Readers by now are very familiar with the ongoing Coffmangate scandal, in which Colorado Republican Party chairman Steve House was confronted by a cabal of fellow Republicans led by Attorney General Cynthia Coffman about his “failure” to hire former Sen. Ted Harvey as the state party’s executive director–and as the story is told, then threatened House with exposure of an alleged affair if he did not resign his position.
The latest word we have is that the investigation of the Coffmangate scandal, which according to some legal experts meets the technical definition of felony criminal extortion in Colorado law, is still continuing. Last Friday night, though, according to photos we were forwarded over the weekend, a number of the principal figures in the Coffmangate scandal threw themselves a party! With House still in office and the Coffmangate co-conspirators in disarray, we’ll be damned if we can tell you what they were celebrating.
Perhaps they decided to go with self-incriminating instead.
From left: Coffmangate instigator Tom Tancredo, Steve House’s alleged mistress Julie Naye, Republican activist Kim Hertzfeldt, and “Tea Party”-aligned former GOP state party official Lana Fore. Hertzfeldt’s name has surfaced several times as part of the pro-Ted Harvey faction that sought Steve House’s ouster.
Here’s Lana Fore, ex-Pueblo County GOP chair and principal Coffmangate actor Becky Mizel, and Tancredo cheek-to-cheek. And look over Tancredo’s shoulder–why, isn’t that sitting GOP Rep. Clarice Navarro? Guess she’s not planning on much help from the state party next year!
But the photo you’re really waiting to see, the one that ties the whole menagerie together, is after the jump:
There he is, folks! The alleged ringleader of the Coffmangate conspiracy to bring down the chairman of the Colorado Republican Party, former state Sen. Ted Harvey, along with Lana Fore and infamous Pueblo Republican blowhard Tom Ready.
Now, we have to assume that the biggest remaining figure in the Coffmangate scandal not pictured, Attorney General Cynthia Coffman herself, couldn’t attend due to her travels on the Western Slope in response to the Gold King Mine wastewater spill (more on that story shortly). We would postulate that she may have avoided this little party out of a sense of political self-preservation–but if she had such a sense, she most likely would never have confronted Steve House on that fateful day at all.
Fortunately, though, on the same weekend as this party, Ted Harvey broke his long silence on the Coffmangate scandal. As posted to Facebook:
Harvey doesn’t mention in his defense of the Coffmangate co-conspirators that the failure of House to hire him as the Colorado GOP’s executive director has already been cited by both Tom Tancredo and Cynthia Coffman as a central reason for the confrontation: an admission that each has tried in their own way to walk back since then. Before clamming up, House was quite pointed about Harvey’s non-hire factoring heavily into the situation. And critically, it was the subject at hand just before House’s alleged affair was brought up.
Bottom line: it’s clear from these photos, and from Harvey’s angry response to continuing speculation from fellow Republicans, that the wounds from Coffmangate within the Colorado GOP have in no way healed. Steve House survived the attempt to oust him, and remains the chairman of the Colorado Republican Party–even as Ted Harvey denounces House as “felonious,” and the losers of this battle continue to undermine House’s credibility at every step.
Even setting aside the still-unresolved legal questions, what this portends for the Colorado GOP going into a major election year is not good.
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They're eating salad? Of course those tofu eating wimpy Republicans are trying to oust House.
Oh, Julie.
Pardon me, but I'm still trying to figure out that dress. And apologies for all of us who have – at one time or another – worn ill-fitting clothes, but the dress might as well not be a dress.
Those might be curtains.
A very odd wardrobe choice for the party of slut-shaming.
There's nothing wrong with this. These folks can hold their heads high, they fought to protect the party. History will prove them correct in the end, and I fear for what Steve House will mean for my party in the meantime.
I, for one, relish it.
So, that wasn't a very flattering picture of Julie, and I was curious, so I searched, and, uh, I don't know…yay metaphysics? http://www.meetup.com/singles-1560/members/34610772/
Yay indeed. She apparently chooses quite freely to present herself as a wardrobe malfunction just waiting to happen.
So what???? Are conservative women supposed to be ugly and covered with hair like liberal hippy lesbians? Julie should be proud she's still got it, and fuck you hypocrites.
How quaint. I haven't heard that kind of stereotyping of liberal women since the 70s. Somebody just dig up the time capsule you got trapped in?
This one really knows how to make friends and influence people.
Pueblojangle, this is probably the first and last time I will agree with you on anything. Indeed, while Julie still has it, she should flaunt it. That’s how I read her outfit, too, as a “Fuck you, hypocrites,” message to the world, including her fellow Republicans.
If she chooses to use her charms for political intrigue and manipulation, more power to her. There's a long tradition of that kind of thing.
But you may want to watch your own stereotyping – Speaking as one of those liberal hippy bisexuals, I am neither ugly nor covered with hair, nor are my friends and colleagues that fit one or more of those labels you toss around.
Julie's song:
Hey It's fricking hot
my reputation's shot
y'all think I'm a slut
so guess what,
Ima be comfy
show what I got
yall can be sweaty and
like me or not.
keep ya eyes on my face
buddy, hands in their place
I played my part in the Outhouse Drama
You think I'm too sexy
better call your own mama.
Ok, a little humor in the comments. But Pols is so messed up. This was a party thrown in honor of Becky Mizel by her supporters in Pueblo. They invited maybe a dozen or so friends of Becky's from around the state and maybe 1/2 showed up. That is pretty much it. Except for the post from Ted Harvey. He's got it wrong and was called out in the thread for having it wrong. Find where he was called out Pols. Coffman advised against the hiring of Harvey. House then said she was the reason Harvey wasn't hired. BS from House who then started defaming Harvey as an alternative excuse.
I didn't appreciate him misrepresenting my comment. But now after Coffman's trip to Durango, I might be questioning her integrity after all.
ColoradoPols and the left exploits everything they can find to attack good people. We have to be more careful about what gets posted to social media!!!
My, my. Must have hit a nerve. Please try to remember that your own party decided to support House and Coffman and tried their best to tie it all up in a neat bow with House saying "never mind", leaving the way clear for the whole thing to fade away.
It wasn't mean libs but Coffman, Tancredo, Mizel and the the other attempted coup perps who just wouldn't shut up and drop it, keeping it going for cycle after cycle. All we mean, hairy, ugly lesbian and God knows what else libs had to do was break out the popcorn and adult beverages and enjoy the show.
BTW… Thank you. When the story first broke we never dreamed you folks would be making it so entertaining for us for such a long run. We really appreciate it.
Not for nothing, but doing fewer certifiably crazy things may also be an option.