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Home Archives for Grand Junction

5/28/2009 By Ben Leave a Comment

Western Slope Pressure Heightens Bill Ritter’s Bad Policy SB 180 Dilemma

As the Grand Junction Sentinel reports today, the day of reckoning draws closer for Colorado Governor Bill Ritter to decide on the bad policy that is SB 180 -- a costly favor to Big Labor. The Sentinel today also editorializes strongly against SB 180 -- using many of the same arguments I've brought forward before, and even one I haven't really emphasized:Strikes would be prohibited under the legislation, but there are no sanctions listed in the bill for those who violate the provision. Now it would seem that Bill Ritter has an opportunity to start mending fences with folks on the Western Slope, where his popularity is low and heckling is a common greeting for him, by vetoing SB 180. He could listen to Grand Junction mayor Bruce Hill, … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, Fiscal Policy, General, Labor, PPC Tagged With: arguments, bad policy, Big Labor, Bill Ritter, Bruce Hill, campaign contributions, candidate, coerce, Collective Bargaining, Colorado, Colorado Professional Firefighters, common, community, costly, day of reckoning, debate, deja vu, editorializes, emphasized, excuse, favor, fences, folks, good policy, Governor, Grand Junction, Grand Junction Sentinel, greeting, HB 1072, HB 1170, heckling, inflaming, lockout, low, make up, mayor, measure, mending, observed, opportunity, political favors, political retribution, popularity, promised, reports, rhetorical question, same, sanctions, SB 180, sign, state government, strikes, strongly, supporters, tidbit, union agency fees, union hall, union leaders, veto, Western Slope, workers

4/17/2009 By Ben Leave a Comment

Ryan Frazier Fires Up Crowd at Colorado Tax Day Tea Party

El Presidente has posted video of the Denver Tax Day Tea Party, but the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel has the video coverage of Colorado's largest Western Slope gathering. The apparent highlight of the event was the rousing speech of Ryan Frazier, who also announced a formal step toward a U.S. Senate campaign (watch the video below the fold): … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Colorado Politics, General, liberty, My Life, National Politics, PPC, Sports and Leisure Tagged With: American League Central, automotive bailouts, beloved team, campaign, Colorado, Denver, Detroit, Detroit Tigers, dismal, economic doldrums, El Presidente, event, first place, football, formal step, gathering, Grand Junction, Grand Junction Sentinel, highlight, performance, persistent, rousing speech, Ryan Frazier, Tax Day Tea Party, U.S. Senate, video coverage, wayward path

4/9/2009 By Ben Leave a Comment

Which Party Will Miss Peter Groff as Senate President More: GOP or Dems?

It seems almost certain that Democrat Senate President Peter Groff has tried to remain mum about the news of his impending departure to join the Obama administration in Washington to avoid distraction from an especially difficult budget process in the state legislature this year. But the cat's out of the bag now. Kind, classy words in the Denver Post from the Republican opposition:"Washington's gain is our loss," said Sen. Greg Brophy, R-Wray.... "I hope that President Obama gives him a job with a lot of power in the Department of Education," said Senate Minority Leader Josh Penry, R-Grand Junction. It's hard to say which party will miss him more at the helm of the state senate in 2010. For Republicans, he's a strong ally on … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Colorado Politics, Education, Fiscal Policy, General, National Politics, PPC Tagged With: 2011, adversary, bandied about, budget process, classy, critical, Democrat, Denver Post, Department of Education, difficult, education reform, election year, fiscally conservative, Grand Junction, Greg Brophy, helm, Josh Penry, kind, likable, motivation, mum, Obama administration, other issues, perceived, Peter Groff, potential, reasonable middle, replacements, Republican, sad, senate minority leader, Senate President, state legislature, state senate, strong ally, Washington, well-respected, words, Wray

4/5/2009 By Ben Leave a Comment

Strange But True: Bernie Buescher Lectures Protesters on “Good Policy”

