Cranberg Donation Bites Polis...Again

Shafroth also took a jab at Polis

As reported by the Denver Post.

"While serious Democrats like Will Shafroth are focused on ending the war in Iraq and restoring America's reputation in the world, it's a shame any Democrat would raise money from Swiftboaters," said Shafroth campaign manager Lynea Hansen.

"Suddenly, it may be cool to be American again" - William J. Kole

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by: Go Blue @ Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 22:53:31 PM UTC

What is this, tag team?

This is I think the second time Will and Joan have tag-teamed Jared on an issue in recent weeks (the first being the trip to Iraq and its questionable initial advertising as "going with" United Way).

"We're below sharks and contract killers." -- Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), speaking on Congress's 9% approval rating

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by: Phoenix Rising @ Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 23:14:54 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

What next?

They pool their money?

"But when I see a 9-11 victim family on television, or whatever, I'm just like, 'Oh, shut up!' I'm so sick of them because they're always complaining."  Glenn Beck  

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by: Arvadonian @ Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 23:17:32 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Seriously

I always wondered how closely they were attached, given that the conventional wisdom was at the beginning that Will's presence helps Joan.

Seeing as I'm not a conspiracy theorist, I'll just say this sure as hell looks like front-runner treatment to me. Jared couldn't be ahead, could he?

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by: BoulderDem @ Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 23:25:26 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Works better in two pots

This is one situation where pooling resources doesn't help.  This way Jared gets attacked from two sides, and it helps both Will and Joan's campaigns because it isn't coming from one source.  (Strategically speaking only...)

I don't think they're colluding; I've heard criticisms of each of the other candidates from all contenders.  Will's been pretty much above the fray playing the nice guy until just recently, and what I've seen has been coming in against Jared - did someone do something to piss him off, or is he just figuring out that this infighting is what's getting the attention?

"We're below sharks and contract killers." -- Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), speaking on Congress's 9% approval rating

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by: Phoenix Rising @ Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 23:40:49 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

It will always be 2:1

Anytime any one screws up the other two will pound them.

Where all the cool kids will be on Saturday - Code War!

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by: DavidThi808 @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 05:00:46 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Seriously? Can't he can't anything right?

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by: denverfun25 @ Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 23:21:27 PM UTC

Better yet

Can't you get a simple headline right?

Just kidding.

Why actually is this "wrong", out of curiosity? So he took money from people he disagrees with. Apparently so does Joan (unless she agrees with the agenda of the oil and gas industry). Are you saying they should vet their donors by their political beliefs and only take from those they agree with?

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by: BoulderDem @ Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 23:24:12 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

What? are you serious?

If a swift boater is giving you money, they clearly see something in you they like.

If a voucher supporter is giving you money, they clearly see something in you they like.

I think who gives you money is an important piece of information.  

Should you vet your donors? A little.  Hillary should have vetted the Hu and Chinatown donations.  Polis should have vetted his donors to not take lobbyiest donors after saying he wouldn't take lobbyiest cash.

Personally, I would vet any donor $1000 and over.

And I wouldn't take money from anybody who was a swiftboater, it would make me feel dirty.

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by: Danny the Red (hair) @ Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 23:35:57 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

more dirty than the oil and gas lobby?

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by: Abraham Van Helsing @ Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 23:38:48 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Yes...

More dirty than the oil and gas lobby.  Though not by much.  BTW, Cranberg is an oilman in addition to being a voucher and swiftboat proponent, so he fills both shoes.

"We're below sharks and contract killers." -- Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), speaking on Congress's 9% approval rating

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by: Phoenix Rising @ Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 23:45:04 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Yes. and I say that as an environmentalist

I have problems with the petro economy and O&G is destroying the places I love in the near term, supporting terrorist and dictators in the intermediate term, and destroying human civilization over the long term.

But they are not evil, their self interest is just short sighted and not in our collective interest.  Its a lesson I learned in the logging wars of the late 80's--remember the logger is just trying to feed his family.

Trashing john kerry's honorable service did not serve anyone's self interest.  It was evil, dishonorable and yes dirty.

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by: Danny the Red (hair) @ Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 23:46:28 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

That's a bit naive

These folks seem to be very small players in what turned out to be a vicious abomination called Swift Boats. For all we know they deeply regret writing those checks and didn't know what it would be used for. And there's certainly no way Polis would have known without doing extensive research. It's not like he took money from the originators of the ads.

More to the point, what can we expect from the two candidates in the future? So Jared took money from some partisan Republicans, for whatever reason (and totalling about 1% of his intake). Who knows why. They're probably family friends. No one, given his history, is going to believe he's anything but a hardcore partisan Dem.

