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Chesser Documents the State Template for Climate Change Rip-Offs

At the American Spectator, Paul Chesser writes about some of the highlights of his work he has documented, connecting the dots to compare how different states adopt climate change policies. His conclusion should be upsetting to taxpayers:Every state amazingly produces the same strategies: increased taxation upon coal-fired energy generation; higher electric bill surcharges; increased tailpipe emissions standards to encompass CO2; subsidized mass transit; "green" standards in school curricula; and more. Can you feel the pain? CCS and the climate commissions can't. Seems they promise only positives, as the new taxes and regulations that they always recommend are amazingly said to save state economies money and create jobs. Indeed, Colorado … [Read more...]

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Come See Flunked: The Movie’s Colorado Debut Next Wednesday

Flunked: The Movie - an Evergreen Freedom Foundation (EFF) production - comes to Colorado next Wednesday, May 21. The Independence Institute (where I work) is sponsoring the showing of this spectacular 47-minute film about the success stories that should inspire transformational change in our nation's education system. The film, narrated by Joe Mantegna, is more engaging and entertaining than your average documentary. Here's a preview: Also, you can listen to this iVoices podcast recorded today with EFF's Steve Maggi to learn more about the film. And go here to find out how to sign up for the May 21 event. … [Read more...]

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Teachers Union Corruption and Abuse Served Up South of the Border

I am critical enough of the Colorado Education Association and the National Education Association. But to be fair, NEA/CEA has been outdone by their counterparts to the South: Mexico's National Union of Education Workers. The Center for Immigration Studies (CIS) has documented the waste and corruption and horrible inefficiencies of the Mexican education system due to the union's political power and influence (H/T Mark Krikorian at The Corner). Teachers unions in this state and country have caused their own significant share of problems, but their work is cut out for them to match the scale of abuse and destructive influence that CIS has documented about their sister union south of the border. Wow. … [Read more...]

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Liberal Denver Post Columnist Assails Do-Nothing Democrat Legislature

Liberal Denver Post columnist Susan Greene expresses her frustrations with the Democratically-led state legislature:After citing budget reform as a top priority, House Speaker Andrew Romanoff has tabled the issue without even a vote in committee. Better to let voters decide than force lawmakers to get their hands dirty, especially in an election year. After working to raise severance taxes on oil and gas drilling, the legislature has dropped the effort without explanation. After a blue-ribbon panel met for eight months on transportation funding, lawmakers passed none of its major recommendations. And after promising voting reform before November's election, they rubber-stamped a bill to recertify voting machines that the state … [Read more...]

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Politico’s Bad and Not-so-Bad News for Barack Obama

A quick glance at Politico this morning ... Bad news for Barack Obama: A stinging blowout defeat in the West Virginia primary holds a lot of evidence that the Leftist Illinois Senator faces serious demographic challenges beyond the bellwether state. Not-so-bad news for Barack Obama: All signs point to another bad national election season for Republican candidates. … [Read more...]

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New Poll Shows McCain Upsetting Left’s Plans to Turn Colorado Blue

Via Politico's Jonathan Martin and Hot Air's Ed Morrissey, a new poll shows Republican presidential candidate John McCain with a commanding, double-digit lead here in Colorado versus either Democrat contender - Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton: McCain 51, Obama 39 McCain 52, Clinton 40 Something is happening on the way to the Left's plan to turn Colorado blue: Their leaders are generating more disdain than those who have sold out conservatives on the Republican side. I'm not sure whether to laugh or cry. While it takes longer for things happening at the state level to reach the average voter, one can almost imagine some of the reaction against Obama and Clinton trickling down to their inept liberal buddies - like Gov. Bill Ritter … [Read more...]

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Bill Ritter’s Tax Hike on Trial: Day 1

Yesterday was the first day of the court hearing on the lawsuit by the Independence Institute (where I work) and Colorado taxpayers against Gov. Bill Ritter's unconstitutional property tax increase. Today's Denver Post explains a key issue behind the plaintiffs' argument:They noted that in 1993, the General Assembly amended the School Finance Act to ensure that the property taxes raised for the local share of total program funding for public-school education in each school not violate the revenue cap of the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights. But with passage of the 2007 amendment, Ritter used it to freeze mill-levies, the opponents charged. The freeze holds mill levies — the rate at which taxes are charged — in place when they normally … [Read more...]

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Wall Street Journal Takes Note of Bill Ritter’s Business-Labor Brouhaha

Today's Wall Street Journal takes notice of Colorado's brewing battle between Big Labor and the state's economic well-being:A labor-union campaign in Colorado to tighten restrictions on layoffs and crack down on corporate fraud could put Democrats in an awkward position as they gather here in August for their presidential convention. Unions are pushing to get a total of six measures on the fall ballot, all of them opposed by small-business owners and corporate interests. "If they pass, it would be like putting a big 'Do Not Locate Your Business Here' sign on Colorado," said John Brackney, president of the South Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce. Don't believe the unions' initiatives would harm the economy? How about this opinion … [Read more...]