EDITORIAL: Denver goes Gaylord with convention center
Denver voters approved a tourism tax increase in 2015, after city officials told them it would generate $104 million for improvements to the Colorado Convention Center.
It was honest, fair and legal under Colorado’s Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights. It was arguably a wise investment in a public asset that benefits all Coloradans who attend events as diverse as religious expos, political forums and volleyball tournaments.
Suddenly, city officials aren’t satisfied with $104 million. They want $233 million.
This isn’t some cost overrun because building supplies rang up higher than expected. This is more than a doubling of what taxpayers approved. It is a 124-percent increase in the financial scope of the project.
Michael Dougherty is literally running for attorney general in Colorado Democrat’s 1st TV ad
Ernest Luning
ernest.luning@coloradopolitics.com
Updated 13 hours ago
Democratic attorney general candidate Michael Dougherty, the Boulder County district attorney, runs laps around the judicial complex in Denver that houses the office he’s seeking in a TV ad released Friday that includes a subtle dig at one of his...
Group aims to add right to hunt and fish to Colorado Constitution
Marissa Ventrelli
marissa.ventrelli@coloradopolitics.com
Updated 10 hours ago
A group is seeking to make Colorado the 25th state in the nation with an established constitutional right to hunting and fishing through a proposed ballot initiative. Backed by the International Order of T. Roosevelt, a group dedicated to preserving...
Colorado Politics Calendar June 15-21
Rachael Wright, Special to Colorado Politics
rachael.wright@coloradopolitics.com
Updated 4 days ago
CoPo’s weekly political calendar helps you find political and public policy events throughout Colorado. It includes candidate and issue campaign events, public policy meetings, court hearings, state and local party conventions, assemblies, debates, rallies, parades, speaking engagements, traveling dignitary appearances,...
A primary brings out primal instincts | SONDERMANN
Eric Sondermann
eric-sondermann@coloradopolitics.com
Updated 3 days ago
There are no Stanley Cup finals or NBA title showdowns involving local teams this June. In their place, we are inundated with primary election campaign ads. Coloradans can be excused for missing the diversion and alternate programming. But life can...
Dem-GOP tension dominates 1,000-bill legislative session | A LOOK BACK
Rachael Wright, Special to Colorado Politics
rachael.wright@coloradopolitics.com
Updated 3 days ago
Forty-Five Years Ago This Week: “I can honestly say that until now, we got along well with the governor’s office,” said House Minority Leader Federico Peña, D-Denver. “We visited frequently with the staff. And you didn’t see certain legislators speaking...
Hickenlooper lands endorsements from Elizabeth Warren, Ministerial Alliance in US Senate primary
Ernest Luning
ernest.luning@coloradopolitics.com
Updated 1 day ago
U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper won endorsements this week from a progressive Democratic colleague and a coalition of metro-area African American faith leaders as voting began in Colorado’s primary election. U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and the Greater Metro Denver...
Colorado justices say insurers may access policyholders’ medical info in denied-benefits litigation
Michael Karlik
michael.karlik@coloradopolitics.com
Updated 1 day ago
The Colorado Supreme Court declined on Monday to expand its narrow prohibition on insurance companies accessing policyholders’ medical information, clarifying that a dispute over an insurer’s bad-faith decision to deny benefits is the only situation where a company is limited...
House District 14: Businesswoman, consultant square off in GOP primary
Mary Shinn
mary-shinn@coloradopolitics.com
Updated 2 days ago
Firearms training company owner Ava Flanell will face Troy Vanderhule, the chief fundraising officer for Dobson Philanthropic, in the June 30 Republican primary for state House District 14, an area in northern Colorado Springs. Flanell was appointed to the seat...
Federal judge wants Todd Blanche to swear in writing anti-weaponization fund won’t be revived
Jack Birle, Washington Examiner
jack.birle.washington.examiner@gazetteedit.wpenginepowered.com
Updated 1 day ago
A federal judge maintained a block on the Department of Justice’s $1.776 billion anti-weaponization fund Friday, despite the DOJ claiming they have abandoned the planned fund aimed at compensating allies of President Donald Trump and others who say they were politically targeted by...
Colorado Supreme Court declines to loosen requirements for insurance company defendants
Michael Karlik
michael.karlik@coloradopolitics.com
Updated 10 hours ago
The Colorado Supreme Court declined last week to reconsider its longstanding expectations for insurance company defendants, and agreed that an insurer failed to properly raise its defenses against a policyholder’s breach-of-contract lawsuit. When an insured driver has an accident with...