How much press will it take for Winter, others?

A couple nights ago, I talked with a Democratic activist who was pretty thrilled with the recent press given to Bill Winter and the Fighting Dems and Mayor John Hickenlooper.

But there is a reason why I'm not satisfied. Check out these United States House incumbent reelection rates from Chris Cillizza's Washington Post blog:

1998 -- 98%
2000 -- 98%
2002 -- 96%
2004-- 98%

While a good portion of districts have been gerrymandered, I can't believe that only 2% of House seats can possibly change hands. Name recognition plays a huge role. And even if Republican Joel Hefley retires and Tom Tancredo quits the House to run for Overlord of the Mexican Border, Democratic challengers like Bill Winter and Jay Fawcett will have a tough time. For them, there simply is no amount of press that is "too much."

The Last 14 Hours Awards

The Funniest Thing To Happen To Me In The Last 14 Hours Award goes to: I get to last night's installment of Drinking Liberally. I order a Coors Light. Immediately, someone slaps down a book detailing the history of the Coors family's involvement in right-wing politics. Oops, my bad.

The Dumbest Thing I've Heard In The Last 14 Hours Award goes to: The article about Mayor Hickenlooper in today's Rocky Mountain News, which I noticed at Coyote Gulch. It leads with the idea that Hickenlooper can't win the governor's mansion because he is a Denverite. The source on this is outgoing Republican state senator Joe Stengel, who says, "I think Mayor Hickenlooper will find his popularity wanes when he gets outside of Denver... Denver is very liberal. What works in Denver may not be the same as in Littleton or Jefferson County." Thanks Joe. Nevermind that I walked your district in 2004 and met Republicans who thought Hickenlooper was one of their own. For further clarification of this point, check out Coloradopols post on 2005's big winners.

The Smartest Thing I've Heard In The Last 14 Hours Award goes to: A group of Democratic activists rallying to Democratic candidate for governor Bill Ritter. Discussing his flaws using his language. Discussing his talking points using well-thought out arguments. Personally, I think Ritter's early declaration worked for him. Of course, if Hickenlooper does declare he will be a formidable opponent for Ritter and Beauprez. Much to the surprise of the Rocky Mountain News.

PDF of SAFER information

This morning I got an email from SAFER that was a request for donations, a call for volunteers, and a statement of purpose all rolled into one. It was accompanyed by the old "please forward." So if you are interested, you can download a PDF by clicking here.

Draft Hick sings a new tune

The Draft Hick army just sent me a link to a Penny Parker column. Penny wrote about an anonymously authored Hickenlooper Christmas song. The Republicans response? Something about how Democrats aren't allowed to say the word Christmas. Read it for yourself.

The Mayor is currently trouncing all comers in coloradopols yearend governor's poll. But that poll has started some great debate, including an insightful comment by a poster named dwyer that a recent pro-Ritter editorial in the Denver Post was co-authored by the wife of Hickenlooper's chief of staff. I can't confirm that statement. But if it is true, my guess is that Hickenlooper isn't all that serious about running and Democrats need to get behind Bill Ritter, who is, after all, the only declared Democratic candidate for governor.

Bill Winter in Dailykos, Denver Post

Great stuff on Bill Winter and other Fighting Dems in the Denver Post and on Daily Kos.

The best part of the Post's article is the RNC's lame response to these Democratic veteran candidates, which is essentially, "Nancy Pelosi is stupid." Good one, guys. I am supposed to vote against Bill Winter and Joe Rice because you don't like Nancy Pelosi?

Tvert on FOX31, SAFER at the Capitol

Mason Tvert, director of SAFER, was on FOX31 this morning. He announced that SAFER will file a 2006 initiative to make marijuana legal for adults in Colorado.

Kudos to Tvert for focusing his argument on things like local rights, individual freedom, and health concerns. I cringed when he let the word "progressive" slip, though. There goes the libertarian vote.

When I got around to checking my email, I found a press release stating that "SAFER Campaign Director Mason Tvert will discuss details of Colorado Alcohol-Marijuana Equalization Initiative at a press conference in front of the state capitol building" on Wednesday, December 28, at 11:45 a.m.

The best thing about SAFER is they've managed to bring some respectability to the pro-marijuana argument. Before this, it was largely being managed by the marketing department of Frito Lay.

SAFER is also a great example of passionate citizens in action. For me, marijuana legalization ranks about 529th on my list of priorities. But you have to hand it to Mason & Company. They have changed the debate.

UPDATE: Here is a link to a story about SAFER in today's Rocky Mountain News. Political junkies will be interested in the quote, "Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper, while expressing concerns about marijuana being a gateway drug that can spawn harmful addictions, didn't actively campaign against Initiative 100." If Hick does want to run for governor, he'll have to take a stronger stance.

Yearend poll at coloradopols

Vote in coloradopols' yearend governor's poll. Last time I checked, undeclared candidate Democratic Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper was leading with Repub. Repre. Bob Beauprez in second place. That sound you hear is Bill Ritter's people gnashing their teeth.

The rising cost of cronyism

I'd been warned that energy prices were on their way up. But 103%? My bill soared from $88 to $180 this month. The reason? Xcel helpfully informed me they had to raise rates because natural gas costs are up 30 to 50%.

Nevermind the fact that Xcel's math doesn't add up. Focus on the fact that this is what cronyism gets you. The dying industries that Bush and Cheney subsidize get to screw customers like you and me. Meanwhile, competitive technologies that could drive down costs are held back because Xcel says they're too expensive.

Yeah, the oil and gas company gets to decide that we need more oil and gas. Brilliant.

To crib a line from my boy John F. Kerry, "we can't drill our way out of this crisis. We have to invent our way out." That's the American way. Maybe Xcel and its buddies in Washington ought to pay attention.

Rice, Tancredo flipflop on Constitution

Remember back when Republicans were obsessively obsessed with a strict reading of our Constitution? You know, back when our President used to say things like "I'll put competent judges on the bench, people who will strictly interpret the Constitution and will not use the bench to write social policy." Back when the pro-gun lobby rested its entire case on an extremely fine reading of the 2nd Amendment.

Apparently those days are over. I noticed it on December 18 when Condi Rice was on Meet the Press, talking about how the President has broad Constitutional authorities to spy on U.S. citizens. And I noticed it again today on the frontpage of the print edition of Denver Daily News. There were the anti-immigration forces, including Colorado Repub. Repre. Tom Tancredo, talking about how, yeah, the 14th Amendment definitely gives citizenship to anyone born in the United States, but, c'mon, do we have to interpret it so strictly? Couldn't we add in something like, "except the children of non-U.S. citizens" or something like that because, hey, the framers wouldn't mind.

All I am asking for is a little consistency. The uber-right elects these folks based on catch prases like "strict constitutionalist." But then they govern however they please. Sooner or later, won't people wise up to this hypocrisy?

Channel 7 plugs Republican website

My office is closed today. So I had the chance to sleep in and watch the mid-day newscasts. The most flabbergasting thing I saw was Channel 7's overt plug for the Colorado Republicans' website. The anchor actually reported as news the GOP's ability to take donations via the Internet.

If the Republicans are truly just now adding this functionality, then the anchor should have reported something like, "Showing how horribly behind the times they are, the Colorado Republicans finally added online donations to their website. Of course, just about every candidate in the nation and the Colorado Democratic party have had this functionality for years. Welcome to the 21st Century, GOP. Try not to trip over your Blackberry."

Incidentally, you can find the Colorado Dems online donation page by clicking here.

Hickenlooper and the Rule of 14

Not too long ago I stumbled across an interesting bit of trivia. With only one exception - Lyndon Johnson - since the presidency of Theodore Roosevelt, no one has been elected president who took more than 14 years to climb from his first major elective office to election as either president or vice president.

Of course, it's silly to blame John Kerry's failed presidential bid on an obscure stat like this. But there are a couple of important takeaways.

1. Politicians either get hot and rise quickly or they stall out.

2. People get sick of politicians after about 14 years.

Now, I'm not saying that Democrat Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper is ever running for president. But I am saying that popularity has a short shelf life. So if he wants to run for governor of Colorado, now might be the time to do it.

In the 2004 election cycle, I heard a number of Republicans claim Hickenlooper was own of their own. Of course, he's not. But that's beside the point. If Democrat Bill Ritter wins in 2006 and serves a couple of terms, Hickenlooper will have to wait until 2014. By that point, he will have been a major Democratic player for a dozen years. The Republicans will have plenty of ammo to build a case against him. And his shelf life will be nearing the expiration date.

CD6? What's CD6?

