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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

5/20/2009 By Ben 1 Comment

Look at Both Gallup Polls: Republicans Have an Opportunity, If They’ll Take It

Two Gallup polls, released on the same day: Monday, May 18. Wildly different headlines. Part of a bigger story, but some can only seem to latch on to one or the other. Those who trumpeted the results of the survey showing across-the-board demographic losses for the Republican Party since 2001 (conducted from January to April of this year) might also want to note the results of the survey showing Republican-leaning support matching Democrat-leaning support for the first time in nearly four years. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, Fiscal Policy, General, liberty, National Politics, PPC Tagged With: across the board, administration, advantage, Barack Obama, Big Government, bigger, blob, brand, business as usual, California, coalition, Congress, dealings, Deep Blue, Democrats, demographic, depth, different, election cycles, election time, fade away, fiscally conservative, gaffes, Gallup, generation, genuine alternative, George Bush, GOP, headlines, hint, interesting times, interpretation, irrelevance, leaning, losses, majority, majority status, Nancy Pelosi, opportunity, overwhelming, policies, politicians, polls, profligate, program, regain, rejection, Republican Party, results, serious, skirts, solutions-oriented, squandering, story, support, survey, tax-and-spend, voters

5/7/2009 By Ben Leave a Comment

Peter Groff Departs Denver with Nonpartisan Education Reform Gesture

A month ago I asked which party will miss Democrat Senate President Peter Groff more under Colorado's Golden Dome. Several days ago Senator Nancy Spence told me that Groff's parting gesture as Senate President before heading off to work for the Obama administration in Washington D.C. would be to appoint her -- a Republican -- to an interim committee on school finance. It didn't really surprise me, but I didn't want to spoil the surprise for everyone else either. Then today we learn: … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Colorado Politics, Education, General, liberty, National Politics, PPC Tagged With: administration, Arne Duncan, Barack Obama, Bob Bacon, Chris Romer, Colorado, Democrat, education reform, golden dome, icing on the cake, interim committee, Josh Penry, kids, missed, Nancy Spence, opportunity, participate, parting gesture, Party, Peter Groff, Republican, school finance, Senate Education Committee, Senate President, successful, surprise, voucher program, Washington DC

3/31/2009 By Ben Leave a Comment

Sign Up Today for the One-Night Version of Free People, Free Markets

Have you been interested in taking the Free People, Free Markets course - the one I've told you about before - but decided it was too much of a time commitment? Well, then, do I have the solution for you. You can sign up for a special, one-night only, three-hour crash course version of Free People, Free Markets: Wednesday, April 15. The location is especially convenient if you live in the south Denver metro area. But don't wait to sign up until the last minute. For only $25, take advantage of this unforgettable opportunity. At the very least, it will give you a newfound disgust for the annual deadline to pay your federal income taxes. More than likely, though, you'll gain a tremendous appreciation for the principles of capitalism … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Commemorative, Fiscal Policy, General, liberty, My Life, PPC, property rights Tagged With: annual deadline, appreciation, April 15, capitalism, course, disgust, federal income taxes, Free People Free Markets, last minute, liberties, newfound, one-night, opportunity, principles, sign up, solution, special, take advantage, three-hour, time commitment, undergird, unforgettable, very least

1/31/2009 By Ben 2 Comments

He Wasn’t Their First Choice, But Wadhams and Hillman Both Pleased with Michael Steele as RNC Chair

Not exactly breaking news: former Maryland lieutenant governor Michael Steele is the new chairman of the Republican National Committee. Polipundit has a blow-by-blow account of the six rounds (and five hours) of yesterday's balloting to achieve a majority of support from the 168 delegates. Five candidates started the day. At the end it came down to Steele and South Carolina's Katon Dawson. Steele prevailed by a count of 91-77. I followed up with two of Colorado's three voting RNC members afterward to get their thoughts, and received very similar reactions to the results. "Michael Steele will be a great spokesperson for our party," said state GOP chairman Dick Wadhams. "Michael Steele is one of the Republican Party's most articulate … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Colorado Politics, Fiscal Policy, National Politics, PPC Tagged With: account, actively engaged, activists, appealing message, articulate, audience, Backbone America, balancing, balloting, beginning, breaking news, candidacy, candidates, chairman, class act, collaborative, Colorado, communication, community, Congratulations, conservatives, conventional wisdom, conversation, convinced, core issues, core principles, delegates, desirable job, Dick Wadhams, Don'tGo movement, Douglas County, dynamic, effective, effective fundraising, emails, enthusiasm, Eric Odom, Facebook, force feed, former, forward-looking, from above, future, GOP, grassroots, Internet, inundated, involvement, John Andrews, Katon Dawson, Ken Blackwell, lieutenant governor, Lilly Nunez, limited government, listening, low taxes, majority, Mark Hillman, marketing, Maryland, Michael Steele, Michigan, Mike Duncan, misused, moderate, momentum, new energy, new face, Ohio, opportunity, opposition, organizational structure, overused, ownership, Party, phone calls, Polipundit, political, political action, political wilderness, Politics 3.0, prevailed, projects, Republican groups, Republican National Committee, results, rounds, Saul Anuzis, Secretary of State, selection process, sense of relief, similar reactions, social conservatives, social media, social network, South Carolina, spokesman, spokesperson, state chair, Steven Nielson, support, supported, surrogates, thoughts, tough choice, tough road, traditional values, Twitter, urgent plea, vocal supporters, voting members, web-based, wild word

