Politics: IndyBlog, Colorado Springs Independent

New Coloradan eyes governor's race

Pam Zubeck — Tue, 21 May 2013 11:33:00 -0600

Gov. John Hickenlooper kicked butt in the last election, after the GOP nominated a relative unknown, Dan Maes, and right-wing loon Tom Tancredo split the vote for Republicans. (U.S. Rep. Doug Lamborn endorsed Tancredo, who ran on the Constitution Party ticket.)

In 2014, the same thing might happen, as several candidates appear to be considering taking a run at Hickenlooper, a Democrat whose strong advocacy for business and industry has made him a popular political figure.…

Want to support John Morse?

Kirk Woundy — Wed, 15 May 2013 12:51:00 -0600

As the effort to recall John Morse continues — and attracts big money on both sides — the El Paso County Democratic Party is holding an event where supporters of the Senate president can thank him and fellow local Democratic lawmakers for their "hard work and bravery."

Here are the details:

Morse, of course, has been a target since shepherding through a spate of gun-control measures during the 2013 legislative session. Signature-gatherers have until June 3 to collect 7,000-plus signatures in their effort to get a recall election OK'd.…

Michelle Morin: 'Now I'm a "bigot" :)'

Chet Hardin — Fri, 12 Apr 2013 15:21:00 -0600

For those Republicans who wonder why they are losing the battle of messaging, this might be instructive.

Michelle Morin, a local blogger who writes at mom4freedom.com, is a darling of the local conservative movement. Look here at all the famous conservatives she's stood next to.…

Election unkind to incumbent Councilors

Kirk Woundy — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 20:45:36 -0600

Now with another few hundred votes in — and, we would guess, only a few hundred more left to be counted — Helen Collins has opened up her lead over Deborah Hendrix in District 4 to almost exactly 300 votes (2,243 to 1,944). Andres Pico's lead over David Moore in District 6 has slimmed slightly, but still stands at more than 100 votes (3,767 to 3,652).…

Putting the God back into the 'one nation under God'

Chet Hardin — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 16:53:00 -0600

In case you haven't heard, there's this guy called God. He goes by a bunch of different names — Jehovah, Yahweh, Allah, Elohim, 'Elaha, Shangdi, Parvardigar, Nyam, Obong, The Light, King of Kings, Lord of Lords — but most people around here just call him the Lord.…

Drake Task Force makes its pick for decommissioning study

Kirk Woundy — Fri, 29 Mar 2013 16:53:37 -0600

Attention, Colorado Springs Utilities fans (and foes): If you had HDR Engineering Inc. in your Drake Task Force bracket, congrats.

Drake Task Force to Recommend Firm to Board
In today’s meeting, the Drake Task Force chose to recommend HDR Engineering Inc., to the Colorado Springs Utilities (CSU) Board as the firm to conduct a Study of Alternatives Related to the Potential Decommissioning of the Martin Drake Power Plant.
The Task Force received six proposals and created a short list of three firms to give oral presentations at today’s meeting.
HDR Engineering Inc. was selected based on the following criteria:
· Most Relevant Expertise
· Depth of Knowledge of Martin Drake Power Plant
· Understanding of Effort and Implementation
· Superior Risk Analysis
· Management and Staffing
Task Force co-leads, Brandy Williams and Val Snider, will present the recommendation to the CSU Board during the April 9 City Council meeting.
HDR Engineering Inc. is headquarters in Ann Arbor, Mich., with five offices in Colorado, including Colorado Springs.

The Colorado Springs office is on Briargate Parkway.…

More firefighting planes for Colorado?

Pam Zubeck — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 15:44:00 -0600

Two state senators are calling for the state of Colorado to create their own wildland firefighting fleet of planes to ensure timely response to blazes as they erupt in our tinder-dry forests.

Sens. Steve King and Cheri Jahn are to hold a news conference tomorrow, Thursday, to announce a bill that would create the fire fleet, according to King's aide, John Meeks.…

Money streams in, and other Council campaign news

Pam Zubeck — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 17:31:01 -0600

In the most recent campaign finance cycle from Feb. 24 through March 10, candidates for six City Council districts in Colorado Springs in the April 2 election brought in more than $91,000.

As of Monday afternoon, the day the reports were due, here's a rundown of who raised how much during the period.…

Don't sell public land, voters say

Pam Zubeck — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 12:45:00 -0600

The Center for Western Priorities took the pulse of residents of Western states on U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan's idea of selling federal land to pay down the deficit. Ryan's proposed 2014 budget points to proposals by Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, and Rep. Jeff Denham, R-Calif., who have previously endorsed selling public lands to generate revenue, the Center for Western Priorities reports.…

Try, try again for watershed funding

Pam Zubeck — Thu, 14 Feb 2013 14:53:44 -0700

After failing to get federal money allocated to help prevent flooding following the disastrous 2012 fire season, Colorado's senators Michael Bennet and Mark Udall haven't given up.

According to a news release, the two Democrats are continuing the fight by urging President Obama to allocate funds in his upcoming budget request for Fiscal Year 2014.…

Personhood proponents back Joshi's bill

Chet Hardin — Fri, 25 Jan 2013 17:41:09 -0700

Last year, Colorado voters were so supportive of a "personhood amendment" that Amendment 62, which would have mandated that "the term ‘person’ shall apply to every human being from the beginning of the biological development of that human being," failed to even get enough support to make the November ballot.

Undaunted, Springs Republican Rep. Janak Joshi has sponsored HB 13-1032:

The bill provides that, if the commission of any crime codified in the criminal code or traffic code is the proximate cause of death or injury to an unborn member of the species homo sapiens, the prosecuting attorney, in charging the underlying offense, may also charge the homicide or assault offense that is appropriate to the death or injury.

On Monday, Personhood Colorado plans to hold a press conference at the Capitol in Denver to show their solidarity with Joshi.…

Tancredo cites his own 'facts'

Chet Hardin — Thu, 24 Jan 2013 16:55:46 -0700

Haven't you heard? Hispanic voters are totally cool with the extreme right's anti-immigration platform, or so says former U.S. Rep. Tom Tancredo.…

Social mania: The ineffable tweets of Tim Leigh

Bryce Crawford — Thu, 17 Jan 2013 14:36:00 -0700

City Councilor Tim Leigh is an enigmatic creature of real estate, driven by mysteries hidden from man and beast alike.

Serving in the public sector for the first time, Leigh has fulfilled his sacred duties in a variety of ways, sometimes attempting to burn down local businessmen; sometimes saying that what the citizens of Colorado Springs think has no bearing on his decision making (about the budget); sometimes not-saying (but acting and voting like) Mayor Steve Bach could sneeze and Leigh would be first with a tissue and a blessing.…

Front Range officials seek fire mitigation funding

Pam Zubeck — Wed, 09 Jan 2013 14:24:52 -0700

A coalition of public officials and others from Fort Collins to Colorado Springs is pushing Colorado's congressional delegation to secure funding for help with watershed protection and mitigation after wildfires in Colorado claimed more than 600 homes and 100,000 acres of forest land last year.

A letter dated today, Jan. 9, was sent by leaders in El Paso and Larimer counties, the cities of Colorado Springs and Greeley, Pikes Peak Council of Governments, Colorado Springs Utilties, Colorado Springs Regional Business Alliance, Colorado Municipal League, and Colorado Counties Inc.

The money would come from a bill for disaster help for Hurricane Sandy, which the House of Representatives failed to act on last week.…

Lamborn votes against support for Sandy victims

Bryce Crawford — Fri, 04 Jan 2013 15:53:17 -0700

You'll be shocked to learn that despite the $9.7 billion aid package aimed at post-Superstorm Sandy insurance claims passing the 100-member U.S. Senate unanimously, unlike 354 of their colleagues, 67 Republicans voted against it in the House of Representatives; and of course one of them is the esteemed representative from Colorado's 5th Congressional District: Congressman Doug Lamborn.

"In the House, all of the votes against the aid came from Republicans, who have objected that no cuts in other programs had been identified to pay for the measure despite the nation’s long-term deficit problem," reports the New York Times.…

Another shot at disaster money?

Pam Zubeck — Thu, 03 Jan 2013 16:28:19 -0700

Devastating wildfires last year, including the Waldo Canyon Fire, have created a lot of headaches for property owners near federal forest lands, as well as for cities who rely on mountain reservoirs for water supplies.

That's why Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., promoted adding $125 million for emergency watershed protection to the disaster funding bill to support Hurricane Sandy recovery efforts.…

Udall again hugging trees

Pam Zubeck — Tue, 18 Dec 2012 14:14:34 -0700

Sen. Mark Udall wants more money to fight fires and mitigate afterward. The Democrat from Colorado has teamed up with Sen. Jon Tester, a Montana Democrat, to introduce an amendment to the Supplemental Appropriation for Disaster Assistance that would add $653 million to the agency's budget.…

Rep. Pete Lee named to judiciary committee

Chet Hardin — Thu, 29 Nov 2012 14:33:46 -0700

Rep. Pete Lee, from Colorado Springs House District 18, will serve as vice-chairman of the House Judiciary Committee in the 2013 session of the Colorado Legislature.

Lee won his re-election bid against Republican Jennifer George earlier this month.…

An evangelical take on race and the elections

Chet Hardin — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 17:52:57 -0700

Not all evangelicals are alike. Some of them aren't even white.…

The rock-star Nun on the Bus

Kirsten Akens — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 18:07:38 -0700

When the crowd alternates hollering out "Amen" with "Whoohoo," you know this ain't grandpa's Catholic mass.

But then Sister Simone Campbell, the 67-year-old nun who's touring the U.S. right now in a white vehicle labeled "Nuns on the Bus," probably isn't your Catholic grandpa's habit, either.

In fact, Sister Simone is a bit of a rock-star, left-leaning radical.…

Nuns on the Bus 2.0 making Colorado Springs stop today

Bill Forman — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 09:44:56 -0700

Everyone loves nuns, and everyone loves buses.

OK, that's not strictly true.…

Lamborn's thoughts, post-election

Chet Hardin — Wed, 07 Nov 2012 17:36:13 -0700

We know that you've been dying for the official statement from the office of Congressman Doug Lamborn following last night's election.

Lamborn, as we know, won handily against the independent and third-party candidates who challenged him yesterday.…

Democrats make inroads in state government; A64 passes

Bryce Crawford — Tue, 06 Nov 2012 23:32:00 -0700

Even before the conference room at the downtown Antlers Hilton hotel had filled, it was clear that the El Paso County Democratic Party was ready to celebrate — and election results on the national level certainly did nothing to dim that.

But it was in the state contests where the effect may be felt soonest, since victories in two local House districts are likely to help give Democrats control of that chamber in January.…

Grim times at GOP results-watching party

Chet Hardin — Tue, 06 Nov 2012 23:18:54 -0700

El Paso County Republican Party Chairman Eli Bremer did his best to keep the crowd upbeat.

In the ballroom at the DoubleTree Hotel, the Republicans had hung a stage-wide flag.…

Colorado's 'dark money' group back in the headlines

Bill Forman — Tue, 06 Nov 2012 12:56:59 -0700

When we ran our cover story on the Colorado-based Western Tradition Partnership back in January (see "Money Talks" and "WTF is WTP"), the secretive advocacy group was still flying well under the radar. In fact, that’s the big selling-point for WTP, and similar 501(c)4 organizations that promise their corporate and private donors the ability to influence elections with total anonymity.…