Time For McNulty to Keep His Promise?

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by: Colorado Pols

The Craig Daily Press reported Tuesday on yet another FASTER-undoing bill, this one from Rep. Randy Baumgardner–you’ll recall that GOP House Speaker Frank McNulty has basically ruled the repeal of FASTER, and its badly-needed, already bonded revenue for transportation projects, a nonstarter despite it playing a central role in many Republican legislative campaigns last year.

The Republican from Hot Sulphur Springs, along with other House Representatives, introduced Colorado House Bill 11-1084 on Jan. 20. Baumgardner is the prime House sponsor of the bill, which has been sent to the House Committee on Transportation.

The bill aims to repeal a late vehicle registration fee enacted through Senate Bill 09-108, also known as FASTER, and would reinstate the optional $10 late fee, credited to county governments, previously in effect.

And Baumgardner’s HB11-1084 passed the House Transportation Committee a short while ago today on a party-line vote. This would appear to set up a challenge for Speaker McNulty–is he a man of his word? Is he willing to follow through on his promises to set aside…well, even set aside his own campaign plank, and that of freshman representatives like Kathleen Conti who pounded the issue all the way into office? Because that’s what he said he’d do, right?

It goes without saying that the best choice would have been to not make campaign promises you either can’t or never intended to keep, but clearly we and Speaker McNulty are past that. It wouldn’t take much effort for McNulty to see that this bill, with no chance of survival anywhere but the House, dies quickly; if that’s what he wants. And if that’s not what he wants, he’s got a bit of a truthfulness problem–and people more formidable than Kathleen Conti to answer to…

10 thoughts on “Time For McNulty to Keep His Promise?”

bullshit! says:

February 3, 2011 at 11:44 pm

Glenn Vaad, who was all freaked about pulling FASTER “willy nilly,” voted for this bill. They are playing total theater for their base, and McNulty will kill it the moment he feels enough base pleasing has been accomplished.

Glad I’m not a Republican, I would get really pissed about being jerked with all the time.

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1. Ralphie says:
  
  February 3, 2011 at 11:47 pm
  
  i.e., knowing that a bad bill will be killed in the other Chamber, leaves room for a lot of grandstanding and “safe” votes.
  
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  1. BlueCat says:
    
    February 4, 2011 at 12:26 am
    
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ajb says:

February 3, 2011 at 11:50 pm

McNulty is just having his Don Quixote moment so that in 2012, Republican House candidates can say they voted to repeal FASTER. So what if it was tilting at windmills, by then the details won’t matter.

My criticism is that the state has real problems and Republicans are just wasting everybody’s time with this bullshit.

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1. ajb says:
  
  February 3, 2011 at 11:53 pm
  
  Looks like I took too long to compose a comment. BS! and Ralphie beat me to it.
  
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GOPwarrior says:

February 4, 2011 at 12:30 am

How could McNulty have not been criticized? I’d say you have him in a nice box, where he’s damned if he agrees with you and he’s damned is he doesn’t. Isn’t that what political hacks do? Please explain, TYVM.

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1. dukeco1 says:
  
  February 4, 2011 at 12:58 am
  
  your answer is here…
  
  It goes without saying that the best choice would have been to not make campaign promises you either can’t or never intended to keep,
  
  unless I, like you, don’t quite understand the English language.
  
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2. MADCO says:
  
  February 4, 2011 at 9:29 am
  
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MADCO says:

February 4, 2011 at 9:29 am

She’s just doing what God told her to do.

b – if Speaker McNulty was going to lead on this, he would have never let it get to committee, let alone come out.

I’m not as certain that the other house will kill it, though they should. but the grandstanding and press releases are a waste of time and money. Knock it off and adjourn early.

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1. JeffcoBlue says:
  
  February 4, 2011 at 5:09 pm
  
  Conti is plenty formidable, but I think the Guvs were talking about McNulty’s chief of staff. And that’s pretty funny too, because they might be right.
  
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