Have a Good Friday. For that matter, have a good Saturday and Sunday, too. It’s time to Get More Smarter! If you think we missed something important, please include the link in the comments below (here’s a good example). If you are more of a visual learner, check out The Get More Smarter Show.
► Congressman Mike Coffman (R-Aurora) has been all over the news in the last few days following a town hall meeting earlier this week that did not go particularly well for the longtime Republican politician. On Thursday, Coffman made some interesting statements in an interview with Kyle Clark of 9News that included a sharp rebuke to Republicans who continue to complain — with no evidence — about “fake protestors” badgering Members of Congress. Here’s the relevant excerpt:
CLARK: Do you think they’re ‘fake protesters?’
COFFMAN: You know, I really don’t. You know, God bless the Republican Party for what it does, but I don’t–the fact is that they had to register for the event because we wanted to make sure that the people were from the district. And so, ah, uh, I thought it was a great event, I thought it was very lively, uh, I thought, I felt they were very committed, uh, to their issues, uh granted the audience leans left relative to the district, but they’re the people who are most concerned. With potential changes, mostly to Medicaid. And so I respect the fact that, you know that they were there, they were voicing their views, and they were not shy about it…
…I mean the fact is that, I think that the reality is, that sure there are some organizers there. But the vast majority of these people are simply committed activists in their own right. Uh, and they are not paid. They are simply, this is where their heart is. And I respect that.
Coffman’s answer here is not only a rebuke to the hysterical nonsense coming from partisan Republicans, but a sharp blow to Sen. Cory Gardner (R-Yuma) as well. Gardner has been trying to months to make the argument that people who are disappointed with his actions are “fake” or “paid” protestors, and Coffman’s words make this a difficult narrative to continue.
► Not all is well for Rep. Coffman, who is still getting poor reviews for his ham-handed town-hall event on Wednesday.
► As for Gardner, he is meeting today with employees of CoBank in Greenwood Village. It’s sorta like a town-hall meeting, except that you can’t come. Gardner took a tour of Devils Canyon in Western Colorado on Wednesday; he’ll go anywhere so long as he isn’t likely to run into actual constituents.
Get even more smarter after the jump…
► Congressman Doug Lamborn (R-Colorado Springs) indicates that he would likely support any proposed legislation that sought to eliminate the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) altogether.
Meanwhile, EPA head Scott Pruitt wants to withdraw the United States from the Paris climate agreement.
► Donald Trump has come to the realization that being President is actually a pretty difficult job.
► The Denver Business Journal has a great update on business-related legislation at the State Capitol through the first three months of the legislative session.
► Congressional Republicans and President Trump say that they are still committed to arguing about proposals to gut Obamacare. As the Colorado Statesman reports, that’s not good news for Colorado:
A new report on the House Republican American Health Care Act finds the plan would leave $15 billion in Medicaid costs for Colorado to pay, end the Obamacare Medicaid expansion and likely leave more than 420,000 residents without health care coverage.
The bleak findings of the progressive Center on Budget and Policy Priorities are shocking but not surprising. The organization seeks to move budget debate toward policies that reduce poverty and inequality — and the Republican plan has been critiqued widely for slashing program and funding cuts that would eliminate health coverage for millions of Americans — many of them children and many more of them rural elderly people who backed Trump for president.
► President Trump doesn’t know jack shit about history, and apparently neither do many of his top staffers. From the Washington Post:
…the fact our president needed an introductory tutorial on Sino-Korean relations to understand how hard it is to contain Pyongyang is just the latest illustration of one of his blind spots: He and his inner-circle have very little sense of history.
— It is a cliché, but there is truth to it: Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.
Check out the Washington Post story for a sample of some of Trump’s silly gaffes related to his ignorance of American (and world) history.
► Congressman Ken Buck (R-Greeley) wants you to buy his book about “draining the swamp” in Washington D.C., so he’s spilling the beans on the connection between raising money and earning a spot on top Congressional Committees.
► Congressman Jared Polis (D-Boulderish) is in the midst of a district tour focused on public education needs.
► DaVita CEO Kent Thiry has long been threatening to run for Governor in 2018. According to the Colorado Springs Gazette, Thiry only recently even bothered to affiliate with the Republican Party.
► The Colorado Independent tries to flush out more information on potential candidates for Congress in CD-7.
► Colorado lawmakers again axed a bill intended to make it more difficult for women to get an abortion.
► Would President Trump really fire his chief strategist, Steve Bannon? It’s possible…and it could lead to a messy game of revenge.
Don’t forget to check out The Get More Smarter Show. You can also Get More Smarter by liking Colorado Pols on Facebook!
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Looks like Libby Szabo's name came up. If she wins, do we have to buy her another car?