You’ve got to admit it was a legislative masterstroke. As a House-passed bill to end capital punishment in Colorado and use the approximately $900,000 in savings to investigate so-called “cold cases” neared a Senate vote, opponents led by Democratic senator John Morse and Republican senator Josh Penry came up with…
Translated, the main rallying cry at a Latino unity march in Greeley on Saturday was this: “A people united will never be defeated.” More than 200 people shouted it enthusiastically — “¡El pueblo unido jamás será vencido!” — as they walked through the rural town under an overcast sky, past…
Over the past few years, Greeley has become a hotbed for immigration issues in Colorado. In 2006, Immigrations and Customs Enforcement agents raided the Swift meatpacking plant there, arresting more than 250 people, many of whom were detained and separated from their children. And last year, local law enforcement, led…
Since leaving Congress earlier this year, past Westword profile subject Tom Tancredo has been taking his immigration-reform crusade to locations around the country — and as documented in Alan Prendergast’s April 15 blog “Obnoxious North Carolina Students Leave Tom Tancredo Speechless,” he hasn’t always been greeted with kind words and…
Hey, dog lovers. Hey, dog haters. Hey, dog-poop haters and uh, dog-poop lovers. You have until 5:30 p.m. today to answer the city’s 44-question dog park survey and help determine the future of Denver’s fledgling canine hangouts. Not to mention the future of the poop in said hangouts. The survey…
As the swine flu scare spreads across the country, people are desperate for answers. They’re looking for experts to give them direction, context and reassurance about this strange new terror gripping the globe. Turns out I’m exactly who they’re looking for. Google search “swine flu” and, as of Monday evening,…
A tour of the local blogoshpere. Send tips. Obama education adviser Michael Johnston wants to replace Senate President Peter Groff. But is he too white? (Colorado Independent) When it comes to torture, the Conservadems are more “conserv” than “dems.” (Colorado Pols) The $10 cigarette pack: Coming to a 7-Eleven near…
A bill to abolish the death penalty in Colorado passed the House by a single vote today. HB 1274, which would use the cost savings of eliminating the death penalty to fund a cold case unit, is on its way to the state Senate. The vote was 33-32, just as…
Our daily Denver blog round-up. Send tips. How do Democrats see Ritter’s reign? (Colorado Pols) Bob Schaffer is either stereotyping Latinos, shamelessly shilling product, wisely courting the Hispanic vote or… doing all three at once! (Colorado Independent) Crocs: Are they on their last comfortably supported leg? (5280)…
Flowery dresses, drum circles, nut butter, bubbles, climb trees, passing out, so much weed, planes, just doob it, people. Those are all the notes I managed to take while on assignment blowing off a staff meeting to take in Boulder’s version of 4/20. Campus police estimated that 8,000 to 10,000…
For photos from yesterday’s afternoon ode to herb in Civic Center Park, see slideshows from Joshua Duplechian and J. Knight (NSFW). Or, to smell the smoke for yourself, watch the video above…
Despite the obvious enthusiasm for its legalization — see today’s rallies in Denver, Boulder, Santa Cruz and other hemp-friendly havens — marijuana is still technically illegal. So it behooves us to consider that it might sometimes be advisable to, you know, hide it. Many have tried. And many have failed…
Two-term Aurora city councilman Ryan Frazier has announced that he’s formed an exploratory committee for the Colorado 2010 U.S. Senate Race. The development, which Frazier will announce today at a Grand Junction tea party rally, makes the 31-year-old Frazier the first Republican to take official steps towards what’s likely to…
Tom Tancredo cut short a planned speech on immigration at the University of North Carolina on Tuesday after a group of protesters sparked what the former congressman has described as a “small riot.” Tancredo’s appearance, at the invitation of a student organization called Youth for Western Civilization, was greeted with…
FollowTheMoney.org, a website associated with the Montana-based National Institute on Money in State Politics, tracks spending on campaigns across the country, and the data on Colorado confirms that agenda-driven greenbacks flooded the state last year at an unprecedented rate. Here are some bullets assembled by NIMSP’s Mike Wessler: • Colorado’s…
After the Independent Ethics Commission failed to censure 6th District Congressman Mike Coffman, Colorado Ethics Watch director Chantall Taylor issued a statement expressing disappointment that the IEC had let Coffman off the hook so easily. Not surprisingly, Coffman’s own response to the ruling is considerably different. Instead of taking satisfaction…
The folks at Colorado Ethics Watch, the organization that originally brought a complaint against 6th District Congressman Mike Coffman in regard to his actions while serving as Colorado’s Secretary of State, aren’t thrilled with the just-announced decision by the Independent Ethics Commission to clear Coffman of wrongdoing. Moments ago, CEW…
The Independent Ethics Commission, which has been investigating complaints against 6th District Congressman Mike Coffman, has ruled that there is “insufficient evidence under either a clear and convincing standard of proof or a preponderance of the evidence standard of proof to find that Coffman violated any standard of ethical conduct.”…
Our daily blog round-up is here. Send tips this way. According to financial disclosure statements, Ken Salazar is not hiding bundles of money underneath that giant hat. (Colorado Independent) Introducing the Jay Cutler bath mat! (The Decider) The battle over Pinnacol spills into the streets outside the Capitol. (Colorado Pols)…
If Denver’s marijuana enthusiasts are serious about decriminalizing their favorite narcotic, they sure didn’t show much enthusiasm for it on Thursday night. Or maybe they just got stoned and forgot. Either way, I was surprised by how few people showed up for the Official 420 Rally Fundraiser, held at Pure…
Our daily blog round-up. Send links. Colorado’s same-sex civil-union movement is gaining steam. This oughta be fun. (Colorado Independent) If you’re reading this on your phone while driving, you may be in for an unpleasant surprise. (5280) In Lakewood, federal funding will help save abandoned houses. (Lakewood Edge)…
Did John Hickenlooper officially announce his re-election campaign in a downtown whiskey distillery this week? Or was the ever-entertaining Denver mayor just feeling particularly spirited (the election is May 2, 2011). The truth is murky — almost as murky as this poorly composed cell-phone image captured just minutes before the…