But Joan takes money from an industry and is anathema to progressive Dems everywhere, especially in this state. THAT'S indicative of how she'll vote in Congress, if you ask me.

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by: BoulderDem @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 01:41:57 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

do you call typing Alex Cranberg into Google extensive research?

It takes me longer to read all these comments online then it did to find out all I needed to know about these guys on Google. I have included just a sample of what I found in 2 seconds. Enjoy reading the following over a glass of wine tonight. It's a fun read.

BY ADAM PARKER
   The Post and Courier
       Two candidates for state office, Gov. Mark Sanford and Karen Floyd, have collected thousands of dollars from out-of-state donors advocating school privatization initiatives, election records show.
       The candidates, both of whom support school choice, have raised more out-of-state campaign funds than any other candidate participating in statewide elections this year.
       Floyd, the Republican state superintendent of education candidate, received nearly half of her second-quarter campaign funding from out-of-state sources, including $42,000 that came from two addresses, one in New York City and one in Denver.
       Companies associated with Alex Cranberg, a prominent Colorado businessman, channeled $14,000 to Floyd, and Cranberg gave the candidate $3,500, the maximum allowed per individual per quarter, according to state campaign funding reports.
       Howard Rich, a successful New York City real estate developer, also has attempted to influence the outcome of South Carolina's race for top educator. Six companies with which Rich is associated have sent $21,000 to Floyd. Two of his companies sent an additional $3,500 each to Floyd during the third quarter, reports show.

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by: denverfun25 @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 01:54:13 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Ah name calling. the attack the messenger defense

I am in no way naive.

that's usually a pretty weak gambit.

BTW these guys are not small players.   Cranberg and mcVaney are well known around the voucher issue and my god Jack Kemp gave him money.  Even people only partially aware of politics know who jack kemp is.  He was the GOP vice presidential nominee in 1996.

By extensive research do you mean 5 minutes a name. If he just had a staffer do a google search anytime he got a contribution over $1000 dollars that would take about a half day over the course of a quarter.  Knowing what junior staffers and volunteers make that's pretty cheap.

as to your other defenses:

1.  its a small amount. Ok than return them.

2.  O&G is worse than swift boats.  I assume your car runs on butterflies, sushine and Latte's?  The petro economy is not sustainable, but it is necessary.  Even if you get a plug in Hybrid when they are available, ride the bus or your bike, we still have energy needs.  The swift boat ads were despicable lies, politics at their lowest and turned the word "swift boat" into a pejorative, tarring the memories of all who served.

3.  Joan does it too.  I'm not defending JFG, I support Will.  I am no fan of O&G so I question JFG takig money from them, but it is not as bad as swift boaters.

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by: Danny the Red (hair) @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 02:13:22 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

I love the username

O/T as hell, but I just have to say, since I did my 12th grade French oral exam on the May '68 riots in Paris (way back when), that I really enjoy the homage to Cohn-Bendit.

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by: Jay R @ Fri Nov 30, 2007 at 07:24:19 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

You know you are the only person to comment on the reference

My politics are far more moderate however.  Although in my youth I was pretty looney.

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by: Danny the Red (hair) @ Fri Nov 30, 2007 at 15:44:23 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

So then the oil and gas industry

sees something IT likes in Joan? And Excel. And on and on. Could be true, actually, given her record.

Actually, I don't believe it about either. If you've been around politics for any number of years, you realize this attack comes up in every single race. It's inevitable. And it's irrelevant every single time.

I don't know why Jared asked Alex Cranberg for money (maybe they're friends or investment partners? Who knows.) And I don't know why Joan took money from the oil and gas industry. Although, truth be told, if Cranberg IS a personal friend or business partner at least he has a good excuse. Joan KNOWS who the oil and gas lobbyists are.

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by: BoulderDem @ Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 23:41:17 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

according to the reports in the DP and RMN

JFG received over $24,000 from Xcel and "tens of thousands from the oil and gas special interest"

I see that as more damaging than $6000 from three people who don't like Kerry.

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by: Abraham Van Helsing @ Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 23:46:47 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Did she do anything for that money?

Did she water down the renewable energy standard or open up lands to development unreasonably?  If so, then we'll talk.

"We're below sharks and contract killers." -- Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), speaking on Congress's 9% approval rating

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by: Phoenix Rising @ Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 23:50:12 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Dunno

But she did once call the oil industry the "golden goose" of Colorado, and sponsored one of those industry giveaway bills.

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by: BoulderDem @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 01:44:23 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Huh?

Joan was honored by the Colorado Conservation Voters for her leadership during the "New Energy Economy" session, which was said to be the "most pro-conservation session in Colorado history."

She sponored several of the most important conservation bills during the session including the Colorado Clean Energy Fund, and scored 100% pro-environment for her voting record.

