Republican state senate candidate Owen Hill was blindsided yesterday by a Colorado Springs Gazette story with fabricated claims that Hill plagiarized statements off his Libertarian opponent's website. A friend of mine, quoted in the story, does his job of defending his Party's position and candidate, but issued his quote carefully:“My understanding is, from Doug, that Doug had written the stuff, and he noticed it was on his opponent’s website and was not pleased with that discovery,” said David K. Williams Jr., chairman of the Libertarian Party of Colorado. [emphasis added] Essentially hearsay. Unfortunately, the Gazette opted for a sensational he said / he said story rather than perform a little basic investigation. Owen Hill's … [Read more...]
Gallup Survey of Institutions: Congress Rock-Bottom, Presidency Falling Fast
For what it's worth, if you want a glimpse of the public mindset concerning 16 major institutions in American society, you should check out the new Gallup survey (H/T Mike Antonucci). The following are some salient observations on how favorably Americans view the 16 major institutions: … [Read more...]
Hickenlooper Loses Edge on Charitable Giving, Exposes Political “Glass Jaw”?
Driving home from the office yesterday evening, listening to the tail end of the Caplis & Silverman Show on 630 KHOW, I could hardly believe my ears as Denver mayor and Democrat gubernatorial candidate John Hickenlooper assumed an uncharacteristically defensive tone when the hosts pressed him on his refusal to disclose any names of the charitable organizations his personal wealth has supported through the years. As the show's closing music played, Hickenlooper lashed out at the show as biased and indicated he wasn't too interested in coming back on the show again. Complete Colorado has posted the audio. Rossputin provides a great recap and thorough breakdown of the Mayor's "strained" argument that raises more questions about the … [Read more...]
Colo. House Dem Leader Waging PC Fight against “War on Terror” Memorial?
In case you're like me and didn't listen to the Peter Boyles Show this morning, then you've probably missed this gem from our state legislature. As reported by Colorado Senate News:A memorial to honor soldiers that have sacrificed their lives fighting the War on Terror could be derailed following objections from one Democrat lawmaker. “It is disrespectful to the families of fallen soldiers to drag this memorial into the political mud,” said Sen. Mike Kopp, R-Littleton. Kopp sponsored the 2007 legislation that created the War on Terror Fallen Heroes Memorial. Rep. Paul Weissmann, D-Louisville, was the only lawmaker to oppose the proposal. Now Weissmann is saying the memorial should be renamed since President Barack Obama declared an … [Read more...]
19-Year-Old Student Daniel Lippman Proofreads Beltway Reporters
And I thought I was anal. (H/T Betsy's Page) Now if someone could help with the AP's whole ideologically-driven, selectively sloppy investigation problem. … [Read more...]
Memo to Colorado GOP: Court–Don’t Co-opt–The Tea Party Crowd
Update, 12/2: More valuable insights from Joshua Sharf. First, the Denver Post's Dan Haley weighed in on the Republicans' "Platform for Prosperity." Today, the story went national with coverage from Wall Street Journal reporter Stephanie Simon, and a quote from from one of my favorite grassroots activists (in spite of her misplaced football loyalties):Republicans, however, said the platform would prompt voters to focus on the party's message, rather than their feelings about individual candidates. "People can vote for the agenda," said Tom Tancredo, a former Republican congressman who had been mulling a run for governor. But Nikki Mata, a conservative activist in suburban Denver, said that such a strategy misses the point of the … [Read more...]
State of Colorado’s Republican Race for Governor: After Penry, the Deluge?
Chuck Plunkett is one of the more liberal members of the Denver Post's editorial board, but he's a straight shooter. And his Friday posting on the state of Colorado's Republican primary for governor -- "Whither Tancredo?" -- is full of spot-on insights, such as:Party insiders say the problem is that the campaign [Scott] McInnis has structured to date has created a vacuum that conservatives abhor. And: … [Read more...]
Rumors Okay as Long as School Board Candidates Not Backed by Union?
In the world of K-12 education politics, when you are trying to do something right and shake up the status quo a little bit, it's very hard to avoid flak. And anyone running for local school board deserves careful scrutiny. But when silly rumors start flying and supposedly serious news agencies report them, I suppose it's time for someone else to step up and take on the challenge. Hey, no problem: I'm used to being called silly names by teachers unions. In case you're not aware, I'm talking about the upcoming elections for Douglas County Board of Education, an area south of metro Denver for the uninitiated. The story begins last December when the local teachers union -- affiliated with the American Federation of Teachers -- endorsed and … [Read more...]
Vince Carroll: Not So Fast, We Have a GOP U.S. Senate Primary, After All
What a difference a week makes! Last Sunday Denver Post editorial page editor Dan Haley laid out the red carpet for Republican Jane Norton's U.S. Senate campaign. Today, in the printed space directly beneath Haley, columnist Vince Carroll took a look at Norton's "clunky" bio page and "languid and subdued" introductory video, and had to say Ummm... Not so fast: … [Read more...]
5280, Meet Denver Post (and PPC, Too)
Trying to build on Lefty hitman David Sirota's smear that the anti-Obama Care movement is characterized by "racist undertones" leading to rampant death threats, the 5280 blog recounts:He isn’t the only public figure in Colorado to be threatened for digging into the intricacies of the health care debate. Last month, Congressman John Salazar received a death threat during a protest in Grand Junction, leading his office to contact Capitol police and the FBI, according to The Pueblo Chieftain. Umm, does 5280 not read the Denver Post? … [Read more...]