I have long assumed that the nice folks who run Colorado Politics have me writing my twice-weekly missives because of my partisanship (former Democratic congressional candidate and county party chair) and because of my academic background (doctorate in political science focusing on American politics), and my dashing good looks (Ed: um… let’s just say that your punctuation is usually pretty good and leave it at that?). And, often, there are stories in CP that I find interesting from both the political hack and the professorial point of view. Such is the case with two stories that appeared recently.

The first story notes that one of the several folks challenging Colorado District 5 Congressman Doug Lamborn is suing over how his name will appear on the ballot, and the second story, an op-ed, notes the likely self-destructive path the state GOP seems to be intent on following.

First up we learn that Lamborn challenger Dave Williams would like his name to appear on the ballot in a very special way. Now, from my own time running for congress here in CD5 back in 2008, I know that there are very specific rules on what you can and cannot have in your name. While I was permitted to be “Hal” rather than my actual legal name of “Harold,” that was about my only option. I was specifically forbidden from adding anything regarding, say, military rank or academic achievement. So, I was not allowed to appear on the ballot as “Retired Lt Colonel Hal Bidlack, Ph.D.” or anything like that. Straight forward rule that everyone seems to understand.

Except, it appears, for Dave Williams.

Mr. Williams wants everyone to know that he is far to the right of far-right Lamborn, and so he is suing (because, you know, the GOP is the party of small government) for the right to be listed as “Dave ‘Let’s Go Brandon’ Williams.” In case you’ve been under a rock somewhere, the “Let’s go” cheer is code for, well, as it says in the article, “F— Joe Biden.” Mr. Williams doesn’t like the rules everyone else has to play under, and he wants to be a special case because, well, freedom and liberty and Trump and such.

He won’t win that suit.

Oh, and while we are talking about Joe Biden, did anyone send him a thank-you note, given that gas prices have dropped nationally about 25 cents in the last month? No? The GOP sure was yelling at Biden when the price went up. Crickets now? Maybe because the president doesn’t actually control gas prices? But I digress.

The second story is an opinion piece from the Gazette, written by an insightful gent whom no one would call a lefty. In his review of the recent GOP state assembly, Vince Bzdek (whom I know a bit and is one of my many, many bosses here) called the gathering a “Republican Fantasyland.” Go ahead and give it a good read, I’ll wait here…

Isn’t that interesting? The Colorado GOP appears to be entirely captured by the Trumpian wing of the Republican party, wherein the election of 2020 was stolen, and the real heroes are people like Tina Peters, the Mesa County clerk who is under indictment for tampering with election equipment and who, when arrested, kicked a Grand Junction police officer because, you know, freedom.

An aside: do you remember back when the Republicans were pro-cop and anti- Russia?

As noted in the op-ed, denial of the truth is the litmus test of loyalty, and apparently not just to the GOP but to the nation itself. Regardless of what office you are running for, you must first swear allegiance to the big lie that Trump won. You could be running for dog catcher and have the greatest record of catching dogs of any candidate, but if you don’t announce your loyalty to the big lie and to Trump, you can’t get the nomination. Today’s GOP would rather nominate a cat to be dog catcher, just as long as that cat regularly yells “Let’s Go Brandon!”

No, to get any GOP nomination these days, you have to swallow the whole Trump lie and deceit conspiracy, that dozens of Trump-appointed judges and other officials joined forces with thousands of other Republicans around the nation to steal an election. You may recall that group of loyal Trumpers who forced a recount in Arizona? At that time, lots of Team Trump hooted and hollered about what that recount would show (When finally finished, that recount showed that Biden had actually won Arizona by a larger margin than first thought. So, of course, the true Trumpers turned on those recounters as corrupt themselves, sigh).

It is interesting that this vast body of conspirators forgot to steal other important elections that took place in 2020. Imagine how chagrined they must have been the day after the election, when they realized they could have thrown the election for, say, even one more Senate seat for the Dems to give them an absolute majority? Isn’t it interesting that not a single Republican elected in 2020 is demanding that his or her own electoral win be reviewed and cancelled?

Now from a purely partisan point of view, I rather enjoy the GOP bemoaning, backbiting and bickering. I want them to nominate the craziest of the crazies. Remember the GOP senate candidate back east a few years ago who had to put out a commercial denying that she was, in fact, a witch?

Crazy candidates are far easier to beat (see witch example above) and when the dynamics of an election mean the crazies get elected, they are, ironically, less dangerous because they are far less effective. Scott Tipton, for example, was able to do far more damage to the middle class as a “reasonable” Republican, due to his ability to work with others to advance legislation. Contrast that to the crazy that beat him in the GOP primary, Lauren Boebert, who will continue to shout outrage to the mountaintops but will never really get anything done.

So that’s a win.

I don’t know how long the Trump crazies will continue to dominate the GOP. Their core beliefs – unlike Trump himself, who has none – will continue to force the party toward the fringe. Back in 1972, the Dems nominated a good man, but far too liberal a man in George McGovern. And in that election, McGovern was utterly crushed. Just four years later, the Dems had recovered their senses and nominated a far more moderate Jimmy Carter, who won.

But frankly, I don’t see the GOP recovering that quickly.

Whew!

Hal Bidlack is a retired professor of political science and a retired Air Force lieutenant colonel who taught more than 17 years at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs.