July 13, 2015 11:52 AM UTC

Get More Smarter on Monday (July 13)

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• by: Colorado Pols

The Colorado Rockies will have three players in Tuesday’s Major League Baseball All-Star Game, which is weird considering that Colorado is one of the 3-5 worst teams in the sport. Let’s Get More Smarter with Colorado Pols! If you think we missed something important, please include the link in the comments below (here’s a good example).

TOP OF MIND TODAY…

► Ace reporter Lynn Bartels of the Denver Post takes a deeper dive into Coffmangate and the political ramifications of the still-unfolding scandal:

Extortion. Blackmail. Infidelity. Incompetence. Defamation of character. The soap opera surrounding Steve House, the newly elected chairman of the Colorado Republican Party, exploded in mid-June but appeared to fizzle when the GOP executive committee voted 22-1 in support of House on June 26 after a marathon closed-door session.

The bigger question is the impact on the career of Colorado Attorney General Cynthia Coffman and whether any fallout affects her husband, U.S. Rep. Mike Coffman of Aurora, who now faces a formidable challenge from Democratic state Sen. Morgan Carroll.

Click here for more background on the Coffmangate scandal.

► Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, who was born in Colorado Springs, officially announced on Monday that he will seek the Republican Presidential nomination in 2016. Walker has placed a premium on performing well in Iowa, the first state in the long march of the nominating process. For those of you counting at home, Walker is the 15th prominent Republican to enter the field for President. 

Get even more smarter after the jump…

IN CASE YOU ARE STANDING NEAR A WATER COOLER…

► Colorado House Democrats have selected their legislative leaders for the 2016 House Majority Project. State Reps. Dominick Moreno, KC Becker, Mike Foote, and Alec Garnett will take on key roles in the effort to maintain and grow a Democratic majority in the State House.

► Former Congressman Tom Tancredo is a big fan of Donald Trump, because, of course he is.

► Legislation intended to speed the process of medical research, sponsored by Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Denver), had no trouble making it through the U.S. House of Representatives. As Ed Sealover reports for the Denver Business Journal:

Congress approved the measure by a vote of 344 to 77. After several years in development and debate in the House, it now must pass the Senate.

The bill increases research grant funding by nearly $10 billion over the next five years. It also creates a centralized data registry of clinical trials that researchers can tap in their experiments, sets up a single review board to examine the efficacy of trials and take the burden off of universities to do it individually and allows for further use of personalized medicine that some officials believe holds the key to treating diseases.

Opponents criticized the bill as undermining federal safety regulations on drug and device development and as being intrusive on patients’ privacy. But those arguments lost out to support for the bill from some 700 organizations, ranging from universities to research centers to disease-advocacy groups.

► Dan Elliott of the Associated Press takes a look at the likelihood of fracking-related ballot measures in 2016.

► Speaking of ballot measures, a plan to eliminate Daylight Savings Time in Colorado will probably not live past August 26, the deadline for supporters to submit petition signatures for the proposed measure. 

► Congress may institute changes to its reimbursement guidelines in the aftermath of former Illinois Rep. Aaron Schock’s taxpayer-funded spending spree. 

► Closing arguments in the Aurora Theater Shooting trial will begin on Tuesday. The jury could begin deliberations by the end of this week.

OTHER LINKS YOU SHOULD CLICK

► Greek leaders have reportedly figured out a plan to accept another European bailout of the indebted country. 

► Surprise! It appears that an effort to allow marijuana users to carry concealed weapons will not make it on the 2015 ballot.

► Toll lanes on U.S. 36 will begin operating on July 22.

ICYMI

► The Aurora Sentinel is tired of hearing about Nancy Pelosi every time a Democrat runs for office.

► Republican Presidential candidate and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush continues to take heat for his “Laziness Dogma.“

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