May 04, 2016 09:41 AM UTC

Get More Smarter on Wednesday (May 4)

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• by: Colorado Pols

May the Fourth Be With You. If you’re confused about that, click here. It’s 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).

TOP OF MIND TODAY…

► Texas Sen. Ted Cruz officially ended his bid for the Republican Presidential nomination on Tuesday after getting crushed in the Indiana Primary by GOP frontrunner Donald Trump. Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus threw in the towel fairly early last night with a not-particularly-celebratory Tweet:

.@realDonaldTrump will be presumptive @GOP nominee, we all need to unite and focus on defeating @HillaryClinton #NeverClinton

— Reince Priebus (@Reince) May 4, 2016

The #NeverTrump movement is apparently considering its options in the wake of Trump’s big victory on Tuesday. We’re not sure what “options” are left to consider, but we suppose it’s nice for the anti-Trump GOP forces to pretend that they still have something to do. It’s not all bad news for Cruz, meanwhile; he still has a good-paying job that doesn’t require him to do anything.

On the Democratic side, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders won a surprise victory in Indiana over frontrunner Hillary Clinton, though it doesn’t change the math equation — it’s still not mathematically possible for Sanders to defeat Clinton. The Democratic frontrunner is increasingly turning her attention toward the General Election, even more so now that she knows Trump will be her opponent.

► The U.S. Senate campaign of Republican Jon Keyser is purring along like the engine of a  a 1982 Datsun. Keyser is racking up more bad press in the wake of news that his petition signatures for access to the June 28th Primary may be tainted by fraud. As Marshall Zelinger of Denver7 reports:

A Colorado voter told Denver7 that someone forged her signature on a petition to place Republican U.S. Senate candidate Jon Keyser on the ballot for the June primary election.

Pamela Niemczyk of Littleton told Denver7’s Marshall Zelinger on Tuesday that she had signed a petition for Jack Graham, another Republican U.S. Senate candidate.She said the signature on the Keyser petition was not hers, calling it a “fraud.” [Pols emphasis]

Watch Zelinger’s report:

Keyser was a guest on KOA radio on Monday afternoon, during which he defended his “petitioners” and generally crapped on the Secretary of State’s office. John Frank of the Denver Post has more on the GOP Senate race that is “plagued by turmoil”:

Colorado’s U.S. Senate race spiraled deeper into turmoil Tuesday as two  scorned Republican candidates battled in court to qualify for the ballot and outside critics alleged fraud.

The controversies come before the Wednesday deadline to certify which candidates will appear on the June primary ballot — a date extended five days by a previous court order to make room for the candidates’ lawsuits. District Court Judge Elizabeth Starrs said she intends to issue a decision by the 5 p.m. deadline.

Republicans Robert Blaha and Ryan Frazier are hoping to find out today that they will be able to claim a spot on the June 28th Primary ballot.

Get even more smarter after the jump…

IN CASE YOU ARE STANDING NEAR A WATER COOLER…

► A new poll shows that a whopping 77% of voters oppose legislative attempts that would allow Loan Sharks to raise interest rates on personal consumer loans. Dear Legislators: KNOCK IT OFF!!!

► There’s a lot of buzz about Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine as the frontrunner to be selected as Hillary Clinton’s running mate.

► Two Republican U.S. Senators have requested a criminal investigation into the Gold King Mine spill last August in Silverton, Colorado. That only took nine months.

► Many Democrats are calling on Bernie Sanders to drop out of the race for President, but Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper is not among them.

► Gov. Hickenlooper signed his name to the $27 billion state budget on Tuesday. As Peter Marcus reports for the Durango Herald:

Schools were bracing for lawmakers to allow the gap in K-12 payments to grow by $50 million. But lawmakers were able to buy-down the so-called “negative factor” by more than $24 million.

Similarly, lawmakers averted a $20 million cut to higher education. Budget writers also maintained the state’s 6.5 percent reserve.

But the Long Bill wasn’t all good news. Transportation saw a cut of $50 million from its anticipated $200 million of additional funding, and hospitals lost about $73 million.

► Medical marijuana will soon be allowed in Colorado schools after the State Senate voted unanimously to send legislating outlining the change to the Governor’s desk. Hickenlooper is expected to sign the bill.

► At Least You’re Not Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, who faces a tough re-election battle this fall after stumbling over himself today after his half-assed endorsement of Ted Cruz.

► Voters may be asked to approve a $3.5 billion bond measure in November to provide funding for roads and bridges.

OTHER LINKS YOU SHOULD CLICK

► Are Republican voters really so disillusioned with Donald Trump that they might vote for Hillary Clinton in November?

► Democrat Tom Sullivan, the father of one of the victims of the Aurora Theater Shooting, raised big money in his first fundraising quarter as a candidate for State Senate in SD-27.

ICYMI

► Ohio Gov. John Kasich is still seeking the GOP Presidential nomination. No, really. Never mind.

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