President (To Win Colorado) See Full Big Line

(D) Joe Biden*

(R) Donald Trump

80%

20%↓

CO-01 (Denver) See Full Big Line

(D) Diana DeGette*

90%

CO-02 (Boulder-ish) See Full Big Line

(D) Joe Neguse*

90%

CO-03 (West & Southern CO) See Full Big Line

(D) Adam Frisch

(R) Jeff Hurd

(R) Ron Hanks

40%

30%

20%

CO-04 (Northeast-ish Colorado) See Full Big Line

(R) Lauren Boebert

(R) J. Sonnenberg

(R) Ted Harvey

20%↑

15%↑

10%

CO-05 (Colorado Springs) See Full Big Line

(R) Dave Williams

(R) Jeff Crank

(R) Doug Bruce

20%

20%

20%

CO-06 (Aurora) See Full Big Line

(D) Jason Crow*

90%

CO-07 (Jefferson County) See Full Big Line

(D) Brittany Pettersen

85%↑

 

CO-08 (Northern Colo.) See Full Big Line

(D) Yadira Caraveo

(R) Gabe Evans

(R) Janak Joshi

60%↑

40%↑

20%↑

State Senate Majority See Full Big Line

DEMOCRATS

REPUBLICANS

80%

20%

State House Majority See Full Big Line

DEMOCRATS

REPUBLICANS

95%

5%

Generic selectors
Exact matches only
Search in title
Search in content
Post Type Selectors
April 01, 2014 12:53 PM UTC

Gardner Challenges Udall To "Oppose" What's Not Happening

  • 31 Comments
  • by: Colorado Pols

An unusual statement Tweeted earlier today by Republican Senate candidate Cory Gardner's campaign:

gardnerfrackban

First off, it would be great if Gardner would publish his press releases in plain text on his website, instead of making graphics out of them. Then again, it's not as easy to actually quote him this way, and that might be strategic for a guy like Gardner.

But here's our real question: what is this "ban on hydraulic fracturing" that "has put nearly 100,000 Colorado jobs at risk of being completely eliminated?" We follow the local news pretty closely, as our readers know, and we know of no such initiative. That said, last week, the Denver Post did publish a rather silly article hypothesizing about just such a statewide ban:

A statewide ban on hydraulic fracturing would cost Colorado 68,000 jobs and $8 billion in economic activity over five years, according to an analysis released Wednesday…

Since 95 percent of the wells in Colorado are fracked, the study assumes that drilling activity would be reduced 95 percent.

68,000 isn't the same as "nearly 100,000," unless you're really generous with your rounding. But in reality, even that lower figure has no rational basis. Why, you ask? Because there is no statewide ban on hydraulic fracture drilling proposed by anyone in Colorado.

While five municipalities and Boulder County have adopted fracking bans or moratoriums, there is no statewide ballot initiative to ban fracking. [Pols emphasis]

"It is a worst-case scenario," Metro Denver EDC chief Tom Clark said. "We wanted the public to understand the size of the oil and gas in Colorado."

…The CU study, which began when there was a possibility of a statewide ban initiative, doesn't reflect the more nuanced proposals, said Brian Lewandowski, author of the Leeds analysis.

Folks, if anyone can show us evidence that a statewide ban on fracking was ever a "possibility," meaning real people actually working to place that on the ballot, we'll be glad to correct the record. Otherwise, this "study" is meaningless propaganda from CU President and oil millionaire Bruce Benson, and allied opponents of any local control over "fracking" anywhere in Colorado. You see, there are proposed ballot measures that would allow local communities to control oil and gas drilling, setbacks from existing development, and other industrial land issues within their boundaries–but to take these "worst case scenario" hypothetical numbers for a statewide total ban on "fracking" that no one is proposing, as Cory Gardner has done, and then claim this to be an actual threat that has "put Colorado jobs at risk," is misleading in the extreme.

