February 03, 2011 06:57 PM UTC

Tipton: Making Southern Colorado Awfully Nervous

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• by: Colorado Pols

As the Pueblo Chieftain’s Patrick Malone reports:

House Minority Leader Sal Pace, D-Pueblo, quizzed Tipton on federal support for the Arkansas Valley Conduit and asked the congressman whether he supports a “permanent ban” on Pinon Canyon expansion…

Tipton said he has a meeting scheduled soon with the secretary of the Army, and Pinon Canyon is certain to be a topic. He said expansion of the maneuver site is not imminent.

“They have no money to make any purchases,” he said, referring to Congress’ action not to fund any proposed expansion of the site by the Army.

However, Tipton told Pace that could change in the future.

“Circumstances may change down the road in the national interest,” he said. “So, your word ‘permanent’ may be a little too strict.” [Pols emphasis]

…”I disagree with him,” Pace said. “I think we need a permanent ban on Army expansion at Pinon Canyon. I was disappointed that he was so dismissive about some of the concerns in Southeastern Colorado. We have a new congressman, and I guess he has new priorities.”

Who knows? Perhaps military-heavy Colorado Springs will get redistricted into Scott Tipton’s CD-3, and Pueblo and the southeast quarter of the state will get redistricted out. That’s about the only scenario in which Tipton temporizing on the expansion of the Pinon Canyon Maneuver Site could possibly be a political benefit in 2012. We’ve said before that the issue of Pinon Canyon’s expansion does not unify Republicans; in fact the issue pits two traditional GOP constituencies, pro-military and pro-property rights, against one another.

Heck, even Marilyn Musgrave had the sense to avoid this proverbial minefield.