If you live in CD6, do yourself a favor. Head over to your congressman's re-election website and click on the news link. As of December 23, Tancredo's top news story is a link to a very active Tancredo for President blog. This ought to tell you two things.

1. Tancredo doesn't care about CD6. He is using his re-election website to start a presidential bid! He cares about his own fame. He cares about our border with Mexico. And he cares about preserving our national "identity," whatever that means. But he doesn't care about CD6.

2. You ought to vote for Bill Winter. Or anybody besides Tancredo. You can vote for Snoopy, for all I care.

I know some Democratic activists who hope Tancredo does run for President because he could pull George Allen (or whoever the Republicans run) so far to the right that the Democrats could lock up the centrist vote. But personally, I'd be ashamed to tell people I am from the same state as Tom Tancredo. The fastest way to squelch his rapidly expanding ego is to stop him in 2006.

Salazar gets an early Christmas gift

Democratic Colorado Senator Ken Salazar got an early holiday gift. A long profile in the Rocky Mountain News that uses words like maverick and independent. That's pure political gold for Salazar. And it couldn't have come at a better time. Threatening to derail the defense bill over ANWR drilling provisions was a downright liberal move. And Salazar needed to ensure his independent credentials stayed intact.

I dream in Democrat

I think writing coloradolib must be getting to me. Last night I dreamt I was having dinner with Republican lobbyist-slash-cancer Jack Abramoff. I was yelling at him, telling him that America was moving a fifty million dollar dam from South America to New Mexico just so he could line his pockets with another fifty thousand dollars.

The worst part is that I was enjoying this dream. When I woke up, I actually mumbled to my wife that I wanted to go back to sleep because I was having a good dream. Sigh. Makes me long for the days I dreamt about playing for the Broncos and dating Kari Wuhrer.

Allard makes me look stupid

No sooner had I penned a post about Colorado Republican Senator Wayne Allard's feebly emerging environmentalism than we get this from The Rocky Mountain News. Allard is so obsessed with drilling Alaska that he is willing to risk our troops' safety to do it. Senate Republicans tacked an ANWR drilling proposal onto a defense appropriations bill, daring moderates and liberals to vote against funding for the men and women serving in Iraq.

Fortunately Colorado Democrat Senator Ken Salazar and others were able to block the drilling provision and send the defense bill back to commitee, where they can strike the ANWR provision.

Republicans love to wave the flag and then stab our servicemen in the back. That must be why veterans like Bill Winter and Joe Rice are running for office in 2006.

For political junkies only

Colorado Democratic Vice Chair Dan Slater pointed out this list of Colorado's rising political stars.

Republicans play with fire

The Rocky Mountain News reports that Republican State Senator Greg Brophy may introduce a 2006 bill allowing Colorado schools to teach intelligent design. This is bad news not only for science students, but also for Republicans and the economy.

Big spending and giant deficits have already driven many pro-business Republicans to the Democratic party. Religious fanaticism will only reinforce the notion that the modern GOP is a single-issue waste of space whose only agenda is to enforce religious homogeny.

When a Kansas school board passed a similar initiative on Election Day 2005, Kansas became the object of national ridicule. Colorado has an economy that relies on the tech sector. We can't afford the notion that our homegrown students are learning mysticism in science class.

In Dover, Pennsylvania, an activist school board pulled the same stunt. They were promptly thrown out by the populace and their ill-conceived laws were overturned in court. If I were Greg Brophy, I'd be fearing for my job right now. And if I were a Republican who realized that he'd lost the debates on Iraq, the budget, education, healthcare and the environment, I'd look for a different issue to hang my hat on. Immigration, anyone?

UPDATE: The Independence Institute is apparently thumbing their nose at the religious wing of their party with What Would Reagan Do bracelets. Ironically the bracelets are red, the color of communism and the USSR. I'm sure Ronnie would be thrilled.

Salazar fights for family ranches

Since I wrote about today's press release from Republican Senator Wayne Allard, I want to give equal time to Democratic Senator Ken Salazar's issue of the day. Coloradolib is nothing if not fair and balanced.

