Update, 3/17: Law student Constructively Reasonable says the decision is a cause for "outrage". A watcher says Colorado may not as well even have a constitution. The Colorado Supreme Court has done it again, showing its disdain for taxpayer protections in the state constitution. From the majority opinion:When it issued its declaratory judgment order, the district court did not have the benefit of our recent decision in Barber v. Ritter, 196 P.3d 238 (Colo. 2008), in which we held that a statute challenged under article X, section 20 must be proven to be unconstitutional beyond a reasonable doubt. The trial court erroneously held that the relevant test of SB 07-199s constitutionality came from the interpretive guideline included in the … [Read more...]
Reasonable Solution Needed in Denver Post Lawsuit against Bill Ritter
So the Denver Post is suing Gov. Bill Ritter for access to his personal cell phone records? While I'm a strong proponent of transparency in government, it would seem this is slightly over the line. Over at The Colorado Index, a watcher writes "in defense of Bill Ritter." The typically conservative blogger is no big fan of either the Governor or the Post. A watcher especially has problems with the way the latter has responded to his quest for legal ethics reform. So what should be done? I agree with Rocky Mountain Right's assessment:Ritter should disclose any calls he made related to state business in accordance with the law even if they were on a private phone, but he should also not have to disclose every time he called his wife or … [Read more...]
Protect Colorado’s Future Fails 9News Truth Test, Brands Itself as Deceptive
It's still early in the campaign cycle, but the political group known as Protect Colorado's Future has already hung the banner of "Liar" around its neck. It's hard to see how much more credibility the group will have as the election season heats up. Protect Colorado's Future is overwhelmingly funded by a coalition of labor unions. The commercial it aired is designed to attack Right to Work (Amendment 47) and two initiatives that have yet to be certified on the ballot. In the interest of full disclosure, one initiative (#53), aka Ethical Standards - designed to "prevent public payroll systems from collecting and bundling money to special interest groups that hire lobbyists and make campaign contributions" - has been supported by research … [Read more...]
Colorado Officials Can Act Wisely to Quash Anti-Taxpayer Rumors
A watcher writes:I heard a rumor that some (unnamed) someone had offered the State Supreme Court a promise of a new building if only the Court would find the illegal property tax imposed by Governor Ritter and his Democrat legislature was constitutional. That would explain why Bill Ritter seems so confident that the State Supreme Court will rule his way. If the Court is dumb enough to appear to be bought and if the legislature is dumb enough to send a hundred million their way immediately after the ruling, Colorado will have a black eye for years to come. Again, this is a rumor, but a rumor that might have some substance. I've seen this one come through the grapevine, too. Gov. Bill Ritter's actions have only made the rumor more … [Read more...]
Setting the Record Straight
I saw this post from The Colorado Index earlier in the week. Busy at the time, I just shook my head and moved on. But when Rossputin - the subject of the post - brought it to my attention again, I decided it was worthy of a quick response. A watcher is entitled to his opinions and to the manner of delivering those opinions, but a couple factual corrections are in order: 1. A watcher wrote: "'Blogger Extraordinaire' Ross Kaminsky - the self promoter who admits he doesn't read conservative Colorado blogs...." Fact: The implication behind the use of "Blogger Extraordinaire," which was used twice in this post, was that it was a title Ross chose for himself. In fact, it was the Samsphere promoters who devised and used the label. To my … [Read more...]
A Little Dose of Disinfectant to Treat New Big Blue Lie Machine Slime
Over at Schaffer v Udall yesterday, I took on the Left's attempt to smear Republican U.S. Senate candidate Bob Schaffer with broad strokes of the "Jack Abramoff" brush, despite no evidence of any direct connection whatsoever. Meanwhile, the Colorado Index continues to expose the lack of credibility from the Mark Udall surrogate whose comments at SvU prompted a full response. While the lemmings on the Left salivate and gloat that their Big Blue Lie Machine slime job will bring down Bob Schaffer and clear the way for avowed liberal Mark Udall to win, Mike Saccone at the Grand Junction Sentinel's Political Notebook offers a more (mentally) balanced assessment:In the short-term, it could embolden Schaffer’s supporters, much like a New … [Read more...]