Today is Feb. 28, 2024, and here’s what you need to know:

Republican Nikki Haley rallies supporters in Colorado ahead of Super Tuesday presidential primary

Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley said Tuesday at a campaign rally in Colorado that Republicans can only reverse the setbacks the party has suffered in the state by breaking Donald Trump’s grip on the GOP.

Three days after losing her home state primary, 60%-40%, to Trump and a week before Colorado ballots were due, Haley rallied about 800 of her supporters inside the Wings Over the Rockies Exploration of Flight museum at Centennial Airport.

Haley, the lone remaining challenger to Trump in Colorado’s March 5 presidential primary, told the crowd that Republicans in Michigan and Minnesota, other traditionally competitive states where she’s recently campaigned, have likewise lost power across the board since Trump won the presidency in 2016.

“Now, I’m in Colorado, and I’m looking at the fact that no Republican has gotten over 45% statewide since Donald Trump was president,” Haley said.

Illegal immigration 'tornado' in Denver threatens to overshadow mayor's 2024 goals

Denver Mayor Mike Johnston on Monday unveiled his priorities for this year, even as his administration struggles to cope with an illegal immigration crisis that he earlier said could put a $180 million hole in the city’s budget.

The arrival of nearly 40,000 immigrants, who traveled to Denver after illegally crossing America’s southern border, has already cost the city $58 million, the bulk of which has been shouldered by residents.

The crisis threatens to overshadow the mayor’s efforts to solve Denver’s biggest challenges, notably homelessness, the lack of affordable housing and crime, though Johnston suggested it won’t detract him from his focus on delivering his campaign promise to build a “vibrant, affordable and safe” city.

“That financial reality is still the same,” Johnston said of his $180 million cost estimate, noting he has had extensive conversations with his agency heads about the challenge.

“We are still working on both avenues — both to look at ways we can reduce budgets to meet this gap and look at ways we can reduce cost,” he said, adding he would be announcing more on the subject later this week.

Colorado lawmakers reject bill to repeal law requiring pension agency to avoid companies that boycott Israel

A panel of House lawmakers on Monday night overwhelmingly rejected a bill that would repeal a 2016 law requiring the state pension plan to sell off investments in companies that boycott Israel.

Sponsored by Rep. Elisabeth Epps, D-Denver, House Bill 1169 failed on a 1-10 vote in the House Finance Committee. Only Rep. Lorena Garcia, D-Adams County, voted in favor of the measure, while seven Democrats, including the chair and vice-chair, voted against it. 

The measure deals with a 2016 law that required the Public Employee’s Retirement Association, or PERA, the state’s pension plan, to identify companies that have economic prohibitions against Israel, and divest, or sell off, their investments in those companies.

Former Interior Secretary Gale Norton endorses Jeff Hurd in Colorado's 3rd CD GOP primary

Former Interior Secretary Gale Norton on Tuesday endorsed Jeff Hurd in the Republican primary for the Colorado congressional seat represented by U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert, who moved across the state last month to run in another district.

Norton, a former two-term Colorado attorney general, called Hurd an effective advocate for Western and Southern Colorado who can keep the seat in Republican hands and help the GOP maintain control of the House of Representatives.

“Having had the honor to serve as U.S. Secretary of the Interior and as Colorado’s Attorney General, I know what it takes to fight for our Colorado way of life,” Norton said in a statement. “Washington desperately needs people with common sense, commitment to limited government and free enterprise, and a strong understanding of our American constitutional principles.”

Final votes on gender identity bills delayed as Colorado House members continue debate

Two bills to allow individuals, including minors, to choose their names conforming to their gender identity are on hold after an intense debate in the House on Monday delayed voting on the measures. 

Under current law, a person convicted of a felony who wants to change their name must show “good cause.” House Bill 1071 would add gender identity to the list of “good causes” a person could cite for a name change.

The bill has drawn fierce opposition from House Republicans, which got underway on Monday with an amendment from sponsor Rep. Lorena Garcia, D-Adams County, to name the bill after a transgender woman, Tiara Latrice Kelley, a drag queen and performer at Club Q.