What did Jared do for the environment during his legislative career, oh wait...  

"Suddenly, it may be cool to be American again" - William J. Kole

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by: Go Blue @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 03:02:07 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Wait...

You mean moderate Governor Ritter's "New Energy Economy?" I like Ritter, and I like what he is doing, but let's not pretend that any of this stuff is plowing new ground. Ritter's work, and the legislature following his lead, has been great for Colorado. But on a national basis, or CD-2 for that matter, it is moderate, not extraordinary.

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by: WinstonSmith @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 03:55:53 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

What do you want?

One session quickly overturned by a GOP resurgent on the backs of a "too-liberal" Democratic "power grab", or a long-term majority that makes more strides in the right direction than either the national or state governments have undertaken in 6+ years?

While I want an immediate and sudden overhaul, I'll take more over a longer period of time than 2 years quickly reversed.

"We're below sharks and contract killers." -- Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), speaking on Congress's 9% approval rating

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by: Phoenix Rising @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 04:21:35 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Great point

I think Ritter may be a great governor, but it will take another 2 - 4 years to find out...

Where all the cool kids will be on Saturday - Code War!

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by: DavidThi808 @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 05:02:57 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

I'm just saying

She, like the rest of the legislature, did O.K. when it came to environmental policy. She wasn't some strong proponent of it though. She just road Ritter's coat tails.

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by: WinstonSmith @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 05:16:27 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

You mean rode the window of opportunity?

She hasn't exactly had a co-operative governor until Ritter, either - previous attempts that she had sponsored were vetoed by Owens.

Give her some credit for being primary sponsor on: an expansion of the energy efficiency program, the Colorado Clean Energy Fund, and the rural transmission line law this year.

"We're below sharks and contract killers." -- Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), speaking on Congress's 9% approval rating

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by: Phoenix Rising @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 05:47:30 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Absolutely

I think that as President of the Senate Joan deserves some credit for progress.  

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by: Miss Ive @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 07:47:58 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Oh my, you've really drunk the Kool Aid

The enviros are Joan's number two weakness, right behind the Iraq votes, in my opinion. Her tight connections to the oil and gas industry are so easy pickings I'm shocked neither Will nor Jared (well, OK, Jared, since Will's campaign appears to be a subsidiary of Joan's) have broached it yet.

It's always so much fun to watch a campaign between two heavyweights who loathe each other. Or in this case one (JFG) whose supporters loathe the other, who in turn doesn't seem to care one way or the other and just goes about his campaign.

If Joan is going to let her and her staff's personal feelings toward Jared color her strategy, she's finished. She won't even finish second.  

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by: BoulderDem @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 18:07:49 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

What Kool-aid

I said it above - point me to legislation that she's sponsored that's anti-enviro in favor of O&G and I'll take it in.  I'm willing to point out flaws on either side - in fact, I'm the one who initially made the comment about "tag-teaming" between JFG and Shafroth.

Since you're so non-partisan yourself, enlighten me...

"We're below sharks and contract killers." -- Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), speaking on Congress's 9% approval rating

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by: Phoenix Rising @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 21:32:44 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Its not just cranberg

its ed mcvaney and jack kemp as well.

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by: Danny the Red (hair) @ Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 23:47:47 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

I think this has extra kick for a reason

Cranberg is a voucher proponent, and Polis has written not negatively on vouchers for no less an organization than the Independence Institute.  Cranberg is known for his criteria of voucher support when donating, so it makes sense to ask these questions.

I guess if Joan has helped pass unreasonable pro-extraction bills through, then she deserves some heat, too.  I don't think her record will show that, though.

"We're below sharks and contract killers." -- Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), speaking on Congress's 9% approval rating

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by: Phoenix Rising @ Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 23:48:07 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

I'm not going to defend Joan

I support Shafroth.

But I do think Swift boaters are worse than the O&G

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by: Danny the Red (hair) @ Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 23:49:29 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

clearly I can't :)

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by: denverfun25 @ Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 23:24:24 PM UTC

If I had to choose,

btw owning the Iraq issue, which resonates #1 with actual voters or dishing out swift boat attacks to quiet my opponents trip to Iraq, I think I'd choose the former.

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by: NeilJackson @ Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 23:43:05 PM UTC

Owning

Hah. No wonder he is making mistakes with people like you working for him.

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by: WinstonSmith @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 00:39:49 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Owning is probably the wrong word.

Nevertheless, after you and everyone here have recovered from the constant tapping of the refresh button, boiling blood, and the frenzy the facts will remain the same; like someone here said, fundraising is often a namecalling game that the voters dont hear about, JP will have positioned himself as the leader on Iraq, and WS will be fighting to stay in the game.  

