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Home Archives for clean government

10/6/2008 By Ben Leave a Comment

“Real” Public School Teacher Speaks Out for Colorado Amendment 49

The Rocky Mountain News today takes a closer look at Protect Colorado's Future and its use of "real" people in advertisements to foist its deceptive messages on the public:Firefighter Joel Heinemann says he would rather run into a burning building than face a movie camera. Yet it's his face Coloradans are seeing in television ads and home flyers urging a "no" vote on Amendments 47, 49 and 54. Heinemann is a "messenger," one of about a dozen firefighters, police officers, nurses and teachers who volunteered to enter the political limelight to speak against three ballot initiatives they believe are anti-union. Of course, it's also important to note that Joel Heinemann is president of the Littleton firefighters union, and that Denver … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, General, Labor Tagged With: "real" people, advertisements, Amendment 47, Amendment 49, Amendment 54, anti-union, body armor, Boulder Daily Camera, burning building, Coloradans, deceptive messages, Denver, Denver Post, deputy sheriff, endorsements, episode, Ethical Standards, firefighter, firefighters union, Fraternal Order of Police, host, Independence Institute, Independent Thinking, Jeff Shaw, Jefferson County, Joel Heinemann, Jon Caldara, law enforcement, Littleton, lobbying, Michael Alcorn, movie camera, opposition, politically active groups, President, Protect Colorado's Future, public school teacher, public servants, Rocky Mountain News, safety equipment, safety issues, scare tactics, teacher, television ads, unethical business, union contract, YouTube

10/4/2008 By Ben 4 Comments

Backroom Deal Sheds Light on Colorado Labor Union Leader Priorities

Much ado has been made out of the 11th-hour deal that pulled four labor union-sponsored initiatives from the Colorado ballot. As opined by the editors of the Rocky Mountain News:On Thursday, labor peace was restored in Colorado. At least until the 2009 legislature convenes. The announcement that two labor-backed groups would remove Amendments 53, 55, 56 and 57 from the November ballot - and in return business groups would fund a joint business-labor campaign to defeat Amendments 47, 49 and 54 - is a positive development. The state's economic health was in the crosshairs of the labor measures, a couple of which probably had a good shot at passage. There's no doubt that the "economic health" and well-being of Colorado families and … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, General, Labor Tagged With: "bread-and-butter" initiatives, 11th-hour, Amendment 47, Amendment 49, Amendment 53, Amendment 54, Amendment 55, Amendment 56, Amendment 57, business groups, business-labor deal, coercive, coffers, Colorado ballot, Colorado businesses, Colorado families, Colorado voters, cynical ploy, dues collection, economic health, editors, fees, fool, government payroll systems, labor peace, negotiating chips, non-negotiable, November ballot, political extortion, priorities, rhetoric, Rocky Mountain News, smoke-filled backroom, special interests, union leaders, union members, welfare, workers, working class

10/3/2008 By Ben 1 Comment

I’m On KBDI Channel 12 Tonight to Discuss Colorado Amendment 49

Update: A trusted reader says you can also watch on Channel 23 in Colorado Springs. Update: I added a link to Michael's blog. Please tune in tonight at 7:30 PM to KBDI 12 (in the Denver metro area) for an important episode of Independent Thinking with host Jon Caldara. Guests Jefferson County teacher Michael Alcorn and I will discuss what Amendment 49, the Ethical Standards initiative, does, and the effects it has (and doesn't have) on teachers and other public employees. For those of you heading out to theaters to catch the premiere of An American Carol, please don't forget to set your TiVo or VCR to record. But in case you forget, the episode is scheduled to re-air next Tuesday, October 7, at 5:00 PM on KBDI. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, General, My Life Tagged With: Amendment 49, An American Carol, Ethical Standards initiative, Independent Thinking, Jefferson County, Jon Caldara, KBDI Channel 12, Michael Alcorn, premiere, public employees, record, teacher, teachers, TiVo, VCR

10/2/2008 By Ben 1 Comment

Ted Trimpa: Extortion Negotiator, Gill Adviser, “Educate the Idiots” Insider

Denver attorney Ted Trimpa is being touted as the great mediator, the great savior, in negotiating a compromise between business and labor to remove four anti-business initiatives from the ballot. Who's doing the touting? Why, the liberal Dead Governors blog, of course:For those of you who don't know about Hogan and Hartson's Ted Trimpa, well, you should. He's the one who brought this pact, the most unlikely partnership since Referendum C, together, helping reinforce his growing waterwalker mystique. It's also true that labor wasn't really looking forward to taking the blame for the potentially serious unintended consequences of a couple of these proposals. The infusion of cash to fight the anti-labor initiatives will help, as will the … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, General, Labor Tagged With: "Educate the Idiots", 527 Coordinating Operatives, Amendment 47, Amendment 49, Amendment 53, Amendment 54, Amendment 55, Amendment 56, Amendment 57, Andrew Romanoff, anti-business initiatives, attorney, business, Cole Finegan, Colorado Democracy Alliance, ColoradoPols, compromise, Dead Governors, Denver, Denver Post, disinterested party, economy-busting, glib, Hogan & Hartson, Hogan and Hartson, inner workings, Labor, labor leader, liberal billionaire, lies, mediator, partnership, political advisor, praises, progressive, Referendum C, Rutt Bridges, strategy group, Ted Trimpa, Tim Gill, union power, waterwalker

10/2/2008 By Ben 1 Comment

CoDA’s “Educate the Idiots” Members Biggest Funders of Protect Colorado’s Future’s Campaign of Deception

