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Home Archives for Ben

11/15/2010 By Ben 1 Comment

Time to Respond to Denver Post’s Anti-DougCo Voucher Letter Writers

Update, Noon: Here is the one-page summary of official recommendations made to the Douglas County Board of Education by the School Choice Task Force's "Option Certificates" subcommittee. So unless you've been hiding under a rock for the past couple weeks, you may have heard Douglas County -- one of Colorado's largest school districts -- is considering the adoption of a local voucher-style private school choice program. Independence Institute blogger "Eddie" has covered the story well here and here. With all the coverage in the Denver Post, it's not surprising that plenty of readers wanted to weigh in with letters published in Sunday's Perspective section. I was disappointed to see most of the letters rely on misinformed premises … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Education, Fiscal Policy, General, liberty, PPC

11/12/2010 By Ben Leave a Comment

Colorado GOP, What Do You Want to See in the Next State Party Chair?

The midterm elections are more than a week past in the rearview mirror. Time to stop navel-gazing and focus on the future. In that spirit, I wanted to pass on the link to a survey for serious Colorado Republicans. One of the next is choosing leadership for the state party, as the central committee is scheduled to convene in a few months. Make your opinion known of what qualities and characteristics will be important in the next Colorado Republican Party state chair. I look forward to seeing the results of the survey. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, liberty, PPC

11/9/2010 By Ben Leave a Comment

Colorado GOP Candidates Who Fell Short But Can See Bright Futures

A full week has passed since the Election. We all know the results. For the winners it's transition time. New members headed off to Congress -- at least one pegged with a remarkably bright political future. I'm proud to see a new secretary of state in Colorado, a new state treasurer, not to mention the "Mighty Six" GOP upstarts who took over formerly Democratic seats to reclaim the state house majority. But what about those Colorado Republican candidates who threw their hats into the ring, who entered the arena and did battle, yet came up short? Some of them we won't see on the electoral stage again (in some cases, thankfully). For others, a potentially bright political future remains. Here are a few: … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, liberty, National Politics, PPC

11/4/2010 By Ben Leave a Comment

Non-Union State Employee Closes Up Tongue-in-Cheek ColoradoLoses

Today marks the end of an era. The state employee who started the non-union group ColoradoLoses as an answer to Colorado WINS, the union coalition outgoing Governor Bill Ritter invited into Denver by executive order in 2007. Dave Ohmart posted the announcement on his website earlier today:I am shutting ColoradoLoses down. Thaks so much for the support you showed me over the past two and a half years. WINS will be shutting down too, I believe. They have lost support and are near bankruptcy. I don't have any independent information to confirm or challenge Dave's assessment and prediction. But it's important to note that Colorado WINS (a joint coalition of SEIU, AFSCME and AFT) did gain its semi-exalted bargaining position, after … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, Commemorative, Labor, liberty, PPC

11/3/2010 By Ben Leave a Comment

Frank McNulty and New GOP House Leadership Team Prepare to Step In

As pointed out on the Denver Post blog, Colorado's new majority Republican state house caucus is proceeding with leadership elections tomorrow. At 10 AM, to be precise. Colorado Democrats have protested, saying not all the decisive races have been resolved to their satisfaction. Sure, I appreciate it's hard to accept being in the minority after the past six years on top. But looking at the situation clearly, it's extremely difficult to see how any of the close races left will shift in either direction. Why? Well, for one, Republican challenger Bob Boswell is more likely to surmount his deficit against Greeley Rep. Jim Riesberg than outgoing Democrats Dianne Primavera or Debbie Benefield are to hold on to their seats. (And the deficits … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, liberty, PPC

11/3/2010 By Ben Leave a Comment

Wishful Numbers in Tim Leonard’s State Senate District 16 Race?

Although it's not crucial to winning the majority in the state senate -- the Democrats have held on -- it seems like we have a small dispute over the actual standing of the race in District 16, where conservative Republican Tim Leonard and liberal Democrat Jeanne Nicholson are locked in a close count. Lynn Bartels reported at 10:30 this morning in the Denver Post (H/T Complete Colorado):And in a multi-county seat stretching from the western suburbs to mountain towns, Democrat Jeanne Nicholson was up by six votes over Republican Tim Leonard, according to a tweet from Sen. Morgan Carroll, D-Aurora. A Tweet? Could we use some real confirmation, please? Outlets like 9News and The Denver Channel (Bartels' own Denver Post election results page … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, Journalism, liberty, PPC

11/3/2010 By Ben Leave a Comment

Dan Maes Wins 10%: No Minor Party Status Problem for Colorado GOP?