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by: NeilJackson @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 00:53:24 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Oh Iraq

That non-political humanitarian aid trip he went on to help the people in the Middle East Region.  

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by: denverfun25 @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 00:55:52 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Owning? Did he buy Iraq, like he bought his seat on the State Board of education?

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by: Danny the Red (hair) @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 03:05:22 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

I don't think he owns Iraq

But I do think the trip gives him very serious credibility on the issue and that's valuable.

I wrote a long post about the impact of the trip for JP at http://www.davidthielen.info/p...

Where all the cool kids will be on Saturday - Code War!

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by: DavidThi808 @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 05:04:52 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

I was just being a bit cheeky

I actually think it was a substantive trip and a net positive if he fully discloses the trip as a campaign expense.  

He is a little late to the party though, his 2006 boulder county survey indicated he didn't believe in withdrawal.  The first time he talked about leaving Iraq was this spring.

The Barron asked him for help on his anti mercenary lawsuit this summer--no dice.  The Barron to his credit doesn't let it bother him and is just glad Polis is waking to the mercenary problem now.

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by: Danny the Red (hair) @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 05:12:22 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Yeah Danny

Didn't you hear.  Over Thanksgiving he bought Iraq, installed Alex Cranberg as the secretary of Education/Interior and set up faith based charter schools all over the place that unfortunately no one can attend bc all the scholarships for kids have been denied by a traveling band of ruthless ethics reform lobbyists.

Shold we hand the race over to WS now?

ps. by the way, i will be finishing his website this afternoon at one of my many internet netroot startups/media relations compunds.  Should I fax u my FEC report and mail u a magnufying glass.

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by: NeilJackson @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 15:07:48 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

I apologize for that last comment, it was intended to be a little cheeky

I actually don't think Jared is that bad, he's done alot things that I support.

I just think he is unsuited to be a legislator, he is too easily distracted (he had a reputation for skipping state board meetings), he doesn't listen to anyone(which leads to disasters like A41), and he plays by his own rules (some of which border on the illegal).

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by: Danny the Red (hair) @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 18:11:55 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Danny, if you still want to see

.
info on my case,
please contact Stabilize_Iraq,
my email at the Yahoo dot com domain.  

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by: Barron X @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 18:43:57 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

I do I'll send an email right now

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by: Danny the Red (hair) @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 18:50:18 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

birds of a feather alex and jared

Jared Polis and Alex Cranberg both have trouble telling the truth.

They are the worst because they think that they are too smart to be caught in their lies.

Jared says he is for ethics in government. Yet he will not disclose what he spent on "lobbying" for changes in Amendment 41, who he paid and what he paid them to do?

Jared said he would not take money from lobbyists two weeks  after bragging that Colorado's top lobbyist Norm Brownstein
was supporting him.

Jared calls a Daily Camera article inaccurate one week after sending it out to supporters as an example of the great press he was getting.

Jared says he never supported vouchers when he clearly had supported vouchers.

Alex Cranberg similarly lies thinking he is too smart to get caught.

These are two spoiled rich kids who will say or do anything to get ahead. However, for both of them the lies just keep piling up and they keep getting caught in them

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by: non believer @ Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 23:49:48 PM UTC

JP the front runner?

assuming the only winning stragety for Will is to let JFG and JP beat each other up badly, then the polling must look terrible for Will and good for JP for him to be attacking him twice in one week.
JFG is the darling of special interest and sponsored a bill prasing Bush's leadership she will not win Boulder, period
It's going to be a long dirty primary-and all i know is that JFG will not be able to win the hearts of Boulderites praising Bush and taking oil and gas money. So the battleground moves to Adams

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by: bluehotmama @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 00:17:19 AM UTC

alex cranberg too insider baseball to hurt

i wouldn't know who he was except Danny brings his name up daily.

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by: bluehotmama @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 00:20:05 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

not daily, but often enough

vouchers are not even my main issue. there are pro voucher dems that I like.  I am much more concerned about him doing one thing and saying another like on A41.  His support of vouchers, but saying he doesn't, is just another example.

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by: Danny the Red (hair) @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 00:25:55 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

That's a bit of an impossibility

Unless you're somehow inside Jared's head. How exactly do you know that he "supports" something even though he says the opposite? Perhaps he did support a form of vouchers a few years ago. I think that's extremely questionable (and I'm an education guy so I know ... I remember the bill that Joan's got on her oppo research and I remember Jared's letter supporting it) but say he did. What exactly makes you put your statement in the present tense? By that argument, Joan supports President Bush's handling of the Iraq War, cuz, you know, she not only supported him, SHE CO-SPONSORED A BILL WITH JOHN ANDREWS SAYING SO.

