Forty Years Ago This Week: Arapahoe County Republican activist Freda Poundstone returned from a trip to Washington D.C. for what was a whirlwind trip of political meetings, and topping her agenda had been a meeting with President Ronald Reagan and Vice President George H.W. Bush. 

Poundstone had been one of just three representatives from the western states to attend the meetings; the other two were from Oregon and California. She had been selected to brief the president on grassroots efforts and the “political heartbeat” of Colorado. According to Poundstone, the group met in the Cabinet Room of the White House and it had been an “easy-going gathering.”

“He wanted to know the concerns of Colorado and I told him he was highly regarded,” Poundstone said of her meeting with the president, “and I hope he stands strong on his principles, and that it’s really important to have a balanced budget. I also told him that I and the people of this state, including the media, support his position … to reduce government.”

Poundstone said that she had inquired about the president’s health, in particular asking him about his shoulder, which had been injured in the recent assassination attempt.

“He looked really incredible,” Poundstone said. “He said he was feeling wonderful.”

Poundstone said she had also attended a private dinner with EPA Administrator Anne Gorsuch and other “political clearance people” regarding more administration appointments.

Mary Estill Buchanan was one person being gossiped about regarding an administration appointment, after Poundstone’s return to Colorado, but Buchanan adamantly denied knowing anything about her name being fielded for a possible appointment. 

“I haven’t talked with anyone at the White House since last May,” Buchanan said. “I haven’t been offered anything and I haven’t applied for anything.”

Twenty Years Ago: On Dec. 15, Rick Stanley, Libertarian candidate for U.S. Senate, was arrested near the Colorado state capitol building for openly carrying a loaded weapon in a holster, a violation of Denver city ordinance. 

Stanley was released the following day after being charged with unlawfully carrying a firearm. Stanley contended that the law he was charged with breaking “violates my civil rights and I will be seeking a jury-trial to have the ordinance declared unconstitutional.”

Stanley’s arrest took place alongside the arrest of a fellow Second Amendment supporter, Duncan Philp, during a Bill of Rights rally held in Denver’s Lincoln Park. Stanley said it was a planned act of civil disobedience by openly carrying a loaded handgun. 

Stanley and Philp both said their actions “were an attempt to exercise their constitutionally guaranteed rights under the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and Article II, Section 13 of the Colorado Constitution.” 

In other news, Nancy McCallin, executive director of the Colorado Office of State Planning and Budget, painted a grim portrait of the FY 02-03 budget at a legislative forum hosted by the Colorado Press Association.

Gov. Bill Owens had already trimmed 1% of the budget, and according to his office, he was “actively monitoring fiscal forecasts and indicators to determine if additional adjustments will be necessary.”

McCallin said the state was operating with severely limited resources and that the general fund was at its lowest since 1991. 

“At its peak in the past couple of years we spent over $500 million on Capitol construction,” McCallin said. “We’ve been spoiled very badly in the last six to seven years.”

Three months previously, the Legislative Council and the Office of State Planning and Budget had lowered their revenue forecasts by $200 million. McCallin said that the slowing economy, made worse by the Sept. 11 attacks, was the primary reason why state reserves were so low. She expected that revenue forecasts would be lowered by $500 million before all effects were truly felt. 

“I would certainly expect to see some more budget cuts,” McCallin said. “The long term forecasts still appear positive. Even with these downward revisions to the forecast, 2004 is looking fine in terms of revenue.”

Rachael Wright is the author of the Captain Savva Mystery series, with degrees in Political Science and History from Colorado Mesa University, and is a contributing writer to Colorado Politics and The Gazette.