Author: Morgan Smith
-
Smith: Kogovsek’s death leaves a tremendous void
—
by
It is an enormous shock to read of the death of Ray Kogovsek, a superb public servant and a tireless supporter of his home town, Pueblo. I had the opportunity to serve in the Colorado House of Representatives for six of the years in which he served in the state Senate and it was always…
-
Smith: The recapture of El Chapo
—
by
Congratulations to those Mexican Marines who recaptured Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán after a bitter gunfight in his home state of Sinaloa. Unlike his 2001 escape when he was at large for 13 years, this time he was recaptured in less than six months. For most Americans, this seems like a fairly simple case of excellent…
-
Smith: Mesa County’s Paul Brown lauds service across aisle
—
by
“Hey, Morgan. It’s Paul and we’re in Santa Fe.” What a surprise to hear this voice from the past. Paul Brown and I served together in the Colorado House of Representatives for two terms — 1975-1978 — but I hadn’t seen him or his wife, Sue, for decades. Paul first became involved in politics in…
-
No one knew finances better than Pueblo’s Bob Kirscht
—
by
“It was so much fun then,” Bob Kirscht says in reference to his 16 years in the Colorado House of Representatives, from 1971-1986. Bob was one of the finest legislators of his generation and someone who was highly respected by both parties. He was both the majority and minority leader when I served with him…
-
Smith: A night with the Ku Klux Klan
—
by
On a steamy Friday night in early August 50 years ago, I was taken prisoner by the Ku Klux Klan outside the small town of Oxford, N.C. I was lucky to survive, but because I got into this mess through my stupidity and the stubbornness of my fellow employees at the Congress of Racial Equality…
-
Smith: Money and fear: El Chapo escapes again
—
by
“El Chapo for President of México,” Pastor Galván says. “He’s like Pancho Villa or Emilio Zapata. They had money, but they helped the poor, something the government doesn’t do.” This was one of the many reactions I heard during a trip to Juárez, Mexico, two days after Joaquín “El Chapo “ Guzmán’s extraordinary escape from…
-
Smith: ISIS training camps at border? Puras mentiras
—
by
“Puras mentiras,” Cecilia Vazquez says to me. Nothing but lies. The other Mixteca Indians nod in agreement. We’re at the Santa Teresa border crossing just west of El Paso, Texas, and I’ve asked them about the Judicial Watch report claiming that ISIS had set up terrorist training camps in Anapra and Palomas, Mexico. Anapra is…
-
Gaon ‘always looking out for the little guy’
—
by
“Governor Love is a dumb bell.” It was a Sunday afternoon and David Gaon was listening to the Herrick Roth show, when suddenly a man named J.D. MacFarlane made this comment about Gov. John Love. Gaon immediately called MacFarlane, offered to work on his campaign for attorney general, went to Pueblo to meet with Wally…
-
End of Cuban embargo is good policy for U.S.
—
by
Congratulations to President Obama for being the first president to stand up and reject the counterproductive and long outdated Cuban embargo. And to heck with U.S. Senator Marco Rubio and others for their attacks on him. How can they justify an embargo that was first imposed on October 19, 1960, extended on February 7, 1962…
-
Shared problems: taxes, corruption, the economy, lack of confidence in our leaders
—
by
“After I vote, I look up into the sky and say a prayer that it will turn out alright,” says a Spaniard named Francisco Noviola. Despite the agony of our November 4 elections, it’s November 9 and here we are in Barcelona, Spain to observe another election — the referendum on independence from Spain that…