If you support Joan, not sure you want to go there.

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by: BoulderDem @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 04:25:36 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

I don't support Joan. So I am free to go there.

If Jared said "I used to support vouchers, but I don't now"  I would shut up about this issue.

But pro-voucher people are giving him money now, so I assume they think he still supports vouchers.

So he was either lying to them then or lying to liberals now: or both.

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by: Danny the Red (hair) @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 04:32:13 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

She's been elevated to sponsor?

I thought she just voted for them.

"We're below sharks and contract killers." -- Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), speaking on Congress's 9% approval rating

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by: Phoenix Rising @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 00:22:49 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

No, she sponsored it

AND was the Democratic Leader (minority) at the time.

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by: BoulderDem @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 04:26:18 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Thank you.

Wish you would have provided bill numbers, though.  The bill in question was HJR03-1041.  

I wouldn't have written it or sponsored it knowing what I knew then, but if I hadn't been glued to the issue 24/7 at the time I probably would have signed it.  Apparently everyone else in the State Senate at the time agreed - you're bound to step on some toes making a big deal over it.

"We're below sharks and contract killers." -- Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), speaking on Congress's 9% approval rating

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by: Phoenix Rising @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 05:35:00 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Right

Do we want a leader in Congress that is willing to step on toes when it is unpopular, but the right thing...or not? Not everyone in the State Senate or House voted for this. If it really didn't mean anything (which I disagree with--contributing to the pro-war mood of the time had lots of meaning), then why not vote against it if you opposed the war?

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by: WinstonSmith @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 05:41:42 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Yes, everyone did.

The vote was 35-0 in the Senate, and by voice vote in the House for the resolution she "sponsored".  BTW, according to the Senate record, Fitz-Gerald added herself as a sponsor on the final reading; she wasn't a sponsor of the bill as it moved through the House or Senate.

I don't know this personally, but from her statement in response to Jared, it appears that she supported the resolution because she heard what everyone who wasn't plugged in to the anti-war movement heard: that Saddam wasn't co-operating and had WMDs.  Let's face it - inspectors did find a few (old) chemical weapon shells in 2003, Saddam could not in fact produce the documentation we requested (he didn't have it...), he was trying to save face by acting belligerent in front of the press, and the released version of the NIE said he was reconstituting his nuclear program.  Absent some healthy but time-consuming involvement, it was easy to believe what Bush was selling.

"We're below sharks and contract killers." -- Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), speaking on Congress's 9% approval rating

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by: Phoenix Rising @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 06:00:05 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

We must be talking about a different resolution

I'm thinking of the support Bush and the Iraq War resolution. You must be talking about the support our troops resolution. Right?

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by: WinstonSmith @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 19:45:58 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

I'm talking about the one she "sponsored"

Which is, as you guessed, the troop support resolution.

She didn't sponsor the other one, SJR03-016, which passed 33-2 in the Senate and 56-8 in the House.  Like the Congressional version, this resolution supported Bush "in cooperation with the United States Congress and the United Nations" for either disarming Saddam or removing him from power, and also supporting the troops.

The text and record are all online at the State Legislature's website.

"We're below sharks and contract killers." -- Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), speaking on Congress's 9% approval rating

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by: Phoenix Rising @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 21:41:14 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

hahah

Jared has developer, lobbyist money etc.. as well so he should shut up about this returning money crap. Considering if it wasn't for the swift boats we would have Kerry as Prez, I am going to say their money is worse than some oil money.

according to the reports in the DP and RMN
JFG received over $24,000 from Xcel and "tens of thousands from the oil and gas special interest"

I see that as more damaging than $6000 from three people who don't like Kerry.
by: Abraham Van Helsing @ Tue N

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by: denverfun25 @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 00:21:26 AM UTC

and I am waiting for...

The bloggers that Polis hired from Daily Kos and other blogs that tore apart the swift boat ads back in the day to start defending this one now. Anyone have an extra pair of flip flops?

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by: denverfun25 @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 00:22:55 AM UTC

Um, they're working for Polis now?

But if you want to expand it beyond political operatives and into the general blogging community, oo-one over at Kos has posted anything about the race beyond Jared's activities, AFAIK.

Unless the other campaigns get a reputable voice into that arena, Jared will continue owning it with no contest or controversy.  

"We're below sharks and contract killers." -- Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), speaking on Congress's 9% approval rating

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by: Phoenix Rising @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 00:28:57 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Polis hired jerome armstrong

so there won't be any organized opposition over at Kos on this one.

BTW Armstrong (or any of his affiliated companies) didn't show up in the FEC filings.  Is this another example of Jared not reporting campaign expenses as campaign expenses?

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by: Danny the Red (hair) @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 00:29:29 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

We should ask NeilJackson

"Suddenly, it may be cool to be American again" - William J. Kole

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by: Go Blue @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 03:05:41 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Admitted liar hired by pathological liar

Jerome Armstrong admitted to sending out e-mail filled with lies to tout worthless stocks. He was paid lots of money to do this.
The Securities and Exchange Commission shut him down and than he turned to politics to make money.

Now Jared Polis is paying Armstrong lots of money to send out e-mail filled with lies on his behalf.

Jared Polis just tells one lie after the other. Says he had taken lobbyist money when he had bragged about the support of lobbyists. Says he had never supported vouchers when he had worked with Cranberg and other right wingers to pass vouchers. Says he is going to Iraq on a humanitarian mission but did nothing humanitarian while there.

The problem is his lies are so blatant he just keeps getting caught in them.

One lie after the other. No wonder he hired Armstrong.

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by: non believer @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 17:57:45 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

according to the press release above

JFG is calling for money to be returned, not JP. She has oil & gas and lobbyist money.  I also received an email about an event / fundraiser she had at a Casino in Black Hawk.

So, from a voter's stand point, I would say neither should be returning money or they both should return all the money from anyone who is now or has ever been offensive to any policy or candidate in the Democratic Party.

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by: Abraham Van Helsing @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 00:30:46 AM UTC

I was referring to...

 Wanda's response to the DP article when it was brought up that he was taking swift boat money. Instead of denying it or answering the question she randomly brought up oil money and Joan. I think Wanda is swift boating the voters  once again.  

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by: denverfun25 @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 00:37:47 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Oh, come on!

You're implying that her visit to my county was a problem because she happened to hold it in the cafe of a casino?  Talk about partisan bullshit.

"We're below sharks and contract killers." -- Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), speaking on Congress's 9% approval rating

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by: Phoenix Rising @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 00:41:33 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

fun

Who doesn't love a casino event? Penny slots and policy discussions. Heaven.

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by: denverfun25 @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 00:46:05 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Hope you're pulling my chain

There's no penny slots in the cafe...

Casinos have the most available space in the county.  It's not available on weekends (I know, I've tried), but it's very convenient on weekday mornings like Joan's visit.  We used to hold our annual Party dinners at a casino restaurant because it was available and could hold the crowd; we still hold them at the same restaurant, but it's moved into Boulder County now (the Black Forest in Nederland - yes, we go out-county for our county party dinner...).  It is natural for people looking for space on that end of the county to think "casino".

"We're below sharks and contract killers." -- Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), speaking on Congress's 9% approval rating

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by: Phoenix Rising @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 00:59:32 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

I am joking...

I think its a fine place to have an event. It's hard finding spots that can hold a crowd. But get some penny slots! :)

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by: denverfun25 @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 01:04:18 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

return

"The Polis campaign could demand that she return her oil and gas money, but these kinds of political ploys are characteristic of her cynical approach to politics," James said.

So I am assuming that Wanda is demanding that her finance director return Alex Cranbergs donation since he is a Oil and Gas Executive and made his millions off drilling, oil, gas, etc... Stamps cost 41 cents and the Boulder Post Office is open M-F from 7:30 to 5:30.  

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by: denverfun25 @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 01:29:37 AM UTC

Public Financing

How about everybody returns all the money, and we find a better way to distribute the public airwaves?

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by: TakeBackTheHouse @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 04:20:37 AM UTC

Can we? Please?

I like the Senate public financing plan that was floated earlier this year: get a set number of mid-sized donations, use it to get a larger number of small donations, and the government kicks in once you get there.

This means candidates have to do the grassroots, but they don't have to spend their lives campaigning.

"We're below sharks and contract killers." -- Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), speaking on Congress's 9% approval rating

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by: Phoenix Rising @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 04:24:59 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Yes - please!

and it's an investment that pays for itself - they don't have to return favors with giant give-aways in legislation.

Where all the cool kids will be on Saturday - Code War!

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by: DavidThi808 @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 05:08:20 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

I'm with you there

Nice comment.

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by: BoulderDem @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 04:28:46 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Here's a picture of Polis at an Independence Institute event

Just for those out there who don't know what the independence intitute is about. they a right wing noise machine that creates "research" to support education policies that are a pro voucher and anti union.  Of course its not the only thing the II does, John Caldera is the president afterall.

http://www.i2i.org/main/page.p...

I couldn't post just the picture.  could someone tell me how to do it.

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by: Danny the Red (hair) @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 04:27:16 AM UTC

Looks like he's attending a forum

... as an elected official. Am I missing something?

OK, for all future Pols threads, I'm officially assuming you work for one of the campaigns ... Just kidding, but seriously how did you manage to come by that photo if not from someone's oppo research file?

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by: BoulderDem @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 04:31:20 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

I don't work for anyone.

I was a research analyst (structured finance, corprate Bonds, Munis, foriegns) for 10ish years.  Then I went to law school (more research).  So I have pretty good research skills.

someone mentioned something that Jared wrote for the II and I thought I would try and find it.  I found this first by googling "Polis independence institute" and I thought it was funny.  (BTW there are a lot of UGLY people at the II)

As to what was Jared doing there.  The Independence Institute is an interest group, you don't have to go if you don't want.  I wouldn't go to groups that are an ananthma to me.  The II and John Caldera fall in that category for me.  Apparantly Jared doesn't have a problem with there goals of privatizing education.

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by: Danny the Red (hair) @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 04:47:09 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Here's more on Jared and the Independence institute

this is from Evie Hudak's (CD-2 SBOE at the time) website

IMPLEMENTATION OF HB 1160 (My text in italics-- the voucher bill): There will be a small, technical assistance group of about 15 people to work out the mechanics of implementation, including representatives from the school districts involved, private schools that will participate, and a representative of parents who will probably participate in the program. Polis suggested that someone from the Independence Institute should be included. I (Evie) objected to this strongly.

I still can't find what he wrote for the independence

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by: Danny the Red (hair) @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 05:40:22 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Privatizing the USPS

You can find the whole story about that over at SquareState.
 

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by: TakeBackTheHouse @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 06:09:37 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Better Link

This Link will let you see the comments, including some by the candidate himself.

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by: TakeBackTheHouse @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 06:12:25 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Thanks very interesting

I don't spend (waste) a lot of time on other blogs, I waste enough here.

It was very interesting.

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by: Danny the Red (hair) @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 06:32:07 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

It's on the i2i website

The paper (PDF) is on privatizing the Postal Service (the only agency actually enshrined in the Constitution), and removing its monopoly.

I suppose your catch is what I get for not reading Evie's newsletter more often - I hadn't seen that.  BTW, Evie's still CD-2 SBOE...

"We're below sharks and contract killers." -- Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), speaking on Congress's 9% approval rating

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by: Phoenix Rising @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 06:10:58 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

here's the pic

The caption reads:

Jared Polis, Vice-Chairman of the Colorado State Board of Education, and Mary Lou O'Donnell, faithful Independence Institute friend and volunteer, paused to smile for our camera.

What I did was this:

First, I viewed the page source of the page you linked by going under the VIEW menu and down to PAGE SOURCE. This opens a window showing the HTML of the page.

Next, I searched for "Jared Polis" on the "Page source" window because that's part of the text under the photo.

Next, I copied this bit of HTML that appeared before the words "Jared Polis": [img src="/images/Polis_ODonnell.jpg" /]
(NOTE: It isn't actually within brackets [] as I pasted here, but rather "less than" and "greater than" symbols <>. If I had not changed the < to [ and the > to ] you wouldn't be able to see it. The <> designate HTML code.)

Then I copied the "http://www.i2i.org" into the code so that the image source HTML reads in full "http://www.i2i.org/images/Polis_ODonnell.jpg" (but  within the <> ).

I hope that's not too confusing. But if it is, everything I learned about HTML (which is really, really limited) I found by searching for HTML tutorials online. They can explain this better to someone who wants to learn this stuff.

"Thank you for putting your rank political motives on display." - ArapaGOP

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by: Aristotle @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 06:36:09 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Thanks for the help

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by: Danny the Red (hair) @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 06:50:04 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Just something for you...

You can use &lt; and &gt; to include left and right angle-brackets (less-than and greater-than signs) without having them interpreted:

<img src="/images/Polis_ODonnell.jpg" />

Here's a list of HTML "entities" that covers some of the symbols you might not be able to express in regular HTML...

"We're below sharks and contract killers." -- Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), speaking on Congress's 9% approval rating

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by: Phoenix Rising @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 06:56:45 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Awesome!!!

Okay, that's maybe too enthusiastic but I've wondered how to do that for a while... Find the answer wasn't easy.

"Thank you for putting your rank political motives on display." - ArapaGOP

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by: Aristotle @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 06:59:13 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

(and a side-note...)

Fortunately for you, the Soapblox code tries to interpret what you're writing - otherwise your post above would have "eaten" a section of what you were writing - you have an open <, but the close only comes when you use '<>'...

BTW - I notice that I can't specify a style for my paragraph tags any more...  I had to use a list tag with no list items in order to indent. :(

"We're below sharks and contract killers." -- Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), speaking on Congress's 9% approval rating

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by: Phoenix Rising @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 07:07:03 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

What!!

