September 10, 2009 06:30 PM UTC

Sentinel Editorial Board Has a Little Criticism for Everybody

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• by: Colorado Pols

Regarding the recent flap over Sen. Shawn Mitchell’s unseemly remarks about Sen. Morgan Carroll in a public hearing, extended by liberals to include Minority Leader/gubernatorial candidate Josh Penry, the Grand Junction Sentinel weighs in with what we have to admit is a pretty even smack at all parties–but who comes out looking worse?

A liberal activist group has demanded an apology from Grand Junction Republican Sen. Josh Penry because another Republican state senator made an admittedly boorish remark in a public hearing.

But Penry did himself no favor when he attempted to turn this dubious attack on him into an opportunity to rage against Gov. Bill Ritter over high taxes and new gas rules.

It’s more than a little disingenuous for ProgressNow board member Gail Schoettler to try to hold Penry responsible for comments made by members of the Senate Republican Caucus. True, Penry is the Senate minority leader, and nominal head of his party in the upper chamber. But all elected officials, state senators included, must answer first to constituents. Nobody checks with the minority leader before making a bad joke…

But then Penry demanded that Schoettler apologize for “Ritter’s massive car tax increase” and other Ritter political acts with which Penry disagrees. That lightning-quick attempt to turn the issue against an opponent who was not involved in any way reeked of political opportunism.

Voters can expect more of this, as Penry and other Republicans work to unseat Ritter in next year’s election.

We think they might be letting Penry off the hook a little in terms of responsibility for oversight of his caucus, we’d say after his abysmal performance this legislative session handling gaffes from his titular subordinates it’s a fair and recurring point of criticism. The Sentinel certainly doesn’t excuse Mitchell though, whose comments were, in their words, “inappropriate, caddish and stupid.”

But the Sentinel is dead-on that Penry’s quick stab at a snarky comeback was based on apples-to-oranges hogwash, if anything he helped legitimize former Lt. Gov. Gail Schoettler’s criticism by using the same “dubious” premise she hit him with to respond. In short, too clever by half from Penry once again–Gail Schoettler isn’t running for office.