Opinion: Of enemy lists and State Party Chairs

It appears Chairman Call is preparing for Christmas and conflating himself with an evil Santa--making his enemy list and checking it twice.

In reports I've had from three Colorado Executive Committee Members, Ryan Call said at their September meeting that my husband, myself, Rich and Laurie Bratten, Ken Clark and Jason Worley (of Grassroots Radio), and Debbie Healy are the "six (sic) most detrimental people to the Republican Party in Colorado." (yes, if you can actually count, there are seven names there)

In fact, I spoke on Grassroots Radio back in September about this.  You can listen at the link.

Well, now I've seen it in writing, in the official minutes of the Executive Committee Meeting (email me if you want to see the entirety of the minutes, there is a lot more in there than just this, a fascinating read).

"Chairman Call said that folks like Jason Worley, Ken Clark, the Bratten's, Debbie Healy and the Arnold's are no friends of this party."

Not quite as... powerful, perhaps, as what was reported to me from three independent sources, but nonetheless it appears Ryan Call is making his enemy list (and he very well may have talked about us being detrimental--at the very least, apparently we aren't friends...).

Oh, but wait.  These aren't the official minutes.  It appears that yesterday, at their November executive committee meeting that EDITED minutes were submitted by the Chairman and his toady, the Executive Director, and put forth as the "real" minutes (you can email me for those as well, to contrast with what was submitted).  

Then, the Secretary was (according to reports I've received from several sources again) instructed to only write minutes in bullet points going forward by a vote of the Executive Committee.  I reached out to Lana for comments, but she declined.

Bottom line is this: something hinky... very hinky... is going on.  What does Ryan want hidden?  Of what is Ryan afraid?

Because the Republican Party can't get their act together, and because Ryan Call continues to declare all-out war on the Colorado Conservative, Liberty Groups, Tea Party, and Libertarian (big "L" and small "l" alike), I have a hard time seeing electoral successes in our future.  Any conservative victories in Colorado in 2014 will be IN SPITE OF the Colorado GOP, and certainly not because of.

Winners and Losers in Colorado's 2013 Election and a Look Ahead

Now that the dust has settled a little bit, I wanted to just quickly review what happened in the 2013 election in Colorado.  I'm talking about the November elections, not the recalls (that's a whole 'nother beast).  I am hip-deep in finishing up my book (which, if you haven't pre-ordered yet, you can here) and attending a School Choice Conference put on by the Franklin Center for Government and Public Integrity in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, but I wanted to give a very brief summary from my perspective of what happened and what that may mean for 2014.

Winners:

• Kids
• Parents
• Teachers
• Taxpayers
• School choice advocates

Losers:

• Unions
• Michael Bloomberg
• John Hickenlooper
• Political operatives

Analysis:

Douglas County, Jefferson County, Denver Public Schools, and several school districts in Adams, Larimer, and Weld counties in particular had great success with reform candidates and slates, which bodes well for improving education across the state.  Notice where some of these changes occurred--Denver, Jefferson, and Adams county, where you have majority Democrats or have been trending Democrat in the past several elections county-wide.  School choice and reform is not a partisan issue.

Coloradoans voted down a nearly $1 billion/year tax increase by a nearly 2-1 margin.

In a bizarre twist of strangeness that only Colorado could concoct, by nearly the same margin as one tax increase was voted down, a tax was passed on marijuana.  In Colorado, apparently it is "tax for thee but not for me."

Sadly, in some cases, reform candidates succeeded in spite of, rather than because of, some of the same old (bad) political operatives.  As long as we continue to have these folks around, we will have to fight that much harder to actually succeed in elections.

Looking ahead:

It is way too early to make predictions for 2014.  To say Hickenlooper is on the defensive now after two losses (the recall elections in September and now Amendment 66--a third might be the flub on the execution of Nathan Dunlap) would be accurate, but whether that will hold true a whole YEAR from now is yet to be seen.  Unfortunately, voters have really short memories, and if Hickenlooper can pull it together this year coupled with a long, likely nasty Republican Primary for Governor, and that could potentially spell success for him in his election.  Remember, since 2004, no Republican has won statewide office after a nasty primary.  It may be more a factor of "us" and less a referendum on Hickenlooper, unfortunately.

What conservatives and liberty lovers must do is capitalize on our success: clearly pro-gun, anti-tax, and pro-education reform messages are winning messages!

