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Home Archives for PPC

2/7/2026 By Ben 1 Comment

Scott McInnis’ No-Debate Strategy: “Party Unity for Me, But Not for Thee”

In a Denver Post column today, Republican gubernatorial candidate Scott McInnis justifies his decision not to engage in debates with his primary opponents Josh Penry and Dan Maes: "I will work diligently over the next year to ensure that our party is unified, and that we avoid past mistakes where Republicans wrote the Democrats' television commercials for them." So McInnis suggests not only that debates will inevitably lead to nasty personal infighting but also that party unity is his primary motivation for his no-debate strategy. However, was party unity his primary motivation: … [Read more...]

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

2/7/2026 By Ben Leave a Comment

How Long for Michael Bennet to Decide on Fed Reserve Transparency?

In a savvy political move that promotes a good, old-fashioned commonsense idea -- something very rare in the halls of Congress -- Republican U.S. Senate candidate Ken Buck has called on incumbent appointee Michael Bennet to join the bipartisan Congressional co-sponsorship of a very important transparency bill:In an e-mail to Bennet, Buck, a Republican candidate for the Senate seat Bennet currently holds, wrote that “auditing Federal Reserve operations isn't a political question. It's a simple matter of good government and financial responsibility.”... The Federal Reserve Sunshine Act would force the Fed to open its books to the Government Accountability Office. The bill has 30 Senate co-sponsors, and 309 representatives are co-sponsoring … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, Fiscal Policy, General, Labor, liberty, National Politics, PPC

2/7/2026 By Ben Leave a Comment

Reminder: Call Congress Today to Oppose H.R. 3962 Obama Care

I was planning to post a notice today about the need to take action against the Pelosi version of Obama Care. And today is the time to do it! But being busy, I got permission to paste this email (with a couple slight tweaks) from a friend:Hello to all! If you want tax dollars funding abortions and for medical coverage to become less available, now is the time to do nothing! The house version of the health care "reform" bill will come up for a vote tomorrow (Saturday). … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, Cultural Conservatism, Fiscal Policy, General, Health Care, liberty, My Life, National Politics, PPC

2/7/2026 By Ben Leave a Comment

Do We Still Celebrate the Berlin Wall’s Collapse 20 Years Later?

Twenty years ago today the Berlin Wall came down. Not exactly breaking news for my well-informed readers, but the significance of the event is hard to overstate. For five minutes of valuable reflection on the power of freedom with a stirring Beethoven soundtrack, check out this terrific video from the Competitive Enterprise Institute: … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Commemorative, General, History, liberty, My Life, PPC, World Events

2/7/2026 By Ben Leave a Comment

Evading Serious Questions Ties Bill Ritter and Obama Nominee Villafuerte

President Obama's nomination of Stephanie Villafuerte to be Colorado's next U.S. Attorney has put Governor Bill Ritter in an unwanted situation. Serious questions remain unanswered about Villafuerte's role in the political smear of federal ICE agent Cory Voorhis during the 2006 election that led to his near conviction. But Ritter thinks it's too much trouble for us to bother with the questions now:She also declined to answer questions this week about whether she provided the FBI with a complete accounting of any contacts she had with the DA's office about [illegal immigrant Carlos] Estrada-Medina. A message and detailed e-mail left by The Post for Villafuerte were returned instead by Evan Dreyer, spokesman for Ritter. He said Villa fuerte, … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, Education, General, Health Care, liberty, National Politics, PPC

2/7/2026 By Ben Leave a Comment

Josh Penry Effectively Calls Out Governor Bill Ritter for “Hiring Farce”

Channel 7 investigative reporters Arthur Kane and John Ferrugia have exposed Democrat Governor Bill Ritter's so-called "hiring freeze" for what it really was:Gov. Bill Ritter promised a hiring freeze last year to help bridge the budget gap, but a CALL7 investigation found that as many as 2,300 employees were hired during the “freeze.” As much as a year ago I called out Ritter's phony "freeze". In January Denver Post reporter Jessica Fender described Bill Ritter's so-called "freeze" as "more of a chill". Back then I asked "Doesn’t anyone want to run for governor against this guy?" … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, Fiscal Policy, General, Labor, PPC

2/7/2026 By Ben Leave a Comment

How Bill Ritter Has Made Union Leaders Feel at Home on Taxpayers’ Time

Have any doubts that Ritter's union executive order has made Big Labor feel all cozy at home in state government? The intrepid Colorado Loses team reports on their union counterparts soliciting for members at an official meeting, on taxpayers' time:This past week, WINS organized and held a budget information meeting at the unemployment office. There was some budget guy from the state, there, along with a couple of union thugs. After the budget guy showed us the state of the state economy, a union guy got up and started soliciting for members. “We need to organize in our communities and in our offices.” WINS used a formal budget information format to seek membership. THIS IS INAPPROPRIATE USE OF GOVERNMENT BUILDINGS! … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, General, Labor, liberty, PPC, property rights

2/7/2026 By Ben 1 Comment

Election 2009, From Va. to Local School Board: Mixed Bag, More Good Than Bad

Quick reflections on last night's election results ... National The Bad: In what was a late insurgent campaign, conservative Doug Hoffman loses New York 23 (though Erick Erickson tries to spin it into a favorable light). Tax-limitation initiatives in Maine and Washington went down in flames. The Good: Obviously, the Republican sweep in Virginia -- governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, seven more seats in the state assembly -- is the big national victory. And a Republican governor in New Jersey? Priceless. Colorado Local The Bad: Pro-union, anti-reform forces strike back and claim a narrow majority on the Denver school board Reformers Amy Attwood and Natalie Menten both narrowly lose Lakewood city council … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, Fiscal Policy, General, liberty, National Politics, PPC

2/7/2026 By Ben Leave a Comment

Josh Penry Wins Hometown Support; Bill Ritter Wins Root Canal Crowd

The Denver Post this morning published a pair of follow-up stories analyzing the campaign finance reports in the race for Colorado governor: "...Grand Junction residents overwhelmingly voted with their wallets for state Sen. Josh Penry over former U.S. Rep. Scott McInnis in the opening salvo of their primary battle." As they say, those who know the two hometown candidates best.... "Gov. Bill Ritter can thank dentists, satellite TV executives and unions for a big chunk of the $450,000 he raised last quarter for his re-election bid." Despite all the loud noise, there's no big surprise some labor groups still will pour the maximum into Ritter's campaign. But dentists? Well, the governor's car tax and accompanying late fees have felt … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, Fiscal Policy, General, liberty, PPC

2/7/2026 By Ben 2 Comments

Colorado Supreme Court & School Funding: Case to Clear the Bench

Despite all the hoopla (much of it well-deserved) about the election results, let's not lose focus on an easily overlooked issue that should factor into some of our important decisions for 2010 -- namely, the Colorado Supreme Court delving into political questions of how our schools are funded in Lobato v State. You now can listen to my recent 8-minute interview on this very topic with Brad Jones on Face The State Weekend edition. Whether or not you get to listen, let me explain -- no, let me sum up: The case for Clear The Bench Colorado is now overwhelming. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Colorado Politics, Education, Fiscal Policy, General, Judiciary, PPC

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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

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