There are still outstanding ballots, and so the final tabulated results are not yet in. But what's being reported in the unofficial results indicates that Republican gubernatorial candidate Dan Maes has secured more than 10.0% of the vote. Fears based on the latest round of polls that Maes would land in single digits didn't materialize. And some pundits (myself included) are humbled again on the high-profile races. The U.S. Senate showdown remains up in the air with some late counties, as well as military and provisional ballots outstanding, (despite the Denver Post jumping the gun). But Republicans have consoled themselves so far by winning the Secretary of State and Treasurer offices, along with John Suthers holding on as Attorney … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, liberty, National Politics, PPC

11/2/2010 By Ben Leave a Comment

2010 Election Liveblogging

I am providing Election Night coverage here, including quotes and photos as available. I am working with a collaborative of organizations on this project -- including Independence Institute, People's Press Collective, Complete Colorado, Who Said You Said, Mothers Against Debt and National Review Online. Go here for the relevant details (including links and a live video feed), and stay tuned for the best in Colorado grassroots conservative political coverage! 11:55 PM: Jefferson County is counting provisional ballots in the Ramirez race, and according to his campaign manager Walt Blankenship it's overwhelmingly working in the Republican's favor. I'm feeling very confident that the GOP will win the state house. It remains to be seen … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, liberty, National Politics, PPC

11/1/2010 By Ben 1 Comment

Why a 4-Point Ken Buck Victory is Likelier than a Looming “Recount”

So if the Denver Post insists that a "recount looms" in Colorado's U.S. Senate race, why do I predict that Ken Buck will defeat appointed incumbent Michael Bennet by four points? What makes me so confident that my prognostication is more accurate than the hype? On The Spot blog, Post political editor Curtis Hubbard lists the most recent polls from the seven different major firms tracking this race, along with the New York Times blog prediction, listed as follows from most recent to oldest: … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Colorado Politics, Journalism, liberty, National Politics, PPC

11/1/2010 By Ben Leave a Comment

2010 Election Predictions

ELECTION DAY NOTE: I will be providing Election Night coverage here, including quotes and photos as available. I am working with a collaborative of organizations on this project -- including Independence Institute, People's Press Collective, Complete Colorado, Who Said You Said, Mothers Against Debt and National Review Online. Go here for the relevant details (including a live video feed), and stay tuned for the best in Colorado grassroots conservative political coverage! Update, 9:00 AM: Despite all appearances, the latest Fox News/Public Opinion Research poll and I did not crib answers off each other. If we're both off the mark, we're off the mark together. Update II, 12:30 PM: Minor tweak to the governor's race … [Read more...]

Filed Under: blogging, Colorado Politics, liberty, National Politics, PPC

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Inside

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    The Rise & Fall of Al Gansee
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About Me

Ben DeGrow
Grateful and growing Christian, devoted husband and father of 3, public policy analyst, returned to Michigan by way of Colorado, conservative writer, lifelong learner, Detroit Tigers fan.

Recent Posts

  • AI-Enhanced Cyberbullying: The Dark Side of Teen Innovation
  • My Baker’s Dozen of Top 2023 Reads
  • Common Learning Disabilities in Children
  • Tips to Teach Kids to Set and Achieve Goals
  • The Christmas Music Countdown You’ve Been Looking For: 2022 Edition

Colorado News

  • Colorado Senate News
  • Complete Colorado
  • Independence Institute
  • Loveland Politics
  • The Colorado Observer

National News and Politics

  • Drudge Report
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  • National Review
  • Politico
  • Real Clear Politics
  • Reason
  • The Washington Times
  • TownHall
  • Wall Street Journal
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Blogs Extraordinaire

  • American Thinker
  • David Harsanyi’s Blog
  • E!! The True Conservative Story
  • EIA Intercepts
  • Evangelical Outpost
  • Hugh Hewitt
  • Instapundit
  • LaShawn Barber
  • Lileks
  • Little Green Footballs
  • Michelle Malkin
  • NRO's The Corner
  • Power Line
  • Red State

Completing the Blogroll

  • Alarming News
  • Black Five
  • Blogs of War
  • Eduwonk
  • Flypaper
  • Fraters Libertas
  • Historical Conversations
  • IMAO
  • Jay P. Greene
  • Mike Anderson
  • Mullings
  • Professor Bainbridge
  • Right Thinking
  • Right Wing News
  • Right Wing Nuthouse
  • Shot in the Dark
  • Talking Points Memo
  • Virginia Postrel
  • Volokh Conspiracy

Christian Commentary et al.

  • Kevin Pierpont
  • Sharper Iron

Conservative and GOP Sites

  • Backbone America
  • Cal Thomas
  • Colorado Republican Party
  • Colorado Republican Study Committee
  • Dennis Prager
  • Denver Metro Young Republicans
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  • Heritage Foundation
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  • Mackinac Center for Public Policy
  • Mark Steyn
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  • Rush Limbaugh

Colorado Blogs

  • American Kestrel
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Other Sites

  • Technorati
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Rocky Mountain Alliance 2.0

  • Reclaim the Blue
  • The Business Word
  • The Daily Blogster
  • View from a Height

To Contact Me:
bendegrow-at-gmail.com

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