We suppose Gardner gets credit for going after an issue other than Obamacare. If Gardner could just be minimally truthful while he does so, that would be a positive step for his campaign. Unfortunately, the facts in this case make a shameless liar of Gardner. Again.

Comments

31 thoughts on “Gardner Challenges Udall To “Oppose” What’s Not Happening

  1. Perhaps he could propose a duel? Loser gets Dumphuckistan?  I wish my Congressman would stop bringing butter knives to these gun fights.

    1. I love the part, WHILE LYING HIS ASS OFF, where Gardner claims " Senator Udall cannot look Coloradans in the eye and tell them that he honestly cares about creating jobs".

      What a fucking pompous little prick.

       

       

        1. I like the bottom of the press release:

          Congressman Gardner is a member in the U.S. House of Representatives serving Colorado's 4th Congressional District. the interests of Koch Industries, Inc..

          It needed some editing though, in the interest of full disclosure.

      1. Cory can look you in the eye and tell you ANYTHING his oil and gas patrons tell him to say. It was O&G where he was trained in the art of deception. This is politics and money…money and politics…all the time….everywhere.

        People who have ever worked around the O&G lobby know of which, and whom, I speak. I won't name names, but there is a cadre of O&G boys (and a handful of their hand maidens) who have built a culture of immense influence at the Capitol and in the private meeting places in the very expensive parts of Denver. Governor Ritter got away from them because he spent too much time on the western slope, talking to the people who actually lived in the gaspatch when the assault on Garfield county took place, and, additionally,  he wasn't one of them, like Frackenlooper, Owens, and so many more.  

        If you want to ascend in the Colorado Republican party, you WILL make these people happy…

        Cory is their boy. It could have been one of the other Three Amigos, Penry or McNulty, but we all know what happened there….

  2. According to righties it's OK to say something is happening because you think it might result via slippery slope. That's why it's OK to say gun legislation that calls for background checks is talking away your guns.  

    Righties assume that those who object to fracking in residential areas of their communities really want to see a blanket statewide ban. Therefore it's OK to say that they are proposing a statewide ban.  Why stop there? It would be equally correct by their standards to say they are proposing nationwide and worldwide bans. If a rightie fears A might lead to B then it's OK to say B is already happening.  

     

    No matter how many IQ points they may possess, they don't choose to us any of them learning  intellectual discipline based on the rules of logic. It's so much easier to just create your own facts. It's the classic Rove strategy that has been universally accepted on the right. Simply gnore the reality based world  create your own reality. That way you don't ever have to defend anything based on  facts which we all know are inherently liberal biased.

    1. According to righties it's OK to say something is happening because you think it might result via slippery slope. That's why it's OK to say gun legislation that calls for background checks is talking away your guns. 

      This is just an extention of the 1% doctrine espoused by Cheney and crew. Ron Suskind wrote an excellent book on the subject. I always relate it to schoolyard behavior. What was said of a bully, in that culture and in that era was, " he would knock you down for "looking sideways" at him". This is a bit more passive aggressive…but no less bullshit. "My fear justifies a pre-emptive strike"…and like that.

  3. Ummm…fracking should be tightly controlled or banned, period…we don't know the true extent of the chemicals they are injecting into our water supply…and they are not going to tell us…the kochs and others are using their wealth and influence to pollute and kill our environment to ship OUR gas off shore…big bidness will get what it wants no matter the price…that we, the little people, pay…privatize the profits and socialize the costs…

    1. There were some people, the protectourcolorado coalition, proposing a statewide fracking ban back in 2013. They met in January,  but that effort has been abandoned, and the energy redirected to  a more realistic proposal, the ballot initiative of "Local Control Colorado". ProtectourColorado never came up with a ballot initiative, legislation,  or any way forward. 

      Now we have the more reasonable "Local Control Colorado" plan, which allows a community to actually decide for itself whether to go for the temporary boost to the economy and the long term pollution – or find other ways to support the economy and provide energy to live and work.