I never leave open tags!!

On a more serious note, I don't see what you're talking about, but I'm glad that Soapblox didn't screw me over. But I've learned the hard way to always preview when I use HTML so as not to embarrass myself...

"Thank you for putting your rank political motives on display." - ArapaGOP

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by: Aristotle @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 16:54:26 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

and of course...

the new system makes us preview before we can post anyway....

"Thank you for putting your rank political motives on display." - ArapaGOP

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by: Aristotle @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 16:55:04 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

We're not allowed to talk to the other side???

I think reaching out to those you disagree with to find common ground is a good thing. If we all stop talking to each other our political system will not work.

It's why people reach across and what the results are that matter. And those both matter a lot. But please, let's not ding people for talking to those they don't agree with.

- dave

Where all the cool kids will be on Saturday - Code War!

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by: DavidThi808 @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 20:54:26 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

In general I agree.

but Jared has tried to diminsh his ties to the Independence Institute and the pro voucher folks.

but he goes to their events, writes op ed's in support of their positions, and takes money from their supporters. At what point does it change from just reaching across the divide to supporting their goals?

I have often said we should acknowledge when we agree with our opponents, If he agrees with the independence institute he should say that clearly.  I am a supporter of charter schools, so is the II, but that's all we agree on when it comes to education.  

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by: Danny the Red (hair) @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 21:01:58 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

And that is a valid question

I agree with a couple of the II positions too. But I've always found Caldera to be a blowhard and therefore I personally would not be going over there any more than absolutely necessary.

With that said, I'm a lot more concerned on where JP sits on these issues than who he had lunch with once or twice.

- dave

Where all the cool kids will be on Saturday - Code War!

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by: DavidThi808 @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 22:16:34 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

You know I've been thinking

I've gotten a little too much into hyperbole.  All the paid Jared people make it kind of fun to slap the guy around.

realistically I think Jared used to support vouchers, but doesn't anymore.  There is clear evidence to support this view, but I could be wrong.

On A41 I think he was looking for an issue to run on so he forced it onto the ballot even though he had been told it was poorly written.  

On Iraq, I think he opposed the war from the start, but that he kept his mouth shut to not damage moderates, like salazar.  I believe this because Jared gave money to Dean in march 2003.  I know I maxed out to Dean largely because of his war stance.

I think Jared is smart and creative, but he lacks discipline, doesn't listen to others, and is bored easily.  I don't think he is well suited to being a legislator.

But his shills have pulled me into a stance that does not accurately reflect my actual feelings about Jared.  He has done many great things for colorado and the democratic party, and I would be satisified if he went to washington.  I just think 1. he needs to cop to his mistakes 2. be honest about his evolving position, but realistically I don't think he is going to like being a congressman: its not his kind of work environment.

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by: Danny the Red (hair) @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 22:46:19 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Really good points

I could quibble on some details but I think your main points are spot-on. But with one significant caveat - the question is not would he like being a congressman - it's would we get good value out of him as a congressman.

Where all the cool kids will be on Saturday - Code War!

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by: DavidThi808 @ Thu Nov 29, 2007 at 03:21:04 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

comment

I think the Polis Campaign had no idea how bad this would look. I see no responses from them. Must be they agree that taking Swift Boat Money from a pro-voucher person is pretty ridiculous.   You can take money from people/supporters you don't agree with all the time, but taking money from someone who funded one of the slimiest front groups ever attacking a fellow Democrat, thats screwed up and he should be ashamed. John Kerry also has given hundreds of thousands of dollars to Democrats to help them get elected. Cross Jared Polis off that list.I hope Kerry puts something up on his website saying funnel money towards Joan or Will to denounce Dems taking money from these slime balls. Do it Kerry!  

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by: denverfun25 @ Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 23:31:01 PM UTC

is Jared a closet Reaganomist?

   As many of you know, I don't live C.D. 2 so I don't have to choose btw. JFG and JP. I know both and either would make a great U.S. Rep.  I take issue when Joan is attacked as a tired, old party hack (she isn't any of those), or Jared is attacked for not being "out of closet" enough (whatever the hell that means).
  But I have to start wondering about some of Jared's supporters. I'm not talking about an isolated Swift Boater writing a check and not recalling why, or Alex Cranberg (who seems to put his tentacles everywhere).  
  I'm more concerned about Arthur Laffer, the inventor of the "Laffer Curve" which is the theoretical foundation for that which Daddy Bush once label "voodoo economics."
  Jared, what gives?  

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by: One Queer Dude @ Thu Nov 29, 2007 at 15:07:27 PM UTC