Salazar put out a press release "calling for the Senate to provide emergency disaster assistance for the nation's farmers, ranchers and rural communities" and questioning the White House's commitment to rural America. "This year, the combination of drought and the effects of Hurricane Katrina have wreaked havoc on Colorado's rural communities... Current estimates show that 2006 will be the fifth below average winter wheat crop in six years - with potential losses to producers of over $60 million. High fuel costs - as high as $3.16 per gallon for diesel in Grand Junction this fall - were especially harmful during harvest time, when agricultural producers are some of the largest fuel consumers in the U.S.. In fact, some farmers are being turned down for additional loans to cover fuel costs because they are already financially overextended."

In general, impassioned pleas for government loans don't do much for me. But this issue exposes massive government hypocrisy. Why do we subsidize an oil and gas industry that is raking in massive profits while letting Colorado ranchers and farmers fall by the wayside?

The photo of Salazar and his brother John is from the Senator's press page.

Allard the environmentalist?

If I even hear the words "Wayne Allard," I break out in hives. But I was heartened a tiny bit by today's press release from our Republican Senator's office. Allard has been "working diligently for the past several weeks to minimize any possible job cuts at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden."

I'm not niave. I know that Allard has taken up NREL's cause because he is trying to protect Colorado jobs. But NREL is one of the Dept. of Energy's main facilities for securing "an energy future for the nation that is environmentally and economically sustainable." So I'm glad someone is sticking up for it.

Of course, Allard doesn't think to blame runaway federal spending and reckless government debt. Instead he blames Democrat Senator Harry Reid and the $33 million in funds Reid got earmarked for Nevada's own alternative energy projects. This is known as the "Why didn't I think of that?" defense.

UCLA media study deeply flawed

Conservative blogs like Protein Wisdom are crowing about a UCLA study published December 14 that found that the media has a significant liberal bias.

The study started with the ADA score of our Senators and Representatives. Then it looked for citation correlations between a congressperson and a media outlet. So if Colorado Republican Wayne Allard cites the Heritage Foundation a lot and the Denver Post cites the Heritage Foundation a lot, then the Denver Post would have the same score as Allard, which in 2004 was a 5, or super-duper conservative.

This methodology is riddled with problems.

First of all, Senator John Kerry is a liberal. But his 2004 ADA score is a 25, or "pretty darn conservative." In fact, the ADA rates Kerry as more conservative than Republican Senators Snowe, Murkowski, McCain, Collins, Coleman, DeWine, Voinovich, Smith, Specter and Chafee. So using ADA scores to judge political bent is obviously difficult.

More importantly, the study misunderstands the meaning of the word "bias." Bias doesn't cite its sources. Bias presents lies as fact. Bias doesn't need to cite the Cato Institute when it feeds you the President's party line.

There are several more stat-geek reasons this study ought to be ignored. The Left Coaster is a good place to start.

UPDATE: Check out this link. It seems the authors of the study were both fellows at the ultra-conservative Heritage Foundation, AEI and the Hoover Institute. Surprise, surprise.

Download "A Jarhead's Journey"

Click here to download a PDF of "A Jarhead's Journey to Washington." This is Bill Winter's statement of purpose for his campaign for the U.S. House seat in CD6. If you like what he has to say, check out his campaign's brand new blog.

Things are rolling early for Winter's campaign. I wonder when Tancredo will get his eye off the White House and start paying attention to the fight he has going on at home.

Hick rides the fence

I am sure the Draft Hick folks are jumping up and down after reading today's Denver Post. Seems like Democrat Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper is still making up his mind about whether or not to run for governor.

Like I said two weeks ago on AM760, I think voters want a governor who wants to be governor. And it doesn't sound like Hickenlooper wants the job. The Post's lead reads that Hickenlooper "has not ruled out running for governor, but said that so far he has not found a compelling reason to enter the race." I am not sure that's enough to get me off the Bill Ritter bandwagon. Ritter has an amazing grasp on the issues facing every corner of Colorado and has been campaigning hard for months.

If Hickenlooper doesn't have a burning desire to be governor, I'd rather he didn't risk his growing political stature. But I suspect I am not in the majority. I have gotten quite a few emails from Democrats who want me to lambast Ritter for being pro-life. And Hickenlooper may be seeing polls and listening to advisors who tell him that the Democrat nomination is his if he wants it. But do we really want a nominee who entered the race because a poll told him he could win?

I like the mayor a lot. But if he declares, the first eight words out of his mouth better be, "I really, really, really want to be Governor."

Salazar "endangers the lives" of Americans?