Update, 4/6: A Rocky Mountain Right diarist from Ouray isn't too happy with the Governor's cancellation. What a bummer when you show up to protest someone, and they aren't able to make it in person. Such apparently was the case this weekend in Grand Junction, when inclement weather prevented Governor Bill Ritter from being welcomed by more than 50 Coloradans "totally disgusted" about the negative impacts of his various tax policies and newly-approved oil and gas rules. The interesting tidbit came from local news station KJCT, which reported that Secretary of State (and Western Slope native) Bernie Buescher showed up to take the slings and arrows in Ritter's place:He says the Governor recognizes this is a difficult time and it's time … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, Energy, Fiscal Policy, General, liberty, PPC Tagged With: appointment, arrogant, arrows, be quiet, Bernie Buescher, Bill Ritter, blind spot, bummer, CASE, Coloradans, Colorado, comment, common ground, current position, Democratic Party, elected, Face the State, go home, governing, Governor, Grand Junction, Grand Junction Sentinel, in person, inclement weather, interesting, KJCT, levers of power, local, majority, native, negative impacts, news station, obvious, oiil and gas rules, partisan bickering, penchant, protest, protesters, Secretary of State, slings, smug, startling, strong words, tax policies, taxpayers, tidbit, totally disgusted, tough issues, weekend, welcomed, Western Slope

2/5/2009 By Ben Leave a Comment

Colorado Democrats Working Hard to Become the Party of Toll Roads

Update, 8:50 PM: 19 Democrats voted for the taxes and tolls in the transportation bill. Lefties are in turmoil, with some angry that the Dems are responsible for passing a regressive tax. Yesterday I asked if Colorado Democrats would try to overreach in sticking taxpayers for state transportation costs. It didn't take long to see where the ruling party at the State Capitol stands. In a bizarre about-face, the Democrats decided to toss bipartisan compromise out the window to push a provision that would allow tolling on some of Colorado's busiest highways:Republicans and a handful of Democrats first voted to remove provisions allowing local authorities to toll existing roads. After a break in the debate, the bill sponsor and Democratic … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Colorado Politics, Fiscal Policy, General, PPC, transportation Tagged With: about-face, bill sponsor, bipartisan, busiest highways, Colorado, compromise, costs, deal breaker, debate, Democrats, Grand Junction, introduced, Josh Penry, local authorities, overreach, Party, party-line vote, provision, push, Republicans, Senate Bill 108, senate minority leader, State Capitol, strategic decision, taxpayers, toll roads, tolling, transportation

1/10/2009 By Ben Leave a Comment

Introducing Senator Kevin Lundberg

It's official. Colorado's newest state senator is Kevin Lundberg. A press release from the senate minority office earlier this afternoon confirmed the story:Larimer County Republican House Representative Kevin Lundberg has been appointed as the newest Larimer County State Senator. Lundberg was appointed after an election by the Senate District 15 vacancy committee. “I was greatly encouraged to have support from such a large majority of the committee. I intend to continue to represent Larimer County in the Senate as I did in the House,” Lundberg said. “We have a tough job ahead of us, and I can’t wait to get started working on solutions that help Coloradans during these tough economic times.” Lundberg will fill the seat … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Colorado Politics, General Tagged With: challenging times, Colorado, common sense, conservative, constituents, fiscal conservative, good news, Grand Junction, Greg Brophy, Jefferson County, Josh Penry, Kevin Lundberg, Larimer County, majority, Mike Kopp, press release, principled legislator, Republican, Senate District 15, state senator, Steve Johnson, vacancy committee

