March 30, 2015 12:31 PM UTC

Get More Smarter on Monday (March 30)

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• by: Colorado Pols

Your NCAA Tourney bracket is officially worthless. It’s time to 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…

► The “Long Bill” will begin to suck up all the oxygen out of the State Capitol this week. The Associated Press previews the arguments and decimal points. The Senate is expected to vote on the budget by Thursday before passing it along to the House. John Frank of the Denver Post has more on the budget battle.

► Aurora City Manager Skip Noe needs to make a good impression in a closed-door meeting with the Aurora City Council today.

► Indiana Republicans are working on legislation to clarify previously-approved legislation that would make it easier for businesses to discriminate against gay, lesbian, and transgendered people. Republican Gov. Mike Pence signed the original bill, and he swears he actually read the language first.

Get even more smarter after the jump…

SHOULD YOU FIND YOURSELF STANDING NEAR A WATER COOLER…

► One person is dead and two more injured after an unauthorized vehicle tried to break through the outside gates at the National Security Agency (NSA) headquarters in Ft. Meade, Maryland. 

► Colorado Attorney General Cynthia Coffman is defending Colorado over lawsuits brought forth by the states of Nebraska and Oklahoma. Both Nebraska and Oklahoma are mad that Colorado voters legalized marijuana, which they claim has led to an increase in drug trafficking in their states. Look, it’s not our fault that people need drugs in order to make life more interesting in Nebraska and Oklahoma.   

► Republican Rep. Gordon “Dr. Chaps” Klingenschmitt has a new target in his sights: 9News reporter Brandon Rittiman.

Well, this is certainly a first in my time covering #COleg: pic.twitter.com/qlddhIpRSL

— Brandon Rittiman (@BrandonRittiman) March 30, 2015

► Speaking of “Dr. Chaps,” fallout continues from his asinine comments regarding a vicious crime in Longmont.

► Elizabeth Warren for President? The calls are growing louder.

OTHER LINKS YOU SHOULD CLICK

► Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley took a swipe at 2016 Presidential frontrunners Hillary Clinton and Jeb Bush on Sunday, but how much further is O’Malley willing to go in his rhetoric?

► Comedian Trevor Noah will succeed Jon Stewart as host of The Daily Show.

► What in the hell is going on in Missouri?

ICYMI

► Former Fox 31 reporter Eli Stokols reflects on his time in Colorado as he prepares to begin a new job covering national politics for Politico.

► Are we entering a new era of televangelism, with politicians such as Sen. Ted Cruz playing the role of Jim Bakker?

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