Congrats to Democrat Colorado Senator Ken Salazar for forcing Dubya's hand. Salazar was part of the bipartisan coalition that threatened to filibuster Patriot Act renewal. Now our President is saying that Salazar's vote endangers the lives of United States citizens. In related news, Dubya has shredded the Constitution and used it for bedding.

Of course, now we know that if Congress won't let Dubya break the law, he'll just secretly authorize himself to do it. Still, Ken Salazar deserves our support.

Today's least shocking news: Bush lied

Coloradolib is a local blog. But I wanted to make sure readers saw yesterday's findings of the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service. "President Bush and top administration officials have access to a much broader ranger of intelligence reports than members of Congress do... The CRS report identified nine key U.S. intelligence products that aren't generally shared with Congress." This proves that Bush lied when he said, "Some of the most irresponsible comments - about manipulating intelligence - have come from politicians who saw the same intelligence I saw."

Hey, what about 2006?

The Rocky Mountain News has done it again. Today they published a fawning article that mentions Tom Tancredo's 2008 presidential aspirations. But doesn't mention that he could very well lose his CD6 U.S. House seat in 2006 to Democrat Bill Winter. Write a letter to the Rocky and let them know their reporting is missing something. You can get the state news desk at state@RockyMountainNews.com or write a letter to the editor at letters@RockyMountainNews.com.

Owens jumps into immigration debate. The Post dutifully follows.

There are a lot of ways the free market fails us. But job creation isn't one of them. That's why the Governor Bill Owens-backed plan to let private employment agencies apply for visas for illegal immigrants sounds like it could make sense.

But there are a lot of things wrong with the way the Denver Post reported the story in today's paper.

First, the Post's front page article never mentions that the group that authored the plan is a partisan think tank. You have to turn to a separate article on page eight to learn that information.

Second, the subhead says Owens' proposal "seeks to balance debate." Only after a couple hundred words do you learn that the "balance" is between different factions of the GOP, not between conservatives and liberals.

Third, the article plays into the Republicans strategy: Scream immigration and hope it makes everybody forget the Republicans' foreign policy failures, inability to balance the budget, and healthcare mess.

Obviously, Owens is trying to restore the conservative credibility he lost during the Referendum C and D campaign. The Denver Post's conservative credibility, on the other hand, is well established.

Immigration is a big issue. But not nearly as big as people make it out to be. Illegal immigration is a threat to our healthcare only because market driven healthcare is costly and inefficient compared to a government voucher system. It's a security threat only because our intelligence networks aren't working. And it's abillity to drive down wages is overstated compared to the overall impact of globalization. And yet the wingnuts have succeeded in making it a major focus of the 2006 election cycle. Democrats have to find a way to keep the focus on their plans for the environment, the economy, healthcare and national security.

Colorado's dreaded liberal media

Not too long ago, Lamar Outdoor refused to run Democrat-sponsored billboards that scolded Republican Repre. Jean Schmidt for her shameful attacks on Democrat Repre. John Murtha. But yesterday the Rocky Mountain News felt totally comfortable running this attack ad on Colorado Democrat Sen. Ken Salazar, which I downloaded from Soapblox. So where's that liberal media, again?

Salazar: the cool kid in the Senate cafeteria

Not too long ago, I wrote about how the Democratic party was turning Colorado Senator Ken Salazar into a national star. Now Survey USA says Colorado is firmly behind its junior Senator. Fifty-six percent of Coloradoans approve of the job Salazar is doing, while only 19% disapprove.

These numbers wouldn't seem so hot. But I am comparing them to Republican Senator Wayne Allard's numbers. Only 45% of Coloradoans approve of Allard. Forty percent disapprove.

Thanks to Soapblox for tipping me off to this story.

Healthcare vigil Wednesday afternoon

I just got an email from the Colorado Consumer Health Initiative. They will be hosting a vigil to ask that congress doesn't completely mess up America's healthcare system as it begins budget negotiations this week.

The email reads, in part, "Members of congress will begin to work on a budget-reconciliation process that will mean drastic cuts to programs that serve our nation's most vulnerable families. Please join us in voicing your opposition to this bill by attending a nationwide vigil on Wednesday, December 14th... It will be held from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. in front of Denver Urban Ministries, 1717 E. Colfax Ave., in Denver."

Yes, December 14 is tomorrow. Yes I just got this email today.

The coloradolib predictions post

I'm going to go out on a limb and predict that Karen Middleton will win re-election to the State Board of Education for CD7. I am basing this fearless prediction purely on two things.