If you haven't seen or heard it by now, Colorado's "progressive" Democrat coalition got a little more behind-the-scenes exposure yesterday than they would like. A series of slowly leaked documents by Face The State are uncovering the inner workings of the coalition - known as the Colorado Democracy Alliance (CoDA). The light of the day has given us some useful insights. We are starting to see what the Left's agenda for Colorado is, why they have coordinated the spending of so much money to take over the state legislature, the governor's office, and so much more. No document has received quite as much attention as this one:In a confidential internal memorandum obtained by Face The State (PDF), the Colorado Democracy Alliance outlines a … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, General, Labor Tagged With: "Educate the Idiots", AFL-CIO, African-American, agenda, Amendment 47, Amendment 49, Amendment 54, Andrew Romanoff, behind-the-scenes exposure, Bill Ritter, Bridget Johnson, campaign message, campaign of deception, change we can believe in, children of color, Colorado, Colorado Democracy Alliance, Colorado Education Association, Colorado Ethics Watch, confidential, covert, Democrat, Democrat leaders, document, donors, dropouts, dues, education employees, Evan Dreyer, exclusive list, Face the State, freedom, GEDs, government ethics, Governor, Hispanic, hoodwinked, idiots, indignant response, individual rights, institutional members, issue committee, Joan Fitz-Gerald, John Stocks, leaked documents, Left, liberal structure, lies, members, memorandum, minorities, National Education Association, Native American, off the record, Okie Campaigns, operatives, progressive, ProgressNow, Protect Colorado's Future, represent, Rocky Mountain News, Rocky Mountain Right, SEIU, Slapstick Politics, smart people, special interest groups, state legislature, state Republican Party leaders, strategy group, teachers, The Daily Blogster, union elite, union leaders, union power, worker welfare

10/1/2008 By Ben Leave a Comment

Yes, This is My Crazy Boss, But He’s Right about Colorado Amendment 49

(Compliments of Jon Caldara's blog) It's kind of nice seeing all those major newspaper endorsements of Amendment 49 at the end, too. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, General Tagged With: Amendment 49, endorsements, Ethical Standards, Jon Caldara, major newspapers, YouTube

10/1/2008 By Ben 5 Comments

Protect Colorado Future’s Deception Starting to Get Monotonous

Protect Colorado's Culture of Corruption Future, opponents of the good government reforms Colorado Amendment 49 and Amendment 54, must be going after the world record for most deceptive campaign. They're certainly making a run for it, as their latest effort may take the cake. In today's Rocky Mountain News, CBS4 reporter Raj Chohan dissects their latest out-of-this-world fable:A new political commercial suggests that a trio of Colorado ballot measures would give special breaks to multinational corporations such as Halliburton. The 30-second spot comes from a union-backed group called Protect Colorado's Future. Ad: This is a voter alert. Colorado ballot amendments have built-in loopholes. Amendments 49 and 54 would not apply to … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, General, Labor Tagged With: "educational" forum, advertising, Amendment 49, Amendment 54, ballot measures, CBS4 reporter, Colorado, deceptive, ethical reforms, global warming, good government, Halliburton, international terrorism, labor unions, lobbyists, Lyme disease, mailer, male pattern baldness, millions of dollars, misleading, most deceptive campaign, multinational corporations, North America, political clout, Protect Colorado's Future, Raj Chohan, reforms, Rocky Mountain News, scare tactics, special interest groups, television ad, voters, world record

9/29/2008 By Ben Leave a Comment

Jon Caldara and Denver Post Agree on Amendment 49: Stop the Presses!

As of today, the Denver Post becomes the fifth major Colorado newspaper to line up in support of Amendment 49, the Ethical Standards initiative (H/T Ethical Standards). One line from the Post's lead editorial shows how truly remarkable a development this endorsement of Amendment 49 is:It prevents state and local governments from collecting dues for labor unions or other groups that use such funds to elect or lobby the very public officials who hire them and set their salaries and benefits. It's a modest but important ethical rule that will help keep partisan politics, with its echo of the 19th century "spoils system," out of the merit systems that regulate most state and local government jobs. We usually don't agree with the … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, General, Labor, Random and Miscellaneous Tagged With: Amendment 49, bipartitsanship, cats, consensus, Denver Post, Detroit Lions, dogs, endorsement, Ethical Standards initiative, Independence Institute, Jon Caldara, lead editorial, remarkable development, Super Bowl, world peace

9/29/2008 By Ben 3 Comments

Introducing Ben’s Guide to the Colorado Ballot 2008

Due to the unrivaled success of providing a guide to Colorado's 2006 ballot measures, and an even larger slate of Initiatives and Referenda to consider, I give you Ben's guide to the Colorado ballot for 2008. The author is solely responsible for the opinions contained therein. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, Education, Fiscal Policy, General, Labor, My Life, property rights Tagged With: 2008, ballot initiatives, Colorado, legislative referenda

9/26/2008 By Ben 2 Comments

More Deception From Foes of Colorado Amendment 49, Amendment 54

In a campaign characterized by hypocrisy, deception, and cowardice, the opponents of Colorado's Amendment 47 (Right-to-Work), Amendment 49 (Ethical Standards), and Amendment 54 (Government Contracting Reform) are at it again. The People's Press Collective documents the latest misleading campaign flyer from Protect Colorado's Culture of Corruption Future, noting: "You won’t be surprised that they’re still abusing Colorado’s real heroes as puppets for their elaborate LIES." Indeed. At this point, I'm not sure how low the opponents of good government and worker freedom would have to go to take me by surprise. The campaign isn't over yet, though. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, General, Labor Tagged With: abuse, Amendment 47, Amendment 49, Amendment 54, campaign flyer, cowardice, Culture of Corruption, deception, Ethical Standards, good government, government contracting reform, heroes, hypocrisy, misleading, Peoples Press Collective, Protect Colorado's Future, right-to-work, surprise, worker freedom

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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.

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