Liberal State Rep. Speaks His Mind About Evil, Colorado-hating Businesses

by RMR | 6:22 pm, February 16, 2010

 Liberal State Rep. Jack Pommer (D), fresh on the heels of a meltdown last week in a house committee, has now gone "off message" once again. In a rare moment of honesty, Pommer says what he really thinks about businesses – they are all out to swindle hard-working Coloradans and flee the state.

When the proletariat rise up against the capitalist pigs you can bet that Jack Pommer will be right there, AK-47 and bowie knife in hand, leading the glorious charge.

John Hickenlooper’s Flip-Flop on Global Warming

by RMR | 10:37 am, February 12, 2010

John Hickenlooper’s view on a variety of major issues are suddenly shifting now that he’s a declared candidate for Governor. While far-left 527s might want to make hay about Scott McInnis’ "makeover" (AKA ‘a shave’), they are simply attempting to distract from John Hickenlooper’s makeover on the issues. Several days ago, "bi-partisan gubernatorial candidate" Hickenlooper declared to a crowd of oil and mining executives that he believes there is no consensus on global warming and that it might not be that severe (if it exists at all):

“I don’t think that the scientific community has decided with certainty that climate change is as catastrophic as so many people think,” said Hickenlooper, a former geologist in the energy industry. 

He likened the discussion over climate change to when the scientific community as a whole turned on the issue of plate tectonics in the 1960s.

“Suddenly what was the standard accepted dogma of the field, was suddenly discredited,” he said. “So, my thinking with climate change is I can’t tell you, I don’t think anyone can tell you for sure if the climate is changing that fast, and certainly, in a snow storm like this, you have to look at it with a little bit of skepticism.” (Denver Daily News)

Contrast that statement with liberal Democrat Mayor Hickenlooper’s statements only a few months ago while attending the Copenhagan conference on climate change:

Global warming skeptics out there, take note: Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper is looking to change your mind.

The city’s chief executive is in Copenhagen, Denmark this week for the world’s climate change conference and says the evidence he’s seen from scientists across the world is "shocking."

"It’s pretty compelling," the mayor said by phone on Tuesday morning. "It really does make you say, ‘Gosh, I know it’s going to be hard. It’s going to be unpopular [to change].’ My takeaway is I want to come back to Denver and sit down with every skeptic I can find and just walk them through all the evidence." (9 News)

You can’t have it both ways, John.

Rep. Jack Pommer Freaks Out

by RMR | 5:48 pm, February 8, 2010

COLORADO POLITICS TURNED UPSIDE DOWN: Bill Ritter Dropping Re-Election Bid

by RMR | 11:20 pm, January 5, 2010

As has now been reported by multiple sources, Gov. Bill Ritter is scrapping his campaign for reelection.

The sudden nature of this makes it clear that fundraising was not an issue. Political Wire reports that his campaign staff was sent home in the middle of the day. This should seem obvious, even if Ritter’s fundraising had dropped substansially he still has a large warchest and would be calling the DGA begging for money instead of dropping out.

At this stage, there are really only two logical possibilites given the sudden nature of this. The first is that Ritter is involved in some sort of major political scandal that would make it impossible for him to win against a Republican. The second is that Ritter or an immediate family member is facing a life-threatening medical crisis. Ritter is slated for a press conference tomorrow at 11AM to announce he is dropping his campaign and this should give some hints, if not the reason itself, as to why Ritter is doing this.

Who Might Run?

As we reported in February of last year, Ken Salazar was rumored to be looking at running for Governor in 2014 even as he was beginning his tenure as Secretary of the Interior. This apparent ambition, along with his established fundraising base from his Senatorial campaigns and close proximity to Washington-based Democrats who will be searching for a candidate make Ken Salazar the most likely choice to replace Ritter.

Treasurer Cary Kennedy has faced her own problems in her race for reelection to that office, but still stands as the only Democrat in the state with a state committee with enough to act as seed money. While the amount that would transfer over from her current race would still be dwarfed by Scott McInnis‘ cash-on-hand, she at least wouldn’t be starting from zero and she is on good terms with Democratic donors in the state.

Rep. Ed Perlmutter is being reported by some media outlets as a potential replacement and is a more remote possibility than Kennedy or Salazar. Perlmutter’s main strength is that he is one of a handful of Democrats left who could potentially raise enough cash to challenge McInnis and is not involved in another race.

Who Won’t Run?

Lt. Gov. Barbara O’Brien is unlikely to run for the office in 2010, though if Ritter resigns his office on the spot tomorrow she may serve out the remainder of his term as Governor. O’Brien was rumored to be looking to switch jobs earlier in the year so running for Governor may not be part of her plans.

Who Might Be In Trouble?

Bill Ritter’s departure could also cause problems for Sen. Michael Bennet as he loses his main Democratic ally and advocate. Expect Andrew Romanoff’s insurgent primary challenge to gain some new life amid Ritter’s chaotic departure and his subsequent absense.

Will Low Turnout Doom Colorado Democrats?

by RMR | 9:00 am, December 1, 2009

National liberal blog Daily Kos occasionally commissions polls on various races. Their most recent was a national poll on voter enthusiasm. To put it mildly, they found a bit of a gap between Republicans and Democrats:

Voter Intensity: Definitely + Probably Voting/Not Likely + Not Voting

Republican Voters: 81/14
Independent Voters: 65/23
DEMOCRATIC VOTERS: 56/40

In other words, 81% of Republicans polled say they plan to vote in 2010 compared to only 56% of Democrats. This is a bleak result for Democrats who finally seem to be realizing that without Barack Obama on the ballot next year, not only will turnout be depreciated from lack of excitement but many demographics might not come to the polls altogether. Couple that with growing discontent among independent voters, and the worst-case scenario for Democratic incumbents could be emerging.

