Read this letter published in today's Gazette (Colorado Springs) from John Leonard of Monument: With liberals in charge, hold onto your wallets Colorado taxpayers had better hold on to their wallets as the tax-and-spend liberals take over the state Legislature. Already, liberal organizations such the League of Women Voters, AARP and the Colorado Springs Economic Development Corporation have begun their assault on TABOR so taxes can be raised to have state taxpayers support their pet programs. The Democrats controlling the Legislature are more than willing to support the move as long as Amendment 23 is not changed. That allows them to pay back the teachers’ unions for their political support and to pour more money into the public … [Read more...]

Today is the first day of the new legislative session here in Colorado, as members of the House and Senate swear an oath to uphold the state constitution. They've come for your wallets, so hold on tight. Stay in touch with what's going on. Hold your elected officials accountable. Today is officially Day 1 of "TABOR Watch" from the lookout posts at Mount Virtus. TABOR, short for the Taxpayers Bill of Rights, approved in 1992 by the voters of Colorado to check the size of government. And it has worked successfully. Yet among many in the media and the center-left of Colorado politics have made TABOR the scapegoat for all the state's fiscal woes - ignoring the real problem of Amendment 23, which mandates a certain percentage of state … [Read more...]

In an earlier post I mentioned the vacancy committee's search for a Republican candidate to replace outgoing State Representative Don Lee of Littleton. Congratulations to Jim Kerr, the newest member of the Colorado House of Representatives - to be sworn in tomorrow with 64 of his colleagues. As for my friend Justin Everett, there may still be a future in elected office. … [Read more...]

As I posted at length before, Colorado Republicans are trying to fill a legislative vacancy, after conservative Rep. Don Lee (R - Littleton) resigned in December. Seven candidates have announced to fill Rep. Lee's seat. Trying to separate himself from the pack, Justin Everett, 33, held a $50-a-person fundraiser last night, on the eve of the vacancy committee's final ballot. (Disclosure: Justin Everett is a personal acquaintance and political ally.) As Rocky Mountain News columnist Peter Blake points out, it may seem a strange affair to host a fundraiser before a vacancy committee selection, but Everett is boldly making a statement about his ability to perform a crucial political task. One of the reasons the GOP suffered in the state … [Read more...]