You think it’s hot outside? You should be in Cynthia Coffman’s office today. Time to Get More Smarter with Colorado Pols! If you think we missed something important, please include the link in the comments below (here’s a good example).
► Coffmangate is about to become international news. ProgressNow Colorado is asking the Attorney General’s office to preserve all official records related to the blackmail scandal engulfing AG Cynthia Coffman. The Associated Press, meanwhile, examines how the scandal may impact the 2016 election season for Republicans.
► Denver celebrated its 40th PrideFest over the weekend, and as Anthony Cotton writes for the Denver Post, the GLBT event takes on particular relevance with the U.S. Supreme Court set to rule on gay marriage any day now.
► Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders spoke to a crowd of more than 5,000 people in Denver as part of his bid to become the Democratic Presidential nominee. Our friends at “The Fix” try to break down what it means that Sanders could attract such a huge crowd this early in the race:
Here’s what we know for sure: That Sanders — and the populist, anti-big business message he is championing — is driving more excitement in the Democratic base than I certainly thought it would. While polling suggested that there was a growing bloc of liberals who wanted a liberal candidate to fully embrace their agenda, that the rallying behind Sanders among that group has happened so quickly is surprising.
Get even more smarter after the jump…
► Pressure is mounting to remove the Confederate Flag from the capitol of South Carolina following the racially-motivated killing of 9 people last week in Charleston. South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley is expected to push for the flag’s removal today.
► Colorado Senators Michael Bennet (D-Denver) and Cory Gardner (R-Yuma) held hands and ran laughing through fields of wheat over the weekend. Or something like that.
► The unemployment rate in Metro Denver held steady at 4.1% in May.
► Some Congressional Republicans are fed up with what they are calling a “culture of punishment” under House Speaker John Boehner. From Politico:
A key bloc of conservatives is laying plans to throttle legislation on the House floor and will meet privately this week to discuss a shakeup of GOP leadership.
The group is irate at what one called a “culture of punishment” that Speaker John Boehner’s leadership team has instituted against dissenting members — most recently the removal of Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.) from a subcommittee chairmanship after he bucked Republican leaders on an important procedural vote.
► Legislative scorecards are a long-standing tradition for partisan and nonpartisan groups alike. A new study shows that the scorecards matter more than you might think.
► Former President Jimmy Carter will speak in Carbondale on Tuesday night.
► Former State Sen. Al White has a new job. As the Denver Business Journal reports, it’s time for a new acronym!
Al White, who has been director of the Colorado Tourism Office since January 2011, will exit that post to become senior advisor to the state’s Office of Economic Development and International Trade (OEDIT).
OEDIT oversees the tourism office. In his new role, White will lead OEDIT’s legislative strategy efforts as well as advise the tourism office and OEDIT’s Colorado Brand and Marketing, Outdoor Recreation Industry Office and Communications divisions.
► The Colorado State Board of Education is a bit of a mess.
► North Korea’s dictator-in-chief, Kim Jong-un, claims to have developed a drug that cures Ebola, AIDS, and Cancer.
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Really? The folks over at The Fix didn't think that Sanders' message would hit home to a country largely populated by disillusioned, disheartened people who think their government officials aren't doing the job? Where Congress has a 13% approval rating? Where the wealthy have reaped 99% of the value of the recover?
Chris Cillizza is the epitome of an Establishment DC, Insider, Conventional Wisdom, Closed Loop reinforcing reporter. These guys don't know what to make of Bernie, so they make sure everyone knows he is/was a socialist, they misrepresent his views, or they make him sound far more threatening to the status quo that he is. Chris Matthews was especially harsh last week, and I know damned well he knows better.
Saying Bernie is "anti-big business" is part of that. I don't think Bernie is against big businesses per se, but he is against big businesses that have unfair economic advantages and he's against them having far more power than us citizens who work for, deal with, and support those businesses. I'm sure he's against "too big to fail" businesses and those that privatize their profits while they socialize their costs, a lá Walmart, and who still then hide money overseas and refuse to pay a fair share of taxes.
Maybe some day when our media talking heads regain a grip on reality, they'll describe Bernie and his philosophical progeny correctly as "Anti-Robber Baron"
Pundit bubble. I call it the Joe Scarborough syndrome. The sound of your own talking becomes all you need to hear. And Chuck Todd.
I wonder if Dear Leader consulted with Lydia Pinkham on his wonder drug…
Leave it to Steve Durham to bring controversy and bad feelings. He has been doing that for more than 35 years in this state. We should have run him out on a rail a long time ago. Remember it is he and the Tanc that brought us the "House Crazies" all those years ago.
We'd better have a stronger candidate than Anita Stapleton, the Tea Party candidate for Board of Education, to replace Neal. Can the Board just appoint someone or does it have to go through an election process? It sounds as if there will be two vacancies.
Here's Anita's initial campaign announcement, posted within 48 hours of Neal's announcing her resignation from the State B o E. Anita’s husband, Michael, is a Republican activist from Pueblo, and Anita is very active in the anti-Common Core movement. I didn't find any link to Walker Stapleton, the State Treasurer.
We can't say definitively, though we've looked. The last name is likely just a coincidence.
"your not a teacher"
She wants to speak for all the parents. Including the literate ones?
Trying to be fair to Stapleton, I did look for the more polished announcement that she said she would make. Nada. I really don't want this woman to be appointed to Neal's or Hammond's seats. She's not professional, and she's too extreme in her views.
Dr. Henry Roman, we need you to run again! If they're going to appoint anybody, let it be you!
Hear hear! Having met Dr. Roman last year I believe he'd be great for the position.
Irrelevant snark: Look at the photo of Bennet and Gardner standing together. Did anyone realize that Cory is so short? Bennet's no giant, but Gardner looks like mini-me next to him.
Relevant snark: Bennet voted for the TPP "because of what trade means to rural Colorado"? How does exporting jobs and allowing foreign corporations to disregard regulations help rural Colorado, exactly?
Gardner is not tall, but he is wide.