I have always been tall for my age. All through elementary school I remember that I was the second tallest kid in my grade – there was one giant kid who was taller – and that trend kept up through adulthood. I stand about 6’3″ when I stand up straight, and so, from time to time over the years, I’ve been asked by little old ladies in grocery stores to fetch something they need from a top shelf. I’m always happy to help, and sometimes I find things way back up there that more vertically-challenged shoppers miss, like packets of yeast or the last can of Brussel sprouts (that last part was a lie, I detest Brussel sprouts). So, as a tall-ish guy, I understand that sometimes there are things that are out of reach for people without the requisite stature.

Which, of course, brings me to the upcoming special session of the Colorado State Legislature…

As reported in Colorado Politics, Gov Polis demonstrated quality leadership yet again when he called the elected representatives of the good people of Colorado back for a special session (or as they call it on the General Assembly webpage: “The First Extraordinary Session of the Seventy-second General Assembly”). Polis – whom most of us wish a speedy recovery – wants the GA to take up a series of bills designed to provide aid and support to Colorado families and  businesses that have been, and continue to be, devastated by the COVID pandemic. Eight different bills will be taken up, and all of them have at least some bipartisan support. 

The bills would send tens of millions of dollars to Coloradans across our state. Money would be spent on small business support (a vital area of our economy that creates the most jobs), as well as money for child care support – especially critical in a time when so many kids are doing remote learning, rather than going to a physical school. There are proposals to provide direct housing and rental assistance, as well as increasing broadband access for kids who otherwise would be effectively locked out of school for lack of high speed internet. Other bills would help food pantries, which have been overrun by people needing food assistance, often for the first time in their lives. Other money would go to help people pay their utility bills, a vital protection for those who lost their jobs due to the virus, as we enter the cold months.

All these seem like really good ideas. And while the devil is often in the details, our legislature has demonstrated a willingness to work in a bipartisan manner from time to time, and this is most certainly the time for cooperation. Polis has proposed relief totaling between $300 and $400 million and I really do think our legislature will make us proud. 

There is only one problem…

That’s not nearly enough money. 

Just as there are objects that are on shelves too high for regular people to reach, some problems are too large for a single state to handle. For all the good the special session may create (and that is not a trivial thing) there will still be far more need than a state government, with a balanced budget requirement, can do. We need the “taller” federal government to reach those top-shelf items that states cannot get to. We need billions, not millions.

So, how is that going? Well, the House (controlled by the Dems) has sent a number of bills to the Senate (controlled by Moscow Mitch, I mean the GOP) and that body has simply refused to act. For example, in October, the House passed a $2.2 trillion coronavirus relief bill and guess who refused to even discuss it? Yup, the GOP Senate. Now, reasonable people can disagree about the proper size of such bills, but at least the House got something passed. The Senate just sits on it because, I guess, they agree with President Trump that the virus is a hoax/rounding the corner/not really dangerous or whatever? 

Colorado has an excellent senator in the form of my old boss, Michael Bennet. And he will soon be joined by another strong Colorado leader, John Hickenlooper. But unless things go really, really well in Georgia for the Dems (a possibility, but a real long shot), Moscow Mitch will continue his obstruction. Given that his goal was to hobble Obama completely, I assume he will again try to thwart the incoming Biden administration’s efforts in, well, everything, including pandemic response. 

So, a gold star to the governor and to Colorado legislators, both Dems and Republicans, for showing up for the special session and getting to work. On the national level, I would really like to be optimistic, but the GOP shows no signs of working for the good of the people rather than the good of the GOP. That likely means, unfortunately, that we will have to rely on state resources over the next few months. And that is more than just a pity, it is shameful.