May 01, 2015 11:09 AM UTC

Get More Smarter on Friday (May 1)

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• by: Colorado Pols

May Day! May Day! 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…

► So, Thursday was a weird day. There was an Ultrasound Bus outside the State Capitol, lots of terribly insensitive things were said in a Senate Committee hearing over the surprise abortion bill (SB-285), and in a move nobody saw coming, Senator Tim Neville’s last-minute legislation failed to even make it out of committee. Check out the Durango Herald for a good summary of yesterday’s events.

 ► Oversight on the VA Hospital construction in Aurora was virtually nonexistent, according to a new report. Let us remind you, again, that Rep. Mike Coffman (R-Aurora) is the CHAIR OF THE OVERSIGHT AND INVESTIGATIONS SUBCOMMITTEE for the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee.

► Six Baltimore police officers are being charged in the death of Freddie Gray, which prosecutors have ruled a homicide. Gray’s death was the prime spark that kicked off riots and violence in Baltimore.

Get even more smarter after the jump…

SHOULD YOU FIND YOURSELF STANDING NEAR A WATER COOLER…

► Congressional Republicans came up with a completely implausible plan for the federal budget, and Democratic Rep. Ed Perlmutter is among those who are displeased with the effort. Here’s Perlmutter in a press release following the budget announcement:

“I didn’t think the Republican budget could get any worse but it has.  After weeks of closed-door negotiations, the Republicans have emerged with a Budget Conference Report that includes $5 trillion in cuts to fundamental programs important to Coloradans and Americans. Programs such as Medicare will no longer exist in its current form along with other programs to help hardworking families buy a house, pay for college, and save for retirement.”

Oh, and the budget plan also includes trying to get rid of Obamacare. Again.

► The first week of the Aurora Theater Shooting trial wrapped up yesterday.

► Denver voters have until 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, May 5 to return their ballots for the Denver municipal election. If you haven’t voted yet, here’s a Q&A of the candidates from the Denver Post.

► D’oh! An advisor to State House Speaker Dickie Lee Hullinghorst left the Capitol yesterday when she learned that it’s probably not legal for her to work in the legislature while also running for State Senate. As Peter Marcus of the Durango Herald reports, Jenise May appears to have been taken by surprise over the rule:

► Politico’s Eli Stokols writes about how Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul really blew it on Baltimore:

On Tuesday, as Baltimore burned in the wake of the latest episode surrounding the alleged use of deadly excessive force, Paul’s response was notably off-key.

“I came through the train on Baltimore last night,” Paul told host Laura Ingraham. “I’m glad the train didn’t stop.”

The senator’s breezy response came just before he blamed the violent uprising there on “the breakdown of the family structure, the lack of fathers, the lack of sort of a moral code in our society.” He also expressed his sympathy for “the plight of police,” all without speaking to the circumstances surrounding the troubling death of Freddie Gray in the custody of Baltimore Police.

Ugh.