U.S. Senate
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(D) J. Hickenlooper*
(R) Somebody
80%
20%
Governor
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(D) Joe Neguse
(D) Phil Weiser
(D) Jena Griswold
60%
60%
40%↓
Att. General
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(D) M. Dougherty
(D) Alexis King
(D) Brian Mason
40%
40%
30%
Sec. of State
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(D) George Stern
(D) A. Gonzalez
(R) Sheri Davis
40%
40%
30%
State Treasurer
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(D) Brianna Titone
(R) Kevin Grantham
(D) Jerry DiTullio
60%
30%
20%
CO-01 (Denver)
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(D) Diana DeGette*
(R) Somebody
90%
2%
CO-02 (Boulder-ish)
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(D) Joe Neguse*
(R) Somebody
90%
2%
CO-03 (West & Southern CO)
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(R) Jeff Hurd*
(D) Somebody
80%
40%
CO-04 (Northeast-ish Colorado)
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(R) Lauren Boebert*
(D) Somebody
90%
10%
CO-05 (Colorado Springs)
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(R) Jeff Crank*
(D) Somebody
80%
20%
CO-06 (Aurora)
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(D) Jason Crow*
(R) Somebody
90%
10%
CO-07 (Jefferson County)
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(D) B. Pettersen*
(R) Somebody
90%
10%
CO-08 (Northern Colo.)
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(R) Gabe Evans*
(D) Yadira Caraveo
(D) Joe Salazar
50%
40%
40%
State Senate Majority
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DEMOCRATS
REPUBLICANS
80%
20%
State House Majority
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DEMOCRATS
REPUBLICANS
95%
5%
January 07, 2016 12:03 PM UTC
10 Comments
Since when do the liberals at Colorado Pols care about the chamber of commerce?
When they can attack Republicans, that's when. No other time.
The chamber has closer ties to the Dems and libs than to your party these days.
The chamber supports things like primary and secondary public schools and paved roads because a literate workforce and infrastructure are good for the economy. Why else did the business community support Referenda C and D back in 2005?
Are you sure you meant to say that? It sounds like you're admitting Pols is wrong and the chamber is not "traditionally Republican."
I always thought that the phrase "these days" was intended to reference a condition that departs from tradition.
reading comprehension…Heard of it, Moddy?
The Republican position is unforgivable and without question undermines Colorado's future. Here's why.
The Republicans have terminated all negotiations to make the Hospital Provider fee an enterprise and thereby avoid the TABOR limits while simultaneously supporting another piece of legislation which would build highway projects through bonds but will cost the state $200 million annually. When put together, the Republican position means the following for the next state budget. First, since the Hospital Provider fee won't be made an enterprise (even though state revenues are increasing), the budgets for K-12 and higher education will have to be substantially cut. There is no doubt about it.
Now assume the Republican transportation bond proposal passed and we had to commit another $200 million each year to pay the bonds. And keep in mind the $200 million will be coming from existing revenues because there won't be any new revenue due to the TABOR limits. That means another $200 million cut to other programs in the state budget, primarily K-12 and higher education.
For higher education it will mean the following. In 2010 the state budget for higher education was $800 million. In 2011 the budget was reduced to just a little more than $500 million, a reduction of 37.5%. Because of those cuts, students began paying 68 cents of every dollar for their education at our public colleges and universities while the state paid 32 cents which was exactly the opposite of what it had been a decade ago. Thus, student loan debt has increased exponentially which means of course those with education and higher incomes can't afford to buy homes or cars. The business community should take note that Republican intransigence on the state budget is also very detrimental to the automobile and real estate industries.
With Gov. Hickenlooper's leadership, the state budget for higher education now stands at $670 million and students pay 64 cents of every dollar for their education. But without a change in the Hospital Provider fee tuition will begin skyrocketing again like it did after 2010 as much as 9% or more each year because the state's share of the cost will be squeezed to even less than it is now and the only way to cover increased costs will be through tuition increases (i.e even fewer cars and homes will be sold because of even more student debt and because fewer student will be able to go on to college because of the cost). This in the face of the fact that 70% of the jobs in our state require some kind of post secondary certificate or degree.
Even more important and in direct contravention of what you will be told by the Republicans, Colorado's higher education system ranks every year as one of the most efficient systems in the United States. We produce more degrees per dollar than any other state in the nation even though we have twice as many students in higher education today than were enrolled twenty years ago and the state budget in inflation adjusted dollars in less than 50% of what it was twenty years ago.
The Gazette-Telegraph ran an editorial stating that Senate President Bill Cadman had kept an open mind about the Hospital Provider fee over the past year. This is how open minded Senator Cadman has been on this issue. During the 2015 session of the legislature he took the position that if the supporters of changing the Hospital Provider fee into an enterprise could convince eight (8) Republican senators to vote for it, he would allows the bill to pass. That raises an obvious question. If it only takes 18 votes to pass a bill in the senate and all 17 Democrats were voting for it, why was Senator Cadman requiring that this bill needed a super majority of 25 votes. The reason is also obvious. He did not have any intention of allowing the bill to pass. He intentionally set the bar so high it would be impossible to pass the bill.
The bottom line is simple. The Republicans in the state house and senate refuse to fund our public institutions, especially K-12 and higher education, while simultaneously attempting to lock-in an additional annual cut of $200 million which will undermine our schools and universities ability to educate our children. But of course, after intentionally undermining them, the Republicans will blame the teachers, professors, and administrators of our K-12 schools and our universities for any failures to educate our kids. This is not policy. Its insanity.
Seems as though Cadman and the Republicans want to institute the policies of pre-Civil War South for anyone that wasn't a Free, White, over 21 year old male — keep 'em poor, uneducated, barefoot and pregnant.
I think the Republican model is more like India. A relatively few Nabobs, a somewhat larger, but cheaper, middle class, and a huge underclass of untouchables.
It's to the Republican Party's advantage to keep the overall education level low. Easier to manipulate, responsive to demagoguery and willing to vote against their own interests. At the same time the R's need to parasitize the results of higher education in order to give the illusion that they support America's strongest asset, its ability to innovate.
Given that Republicans have become God's Own Party, it's unlikely that they are even going to maintain this illusion for very long. After all, their god is coming soon. At which time they'll help him push the button.
They want to hurt people because they can blame "the government" for the pain they inflict. It is the most cynical game there is.
Time to repeal TABOR.
Time for legislators to get the balls to put it on the ballot.