1/28/2009 By Ben Leave a Comment

Rossputin: Bill Ritter’s Transparent Try to Set Stage for Another Tax Hike

When I recently pointed out Governor Bill Ritter's public proclamation in favor of transparency, this wasn't the kind of transparency I was talking about. Rossputin explains:There's a reason that the first thing Ritter is proposing to do is cut education and prison funding, and "temporarily" suspend the homestead exemption which lowers property tax for many senior citizens, and it's the oldest liberal trick in the book: He's setting the stage for a tax increase proposal "for the children" and with the specter of violent felons roaming the streets unless we go along. Well, it's time to just say no to more liberal government expansion. Yes, Bill Ritter's announcement should make it rather transparent that he and the Democrats are … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Colorado Politics, Fiscal Policy, General, PPC Tagged With: alternative, Bill Ritter, budget proposal, Democrats, Education, enough, for the children, government expansion, Governor, homestead exemption, opportunity, ploys, prisons, proclamation, property tax, Republicans, responsible citizens, Rossputin, scare tactics, senior citizens, tax increase, Transparency, violent felons

1/10/2009 By Ben 2 Comments

If Michael Bennet Alienates Hispanics, What Should GOP Take Away?

The former career .230 American League hitter who runs in Denver's liberal circles shares an interesting observation about Governor Bill Ritter's newly-appointed Senator:I've now heard the same concern raised about Michael Bennet by three different Denver political insiders. Namely, can he win the support of Hispanics in Denver? I'd say the growing conventional wisdom amongst some Bennet pessimists is that he stands little chance of wooing the Latino vote after his tenure at DPS. Not sure how much stock to put in this assessment. But if Republicans are paying attention and see an opportunity to win some more Hispanic votes (and ultimately a U.S. Senate seat) in 2010, Tom Tancredo most likely isn't the guy to carry the party banner. The … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Colorado Politics, General, Labor, My Life Tagged With: Bill Ritter, conventional wisdom, Denver, Hispanics, interesting observation, Latino vote, liberal, Michael Bennet, opportunity, party banner, political insiders, Republicans, Steve Balboni, Tom Tancredo, U.S. Senate

1/2/2009 By Ben 2 Comments

Michael Bennet in U.S. Senate Creates GOP Chance–Not to Be Taken Lightly

Most likely one of the final big stories broken by the Rocky Mountain News: Gov. Bill Ritter names Denver Public Schools superintendent Michael Bennet to replace Ken Salazar in the U.S. Senate. Honestly, I never gave this possibility serious consideration. My initial impressions? Fresh and outside-the-box, obviously. Bill Ritter definitely outperformed his Democratic gubernatorial colleagues in Illinois and New York with their appointments. But Ritter also has rolled the political dice. Besides being pretty good on education reform issues for a Democrat, where does Bennet stand? The next two years of votes on big issues like the Employee Free Choice Act will define him quickly. While the state and national GOP should be perking up at … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Colorado Politics, Education, General, Labor, National Politics Tagged With: 2010, big stories, Bill Ritter, connections, Democrat, Denver Public Schools, education reform, Employee Free Choice Act, GOP, Governor, Illinois, Michael Bennet, New York, opportunity, political dice, Rocky Mountain News, savvy, superintendent, tirelessness, U.S. Senate, wealth

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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
  • Why Every Single Business Needs A YouTube Channel

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Completing the Blogroll

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Rocky Mountain Alliance 2.0

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To Contact Me:
bendegrow-at-gmail.com

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