      This will make the industry accountable to the residents, as well…currently, they just do whatever they want, and who's to stop them? If the industry knows that they can be "voted off the island", they have an incentive to use best practices for containing pollutants, even if the best practices are more expensive. 

      Gardner and Co. will conflate the modest proposal of local control with an extreme statewide anti-fracking ban, just the way they always do – so its important that people be very well informed on what's what.  

    1. The 68,000 is bogus…let alone 100,000. No statewide fracking ban that is being proposed anywhere in the range of proposed amendments and initiatives working their way through title hearing tomorrow and beyond toward the ballot.  The industry seems to get it won't be easy fighting against giving local jurisdictions the same authorities they have with every other industry in the state (and which–I note–still function).  So they choose to be deceptive.  As Duke notes, it’s not an unfamiliar response.  Get used to it, its "100,000" now…what inflated bullshit do you think the tens of million$$ industry is getting ready to put into defeating this effort will soon spawn? 

      Gardner should be ashamed for his lies.  It’s not surprising but it’s still troubling that elected officials would debase themselves like this.  

        

      1. The state O&G industry counts the clerks at every gas station in Colorado in their numbers – as if they didn't extract that resource right here in the state those souls would lose their jobs and we'd be back to riding horses.

    2. This says there are only 61 fracking rigs operating in Colorado.

      Just to be clear, dave, those are drilling rigs. The ones with the tall derrick just drill holes. Hydraulic fracturing is a process that happens after the holes are drilled. They use lots and lots of trucks, but to my knowledge, the drilling rig is not involved in fracking, though, on multiple well pads, fracking can be done while the drilling rig is still on location. The two processes are commonly confused nowadays, so I am just trying to help keep it straight..

  4. Was it you, Michael, who pointed out that O&G account for about 2.2% of our state economy? I am pretty confident in that number. 
     The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics says the O&G extraction industry employs 192, 650 nationwide, including all job classifications….Hard to believe over half of them are in Colorado…huh?

  5. If Gardner and his industry buddies are conflating efforts to increase local control of industrial processes with a statewide ban, that doesn't bode well for the popularity of their industry.

    1. Their industry is not popular, or it wouldn't need to be propped up with propaganda so much.

      Five Colorado communities that have experienced the effects of unbounded, unaccountable oil and gas production have voted for no more of it within their borders.

      Hence the O&G industry is terrified, and the only thing it knows how to do is to try to scare the crap out of voters, too.

      "It will take all your jobs away, even the gas station clerks"."It will tank the economy"…bla bla. Same shit that was tried with the Affordable Care Act. As Ralphie said, it's "death panels" all over again.

  6. You are all missing the point. Where's dwyer when we need him?

    Of course no one is really seriously talking about a statewide ban.

    There were no death panels.

    No gun seizures.

    No coddling of kidnappers.

    He, and his backers, are defining the argument. Not only for his race (my opponent won't oppose xyz), but for the local control initiative and for the bigger o&g debates coming.

     

    its a good plan.

    1. We're not missing the point. We get it. Countering this narrative will take unfracked reserves of reasonableness, persistence, and patience that we have yet to develop. Not only for people who lack information but desperately want and need jobs,  but for greenies who are somewhat informed, but so pure that only an all or nothing solution will do.

      And usually when you demand all or nothing, you get nothing. Or rather, you get methane in your air, benzene and all kinds of other crap in your water, birth defects in your children, and a few people getting very rich and giving nothing back to the state. Links upon request.

      dwyer reads this stuff. She would regretfully inform us that we're probably all doomed.

      It's true that local control has to get out in front of this narrative ASAP. Working on it.

Leave a Comment

Recent Comments


Posts about

Donald Trump
SEE MORE

Posts about

Rep. Lauren Boebert
SEE MORE

Posts about

Rep. Yadira Caraveo
SEE MORE

Posts about

Colorado House
SEE MORE

Posts about

Colorado Senate
SEE MORE

245 readers online now

Newsletter

Subscribe to our monthly newsletter to stay in the loop with regular updates!