November 15, 2021 10:47 AM UTC

Get More Smarter on Monday (Nov. 15)

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• by: Colorado Pols

Happy National Recycling Day. Please do some recycling. Let’s Get More Smarter. If you think we missed something important, please include the link in the comments below (here’s a good example). If you are more of an audio learner, check out The Get More Smarter Podcast. And don’t forget to find us on Facebook and Twitter. 

CORONAVIRUS INFO…

*Colorado Coronavirus info:
CDPHE Coronavirus website 

*Daily Coronavirus numbers in Colorado:
http://covid19.colorado.gov

*How you can help in Colorado:
COVRN.com

*Locate a COVID-19 testing site in Colorado:
Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment 

► Several Colorado politicians — including Gov. Jared Polis, Sen. John Hickenlooper, Denver Mayor Michael Hancock, and Rep. Joe Neguse (D-Boulderish) — will be at the White House today to witness President Biden sign his name to the recently-passed infrastructure bill. 

The editorial board of The Denver Post, meanwhile, is very happy about the infrastructure bill:

To put it lightly, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act will address some of Colorado’s largest needs if the money is used wisely.

Samantha Silverberg, special assistant to the president for transportation and infrastructure, told reporters on a call last week that Biden’s administration learned a lot of lessons from the American Recovery Act of 2009, which pumped about $800 billion into the economy between 2009 and 2019 in an attempt to prevent economic disaster from the 2008 financial crisis.

“We are going to really rigorously track in a very transparent way with dashboards and online documents how every dollar is being spent,” Silverberg said. “We want to make sure every dollar is spent efficiently, transparently.”

► The Colorado Supreme Court has approved redistricting maps for the State House and State Senate.

► Governor Jared Polis is warning that Colorado’s rising COVID-19 cases present an unsustainable problem. Other news outlets, including The Colorado Sun, are wondering why Polis is still reluctant to issue a mask mandate. Polis avoided the question during a Sunday appearance on “Face the Nation.”

Meanwhile, 6 Denver Metro counties will require proof of vaccination at large indoor events.

► State Sen. Barbara Kirkmeyer made the long-expected announcement that she plans to seek the Republican nomination for Congress in CO-08.

In related news, Congressman Ed Perlmutter (D-Jefferson County) tells Colorado Public Radio that he plans to seek re-election in the newly-drawn CO-07.

Click below to keep learning stuff…

And Now, More Words…

► In a column for The Colorado Sun touting Secretary of State candidate Pam Anderson, Republican Mario Nicolais adds his name to the growing list of Republicans who have abandoned all hope relative to the 2022 gubernatorial race:

She is also likely the best hope for Republicans searching for a shred of relevance in state government. At the top of the ticket, party regulars understand their gubernatorial front-runner, Heidi Ganahl, has little chance to topple Gov. Jared Polis next November.

► Greg Sargent of The Washington Post argues that Democrats need to have a strong response to Republican attempts to paint them as being on the wrong side of parents when it comes to education issues.

► As Ernest Luning reports for the publication formerly known as the Colorado Statesman, political campaign enthusiast Lang Sias seems to be close to announcing a bid for State Treasurer despite all common sense.

► Senator John Hickenlooper and Rep. Joe Neguse (D-Boulderish) talked with local news outlets about their experiences from the recently-concluded UN Climate Conference. Colorado Public Radio, Colorado Newsline, and CBS4 Denver have more on the perspective from Hickenlooper and Neguse.

► Colorado Newsline looks at potential candidates for State House and State Senate in 2022.

► Colorado Public Radio looks at new overtime pay rules for agricultural workers, including concerns that recently-enacted changes might not be enough. 

► Erik Maulbetsch of The Colorado Times recorder updates the latest Colorado Republican connection to militia groups:

The ties between the Colorado Republican Party and FEC United, a far-right conspiracy group that includes a militia division, are still going strong. The recent revelation that state GOP chair Kristi Burton Brown previously served as president of the extremist group that has promoted numerous conspiracy theories hasn’t dissuaded the party from sending one of its top officials to headline FEC United events twice in the past month.

Vice-Chair Priscilla Rahn spoke to FEC United’s Denver chapter yesterday evening [Thursday, Nov. 11], giving a speech called “Unpacking CRT” that purports to explain Critical Race Theory. She gave the same speech to the group’s El Paso County chapter Oct. 19.

As Michael Lund reports in a separate story for The Colorado Times Recorder, a GOP official in Mesa County is openly praising the “Three Percenters” militia.

► Colorado has, sadly, a lot of connections to the Jan. 6 insurrection. Move over Eastman Memo, because there’s a new “Ellis Memo” in town.

► The Denver Post updates the madness from Mesa County:

The 2021 election in Mesa County, and subsequently the question of who would oversee it, may have ended, but the controversy surrounding Republican County Clerk and Recorder Tina Peters has not.

The case involving Peters’ counterclaims in response to Democratic Secretary of State Jena Griswold’s lawsuit is ongoing, with new filings due on Wednesday. The secretary of state’s lawsuit had resulted in a Mesa County District Court judge barring Peters and Deputy Clerk Belinda Knisley from administering the Nov. 2 election. A joint federal and state investigation into possible criminal charges against Peters over an alleged election equipment security breach is continuing, according to the district attorney’s office on Friday. A Mesa County activist’s complaint against Peters with the Colorado Independent Ethics Commission is pending. And the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office is suing the clerk again, this time for alleged violations of campaign finance law.

► Cindy Ficklin, a Republican seeking a state house seat from Mesa County, keeps talking to media outlets about her, um, interesting views. The Daily Beast has the latest interview.

► The New York Times reports on Republican successes in gerrymandering legislative districts once again:

A year before the polls open in the 2022 midterm elections, Republicans are already poised to flip at least five seats in the closely divided House thanks to redrawn district maps that are more distorted, more disjointed and more gerrymandered than any since the Voting Rights Act was passed in 1965.

The rapidly forming congressional map, a quarter of which has taken shape as districts are redrawn this year, represents an even more extreme warping of American political architecture, with state legislators in many places moving aggressively to cement their partisan dominance.

The flood of gerrymandering, carried out by both parties but predominantly by Republicans, is likely to leave the country ever more divided by further eroding competitive elections and making representatives more beholden to their party’s base.

► POLITICO reports on Democratic successes in lower prescription drug prices and making health care more affordable…though voters probably won’t see these benefits until after the 2022 election.

► The Denver Post has the latest on conflicting news about mask mandates in Douglas County schools.

Say What, Now?

This is a bold and somewhat vague statement from Rep. Lauren “Q*Bert” Boebert (R-ifle):

Your Daily Dose Of ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 

► Democrat Beto O’Rourke is running for Governor of Texas. 

► Alex Jones keeps losing lawsuits related to his claims that the Sandy Hook shooting was a staged event.

ICYMI

► “The Big Line” is not a poll.

► A normal person might feel some shame about this. Alas, Rep. Lauren “Q*Bert Boebert…

► This week on The Get More Smarter Podcast, hosts Jason Bane and Ian Silverii talk Adams County Commissioner Charles “Chaz” Tedesco about his candidacy for Congress in CO-08.

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