12/21/2008 By Ben 1 Comment

Democrat Moe Keller Happy to Spend Your Money While Spending is Good

Hey, Colorado, guess what? Leave the Democrats in charge in your state for too long, and taste the fruits of bad fiscal judgment. Witness this Face The State story about my own state senator:Audio from April 3 uncovered by Face The State reveals Sen. Moe Keller, a Wheat Ridge Democrat and chairwoman of the Joint Budget Committee, optimistically arguing that Colorado’s economic future is a bright one, even though Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke predicted on that same day the country was headed into a recession. "We do not have a projection from our economists that we are going into a fiscal train wreck," she said. Moe Keller and her fellow Democrats at the State Capitol are just happy to spend your money while the spending is … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Colorado Politics, Fiscal Policy, General Tagged With: bad fiscal judgment, Ben Bernanke, Bill Ritter, chairwoman, citizens, Colorado, Democrats, Denver, Denver Post, economic downturn, economic forecasters, economists, Face the State, Federal Reserve, fiscally conservative, gamble, Grand Junction, Joint Budget Committee, Josh Penry, legislative session, legislative staff, Long Bill, minority leader, Moe Keller, overly optimistic, policies, power, predicted, priorities, rainy day fund, recession, Republicans, sensible, smarts, special interests, state, State Capitol, state leader, state senator, taxpayer dollars, Wheat Ridge

10/24/2008 By Ben Leave a Comment

Buescher “Favored”? Deceptive Attacks on Cancer Survivor Say Maybe Not

Today the Rocky Mountain News highlights the hottest state legislative race on Colorado's Western Slope, as Republican challenger Laura Bradford faces down Democrat incumbent Bernie Buescher in HD55:"I think her chances are great," said Rep. Cory Gardner, R-Yuma, who was among Republicans who stopped in Grand Junction while on an RV tour of the state. "One thing she said was, 'Gov. Ritter will not be whispering in my ear what to do.' People loved that." Buescher, however, says he doesn't hew that closely to Gov. Bill Ritter. "They're going after me on some issues, but it seems to me the fundamental attack is that I'm too close to the administration," he said. "The fact is I pushed the administration as much as any Democrat in the … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Colorado Politics, Education, Fiscal Policy, General, Health Care, Labor Tagged With: 527 groups, administration, Alida Messinger, attack ads, Bernie Buescher, Bill Ritter, billionaire, campaign finance reform, cancer screenings, cancer survivor, challenger, Colorado, Colorado Democracy Alliance, Colorado Education Association, Colorado Values, Cory Gardner, Democrat, desperate, Gene Kinsey, Grand Junction, HD55, headline, Health Care, health insurance, incumbent, John Bodnar, John McCain, K-12 employees, Laura Bradford, Mesa County, negative advertising, property tax hike, reports, Republican, Rockefeller heir, Rocky Mountain News, Secretary of State, state legislative races, Tim Gill, union, Western Slope

8/19/2008 By Ben Leave a Comment

Hot Air Tour to Highlight Global Warming Debate Comes to Colorado

Watching hot air balloons might never have been so much fun as this: Americans for Prosperity's Hot Air Tour is coming to Colorado, starting tomorrow (Wednesday) morning at Broomfield County Commons Park (13200 Sheridan Blvd). What am I talking about?Climate alarmists have bombarded citizens with apocalyptic scenarios and pressured them into environmental political correctness. It’s time to tell the other side of the story. Americans for Prosperity is working hard to bring you the missing half of the global warming debate. What will the impacts of reactionary legislation be for you, your family and our economy? Be among the first 50 to pre-register online for the Broomfield event tomorrow - or for events later this week in Fort … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Climate Hysteria, Colorado Politics, Energy, General, National Politics, Sports and Leisure Tagged With: Al Gore, Americans for Prosperity, Broomfield COunty Commons Park, climate alarmists, Colorado, Colorado Springs, Denver, energy record, environmental political correctness, Family, Fort Collins, free T-shirt, future savings, Glenwood Springs, global warming debate, Grand Junction, hot air balloon, Hot Air Tour, Jim Pfaff, Mark Udall, Pueblo

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    The Rise & Fall of Al Gansee
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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

  • Tips to Teach Kids to Set and Achieve Goals
  • The Christmas Music Countdown You’ve Been Looking For: 2022 Edition
  • Sleep Deprivation and Parental Controls: How to Ensure Your Kids are Safe from Media Exposure
  • 8 Original Ways To Leverage Influencer Marketing
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Colorado News

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National News and Politics

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Blogs Extraordinaire

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Completing the Blogroll

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Christian Commentary et al.

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Rocky Mountain Alliance 2.0

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To Contact Me:
bendegrow-at-gmail.com

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