.
"Kathy is a pretty straightforward type of person," Burkhart said. "She is a no-b.s. - so to speak - kind of person."
The incident triggered harsh exchanges between the Musgrave and Paccione camps. Musgrave supporters said this could be an early indication that the congresswoman will again be a target of sleazy campaigning.
"Angela Paccione needs to put an end to this gutter politicking now," said Shaun Kenney, Musgrave's campaign spokesman. "If this is how her supporters intend to wage her campaign today, what kind of sleaze and harassment can we expect leading up to November?"
In 2004, Musgrave opponents ran a series of television ads depicting her picking the pockets of soldiers and corpses. She went on to defeat Democratic challenger Stan Matsunaka.
"Shades of 2004 all over again," Kenney said.
Kenney also called for Paccione to return all campaign donations from Ensz and to apologize for the "disgusting" behavior of her supporters.
No, she is obviously a d.s. kind of person.