First, turnout at Karen's fundraiser last night at Delaney's was impressive. I was able to talk with U.S. House candidates Bill Winter and Ed Perlmutter. Plus more state-level Democratic players than you can shake a stick at. And then there was the man who told me, "I'm a hardline Republican. I just like Karen a lot." A Delaney's employee estimated the turnout at about 75 donors. Not bad for for a Monday in December.

Second, Karen was able to namecheck practically everybody in the room. It was astounding. I know that most politicians are naturally good with names. But it felt like the kickoff of a winning campaign to me.

Tancredo writes another letter

Today's print edition of the DDN reports that Republican U.S. House Representative Tom Tancredo has written another of his patented strongly worded letters. His recent missive to House leadership calls for (surprise!) a debate about immigration. Tancredo writes of the toll exacted on "our nation's security, economy and identity."

Security and economy, maybe. But identity? That sounds a heck of a lot like racism.

"Democracy by chaos"

I have a friend who wanted to protest the volume of lame initiatives that are on the Colorado ballot every year. To make his point, he started an initiative to put a strip club in Governor Owens' office. Last I checked, he had about half the signatures he needed.

Not everybody shares my friend's sentiment. The Rocky Mountain News reports that next year, voters will decide whether to ease the process of getting an initiative on the ballot. Among other things, the amendment would restrict government resources from being used to fight or support a measure. And it would allow petition organizers to describe their initiative in their own words in any government-distributed ballot information booklet.

The amendment was written by the Independence Institute and the charming folks who brought you TABOR. On the other side, the Rocky quotes Republican State Sen. Norma Anderson as saying, "What they're doing is getting rid of representative government, which is what our forefathers wanted... It's absolutely ridiculous, and it destroys democracy. It's democracy by chaos." Liberal and Democratic voices are nowhere to be heard.

Only 24 states currently allow citizen ballot measures. Colorado is already one of the most active, along with California, Oregon and Arizona. But it looks like Colorado is less comfortable with representative government than ever.

Conservative blogs more effective

New York Times reporter Michael Crowley writes that "'Liberals use the Web to air ideas and vent grievances with one another, often ripping into Democratic leaders... Conservatives, by contrast, skillfully use the Web to provide maximum benefit for their issues and candidates...' Crowley then comments that what really makes the conservative blogs allegedly more effective is the infrastructure provided by Fox News, Rush Limbaugh and others, 'all of which are quick to pass on the latest tidbit from the blogosphere.'" You can get a preview of Crowley's article here.

I refuse to apologize for "airing ideas." But from here on, if you catch me venting grievances against Democrats or "ripping into Democratic leaders," feel free to call me on it.

Quiche and policy: Bill Ritter

I spent this morning at the Downtown Democratic Forum at the Oxford Hotel. Breakfast was quiche on what appeared to be a bed of potato chips. It was a strange combination. What was even stranger was that I listened to Democrat candidate for governor Bill Ritter take questions from a crowd of urban Democrats and no one mentioned abortion or immigration.

The topics of conversation were healthcare and education. Ritter's mastery of both was impressive. He spoke for about 30 minutes without notes and didn't duck any questions.

I was struck by how similar his resume was to former vice presidential nominee John Edwards'. Both were born into poverty and worked their way to the top of the legal profession. Both are passionate about social justice. Both feel a deep need to give back to the country that helped them achieve their dreams.

Ritter is also a dead ringer for lacrosse legend and Colorado Mammoth coach Gary Gait. I'm not entirely sure they're different people.

Also at the breakfast was John Turner, a candidate for state treasurer. The only thing I knew about John prior to today came from this post on Coloradopols. But his two-minute speech made sense to me. It went something like this. "I have 35 years of Air Force and professional experience. I have a Ph.D. in economics and a major in public finance. I'm a professor of finance at U. of Colo. Denver. And I'm running because we need a state treasurer who actually knows something about handling money." Logical enough, especially given Hillman's track record.

Ritter hires campaign manager

It wasn't too many posts back that I wrote about how Both Ways Bob was picking up bad habits in Washington DC. Like hiring a Virginia-based campaign manager whose previous gigs include stints at the Christian Coalition and Americans of Faith.

Contrast that with Democratic candidate Bill Ritter, who just hired a Colorado native to run his campaign. A press release I got today states that Ritter "has hired one of Colorado's leading political consultants, Greg Kolomitz, as his campaign manager."