The legislative session should be very interesting.  Election years often bring a tamer legislative agenda, and after this year's cocky liberal ram-rodding, it will be very fascinating to watch what happens next.

Opinion: The Libertarian Party, a lawsuit, and the Liberty Movement's "Mike Rosens"

Earlier this week, the Libertarian Party in Colorado (among other parties) sued the Secretary of State over Constitutional violations regarding the recall elections in State Senate Districts 3 and 11.

It is stunning to me that so many “liberty” friends of mine immediately saw “Libertarian Party” and went all Mike Rosen on me.  Are you kidding?  You’re really going to blame Libertarians for wanting to uphold the rule of law, the Constitution, and (most importantly) ensuring the integrity of one of the most important elections to ever happen in Colorado simply because it is the Libertarian Party?  Wow.  I would put money on it that if a Republican had filed this suit, the response would be drastically different.

Let me lay out why this is vitally important.  The ramifications of this suit go way beyond the recall election from what I’ve seen.  Those who are thinking only of the recall election have fallen victim to the GOP Establishment syndrome of tunnel vision focus on just the election directly in front of you.

This past legislative session, Democrats passed HB13-1303.  This is a comprehensive “reform” of election law that has become known as the “same day voter registration bill”—but it goes far beyond just same day registration.

Additionally, this bill (the Senate sponsor was none other than Sen. Angela Giron) changed the playing field for recall elections… WHILE THE SPONSOR WAS IN THE MIDDLE OF A RECALL ELECTION.  Why is there not more outrage over this fact?

If HB13-1303 is fully implemented, no liberty-minded person will win statewide elected office in the near, and probably distant, future.  We have a real opportunity to stop it in its tracks now with the suit, something only the Libertarian Party had the balls to put forth.  No Republican had the spine for it, and for that reason alone, perhaps it’s good that we keep losing.  We certainly deserve to keep losing if that is the case.

We will find out this coming Monday, 12 August, if this suit is successful.  If it is, and this election becomes a polling-place only election, we have a great opportunity to see the effects of HB13-1303 up close and in detail.  We will have the ability to truly monitor this election and document the inevitable fraud that will occur.  If we do not do it now, we must wait until November 2014 to do this (as November 2013 will be a mail ballot only election) and the Democrats will be able to overwhelm poll watchers and election judges with massive fraud (remember 2012?).

Here’s what is at stake in November 2014:

•      The Governor’s Mansion
•      Secretary of State (anyone remember George Soros’ pet project to control “who counts the votes?”)
•      Attorney General (who will defend our rights and laws?)
•      Treasurer (who will hold the PERA Board accountable?)
•      U.S. Senate (what should be a winnable seat)
•      Congressional District 6, the most competitive Congressional District in the country
•      Control of the Colorado State Senate

Now, granted, due to other factors, I’m unconvinced that we win (or in the case of CD6, retain) any of these but the last one, but I would be willing to wager plenty that there is absolutely no way to win if we don’t derail HB13-1303 RIGHT NOW.

And yes, there certainly is no guarantee we win this recall at a polling-place only election.  But if those mail ballots go out, there is a much greater chance for fraud, and a much greater chance we lose.  The day those mail ballots are received is the day this election will be determined.  Lazy, uninformed voters are much more likely to vote in the “convenience” of their home (or worse, let someone else vote for them) than if they are required to show up at a polling place.  That gives us a distinct advantage that would take a lot of busing in from elsewhere and commission of more open—and detectable—voter fraud to overcome.

Let’s be honest—the Democrats aren’t stupid.  They likely already knew about this Constitutional conflict, and have this as their “Plan B” if (when) the recall election doesn’t goes their way.  This card can no longer be played by the Democrat once it has been ruled on by a court.

How do we, as liberty-loving political junkies, lose in any way for being seen to stand up for the Constitution, the rule of law, fair ballot access for all, and election integrity?  I guess some of you so called liberty-lovers don’t really believe in liberty for all if you oppose this then, do you?  It’s incredibly short-sighted.  Just like the GOP has “OGRE”s, it seems the liberty movement has “Mike Rosens”.  And that is, perhaps, the most disappointing thing of all.

Read the Press Release from the Libertarian Party here.  Read analysis of this case here.  Comments on the Clear the Bench Colorado article discuss the ramifications of this on military voters.  A simple Google search brings up a number of news articles as well.