Just for fun let’s take a look at the voter registration breakdown in CD-3, CD-4, CD-7, and statewide. Then let’s take a look at the makeup of the electorate if we adjust to assume that 81% of Republicans turn out, 65% of unaffiliateds turn out, and 56% of Democrats turn out as the Daily Kos poll showed. (Raw voter registration percentages are provided along with the altered values in parenthesis.)

CD-3 (Adjusted)

Republican 34.7%  (41.8%)
Unaffiliated 32.1%  (31.0%)
Democratic 32.7%  (27.2%)

CD-4 (Adjusted)

Republican 37.2%  (44.2%)
Unaffiliated 34.6%  (33.0%)
Democratic 27.6%  (22.7%)

CD-7 (Adjusted)

Republican 28%  (34.4%)
Unaffiliated 33.7%  (33.5%)
Democratic 37.7%  (32.1%)

Statewide (Adjusted)

Republican 34.8%  (41.8%)
Unaffiliated 30.8%  (29.6%)
Democratic 34.4%  (28.6%)

Democrats will probably rally to put on a bit better showing than the Daily Kos poll is predicting now, but in any case it is looking like there will be a distinct advantage for Republicans in turnout. This is basically a flip from the 2008 elections which saw a highly motivated Democratic electorate turn out for Barack Obama. John Salazar, Betsy Markey, and Ed Perlmutter are in for the rudest awakenings as a result: any Democratic candidate elected in 2008 will have their base suddenly M.I.A..

Both of Perlmutter’s elections have been in years with highly motivated Democratic bases and these numbers show that CD-7 could transform into an effective Republican-plurality district when adjusted for turnout. Betsy Markey was an aberration, the floor will fall out from underneath her now that she lacks both an unpopular Republican opponent and sharing the ballot with Obama. John Salazar has had a decent amount of Republican crossover votes, but Republicans making up that large a portion of the electorate when adjusted and combined with anti-incumbent sentiments among independents could doom him.

* Voter registration numbers were taken from COMaps.org for CD-3, CD-4, and CD-7 and are dated August 2009. Statewide numbers were taken from the Secretary of State’s statistics for active voter registrations as of October 2009.

Tom Tancredo May Run For Governor

by admin | 9:04 pm, November 9, 2009

As Josh Penry prepares to suspend his campaign for Governor, former Congressman Tom Tancredo may be preparing to deny Scott McInnis a clear path to the nomination.

This would not be a move without precedent. Tom Tancredo’s gubernatorial intentions were made clear in the months following the 2008 elections when he told Republican insiders and organizations that he was planning to run for Governor. Those plans fell by the wayside in 2009 when Josh Penry began to consolidate support from conservative activists.

More recently, Tom Tancredo was reported to be on the verge of challenging Jane Norton for the Republican Senate nomination had Norton found herself the lone contender in that race.

Schultheis Retiring, Lambert May Run For Seat

by admin | 11:35 am, November 5, 2009

Sen. Dave Schultheis recently announced that he would not be seeking re-election to SD-9 in 2010. As Ben DeGrow reports, conservative Rep. Kent Lambert may be announcing his candidacy for the seat later today.

Lambert will be the de facto nominee if he declares his candidacy. While Schultheis was facing a primary opponent in Tom McDowell who will likely continue to run, McDowell has proven time and time again that he does not have the temperament for public office and has demonstrated a propensity for making ludicrous statements that is at least as strong as the outgoing Schultheis.

McDowell has predicated his candidacy on expanding the big tent of the Republican party and has put that goal into practice by:

• Randomly accusing center-right bloggers of being "social conservatives" trying to drag down the party, usually levelling the charge at blogs that rarely or never discuss social issues.
• Libelling several Republican campaign operatives for no apparent reason.
• Throwing an odd tantrum at a conservative commentator for "name-calling" Mark Udall.
• Railing at activists about "social conservative" conspiracies.
• Constantly deriding primaries as damaging to the party; before declaring himself a primary candidate against an incumbent legislator.

Run, Kent, run.

Election 2009: GOP-Backed Candidates for DougCo School Board Take Early Lead

by RMR | 8:38 pm, November 3, 2009

The Republican Party backed slate of candidates for the Douglas County School Board have taken an early lead and will likely win barring a massive turnaround for their opponents.

John Carson, Dan Gerken, Doug Benevento, and Meghann Silverthorn are all leading in their respective races.

Election 2009: Charter School Supporter Wins Denver Race

by RMR | 8:23 pm, November 3, 2009

Initial returns from Denver indicate that charter school proponent Mary Seawall is on track to crush union-backed candidate Christopher Scott by at least a 2-1 margin in the Denver Public Schools board at-large race.

Initiative 300, a proposal to increase penalties for driving without a license, appears to be headed for defeat by a similar margin.

Election 2009: Exit Polls Show Obama Not As Helpful As He Thought

by RMR | 6:51 pm, November 3, 2009

Barack Obama made a number of trips to Virginia and New Jersey to help out Democratic gov. candidates Creigh Deeds and Jon Corzine, but exit polling of the races out tonight shows that Obama’s trips were a wash with voters in deep-blue New Jersey and may have actually motivated the opposition more in Virginia. The National Journal reports:

A majority of voters in both states said, for the most part, that Pres. Obama wasn’t a factor in their vote. In NJ, 60% said Obama’s support of Corzine didn’t play a role either way, which 55% of VA voters said they didn’t consider Obama’s embrace of state Sen. Creigh Deeds (D) when deciding how to vote.

Of voters who said Obama’s support did play a role, 19% of NJ voters said they were voting to support Obama, while 20% said they were voting to oppose him. In VA, 18% were seeking to support Obama while 24% voted as an expression of opposition to Obama.

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