Klomitz helped steer FasTracks and the Yes on 3A campaign, which passed new pay-for-performance standards for Denver schools. He also led the campaign to expand the Colorado Convention Center. Kolomitz grew up in La Junta and graduated from Regis University.

Okay, maybe hiring a local campaign manager isn't proof of Ritter's ability to lead our state. But at least it shows he hasn't been lunching with lobbyists from Virginia.

Eavesdrop on immigration conference

Remember Dubya's space program? The steroid hearings? Gay marriage? All issues the government blew out of proportion to distract us from runaway debt and foreign policy failures. I suspect that immigration is merely the latest entry in this long line of non-issues. But apparently it has captured the public's imagination.

Colorado needs to try to get out in front of the demagoguery a bit. So our elected officials are having a symposium on immigration. An email release from Democrat House Speaker Andrew Romanoff states that "leaders of the Colorado General Assembly and the National Conference of State Legislatures are hosting a regional conference on immigration and the states. We have invited delegations from Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico and Utah to join us on Monday, Dec. 12, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m."

Want to watch but have other obligations (like, say, a job)? You can listen in by clicking here.

Business vs. religion

Governing Magazine and the NY Times report that half of all states are failing to teach students basic science, leaving millions of children behind their counterparts in India, Japan, China, Germany and the rest of the emerging global market. A separate report gave Colorado's neighbor to the east an unprecedented F minus for the idiocy the religious wingnut school boards there displayed on election day 2005. Business and religion are two favorite topics of the Republican party. When are they going to figure out that teaching religion in science class significantly undermines the United States' ability to compete globally?

Pray for snow

Before you curse today's frigid weather, consider that a good snowpack is extremely important to Colorado. That's because most of our state's firefighting helicopters are scheduled to be in Iraq for the 2006 and 2007 fire seasons.

Page 7A of today's Rocky Mountain News reports that yesterday Maj. Gen. Mason Whitney told the Colorado legislature, "Next fire season will be a challenge for us." Evidently the Major General is gunning for a promotion to Master of Understatement.

How many of Colorado's 12 helicopters will be shipped overseas? That number is classified, as revealing it would give aid and comfort to that old terrorist, Mother Nature. But "most" firefighting helicopters will be spending the next 18 months in Iraq.

Not to worry, though. Colorado can count on aid from federal agencies. Hey, maybe we can get ex-FEMA honcho and soon-to-be Colorado resident Michael "Brownie" Brown to co-ordinate!

Polarizing the governor's race

There was an insightful article on Governing Magazine's blog a couple days back. Josh Goodman wrote that the nation isn't really polarized. National journalists just think it is. "If I had to listen to national political operatives scream at each other all day, I probably would think so too. Once you accept the polarization frame, it becomes easy to apply it to states, congressional districts or anything else. But, if people would simply look beyond the federal arena, they would see a very different picture. Although state campaigns can unquestionably get nasty, there is a spirit of pragmatism in state government that is not seen at the federal level. Governors such as Mark Warner and Mike Huckabee have worked successfully with legislatures controlled by the opposite party. Republicans such as Bill Owens of Colorado have supported tax increases, while Democrats like Phil Bredesen of Tennessee have enacted cuts in social programs."

At the risk of being part of the problem, I will point out that Goodman put his finger on why Colorado shouldn't elect Bob Beauprez. He brings with him the habits he has picked up in DC over the past term. Habits like hiring out-of-state fundamentalists to run his campaign.

Meanwhile, Republican Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney doesn't have high hopes for Republican governors in 2006. The Washington Post reports that Romney "emphasized he's no political forecaster. But based on what he's been told by other Republican analysts, he said, if conventional expectations are borne out, the Republicans could lose three to six governorships."

Those states include Maryland, Florida, Arkansas, Nevada and, of course, Colorado.

Line of the morning

Here's the best exchange from Democrat candidate Bill Winter's interview on AM760 this morning. (I'm going to paraphrase, as I didn't tape the interview.)

Host Jay Marvin: Will you debate Tom Tancredo?

Bill Winter: Sure, but I don't think he'll debate me. Tancredo thinks he's in a debate with George Bush. Well, guess what. He's in a cage match with me now.

Cage match? That's just cool.

I pulled this photo of Winter and DNC Chair Howard Dean off an email from the Winter team. Photo credit goes to them.

EMILY's List endorses Lamm

EMILY's List, an organization dedicated to electing pro-choice women, endorsed Peggy Lamm in the Democratic primary for CD7. Prior to this, Ed Perlmutter was the Democratic front runner to take on Republican Rick O'Donnell. Coloradopols and Soapblox are already covering this story. So I am not going to dwell on it. But an endorsement from an organization that powerful reshapes the race quite a bit.

Meanwhile, the Republicans in CD7 have their own problems. Party honchos were trying to keep the field clear for O'Donnell, who lured Cheney out to Colorado for a fundraiser a few weeks back. But the Denver Post reports that uber-conservative Jefferson County Treasurer Mark Paschall is challenging O'Donnell in the party primary after all. I'm glad to see the Dems won't be the only ones blowing money in the primary.

The Boulder right takes on Dubya

Journalism of note: Wayne Laugesen's Boulder Weely cover story "The Bush Debacle." Yes, Laugesen is a Ronald Reagan acolyte. And his implication that Reagan was a dedicated student of "great conservative thinkers such as Confucius, Blaise Pascal, Edmond Burke, Joseph De Maistre, Friedrich Hayek and Ludwig Von Mises" lies somewhere between debatable and hilarious. But you must cheer the following lines, especially since they came out of the mouth of a movement conservative:

"[Bush] lacks style and substance, holds himself above the American people, believes government more important than the governed, and conducts himself in a mulish and careless manner that diminishes, rather than enhances, American culture... He's an empire-building, money-splurging interventionist politician who believes American government should dispense and regulate liberty."

My question is, "Who is supporting Dubya?" That 38% approval rating has to be coming from somewhere. Like People Who Refuse To Admit Mistakes Anonymous. Or the Single Issue Voters Club. Or perhaps the West Taxas Oil Association. Will somebody please take responsibility for this guy?

Three candidates, three reports

I got another email from HD38 candidate Joe Rice. Since he is on active duty in Iraq, I am never quite sure what I can quote him on. I'll just say that he remains guardedly optimistic and is very thankful for the ongoing efforts of his campaign team in the states.

The Bill Winter campaign is off to a roaring start. They have launched a webpage. And a newsletter. Winter will formally announce his candidacy tomorrow. Make sure to be listening to The Jay Marvin Show on AM760 at 8:05 a.m.

Finally, Karen Middleton was appointed to the State Board of Education for CD7. Now she is campaigning to hold that seat for the Democrats. Karen's first fundraiser will be at Delaney's at 1805 Blake Street on Monday, December 12 at 5:30pm. This is an open invite. So come and, you know, bring a checkbook.

I turn my back for two seconds...

You know, I can't leave this state for three days without all hell breaking loose.

First Democrat Gary Lindstrom declared for governor. While his politics seem to be to the left of Bill Ritter, he's a candidate from the mountains, which will make it hard for the Republicans to pin the Denver Liberal Elite tag on him.

It turned out that Democrats aren't storing inormation on the Republicans who post at Coloradopols. In fact, it was Republicans spying on other Republicans, as a Holtzman staffer admitted that she used her site access to lift IP addresses. Gee, corrupt Republicans. Who would've thought?

Facing the prospect of a primary, three women wrote a pro-Ritter editorial in the Denver Post. It seems like Ritter's early commitment to the race is paying dividends.

Beauprez hired a Republican rising star to be his campaign manager. Jack St. Martin has also been the National Field Director for the Christian Coalition and the Executive Director of Americans of Faith. So I guess Beauprez isn't exactly running away from the Religious Right.

Finally, Vice Chair Dan Slater has been posting reports from the DNC meeting in Phoenix. It sounds like efforts to get the Democratic convention in Denver are moving along swimmingly. CD6 candidate Bill Winter was at the meeting as well.

Phew. Have I missed anything? Let me know. I've been in Tulsa, where wherever you go, the skyscapers of Oral Roberts U. loom. It is very nice to be home.

Coloradolib on hiatus

Work is going to keep me offline until Monday. In the meantime, keep your eye on Coloradopols. It appears the Colorado Republican Party has seriously accused them of collecting info for the Democrats. Lynn Bartels' coverage of this strangeness is in the Rocky Mountain News. Too bizarre.

Thanks for checking in. See you Monday.