June 17, 2015 11:17 AM UTC

Get More Smarter on Wednesday (June 17)

• 2 Comments
• by: Colorado Pols

Cynthia Coffman would like to have a meeting with you? Better come up with a quick excuse. 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…

► Truth is often stranger than fiction, because there are some stories you just can’t make up any better. The soap opera craziness engulfing the Colorado Republican Party is a perfect example. If you missed the story yesterday, click here to get caught up. Every media outlet in Colorado is also covering the story, including the Denver Post and 9News.

► State GOP Chair Steve House may have survived an attempted coup, but this is not going to end well for Attorney General Cynthia Coffman. She had been considered a rising star in the Republican Party after her 2014 election as Attorney General, but Coffman’s political career is unquestionably over now. The question now is whether or not she even makes it through her term as Attorney General.

► It has been a bad couple of days all around for the Coffman family. Cynthia’s husband, Rep. Mike Coffman, continues to take heat for comparing the Veterans Administration to ISIS. Don’t forget the context here — we’re talking about the same Mike Coffman who represents CD-6 (the home of the troubled hospital project) and also serves as the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations for the House Veterans Affairs Committee.

Get even more smarter after the jump…

IN CASE YOU ARE STANDING NEAR A WATER COOLER…

► Colorado Conservation released its legislative scorecard for 2015. Joey Bunch has more for the Denver Post, or you can read a post here on Colorado Pols from the conservation group.

► Republican Presidential candidates are sprouting like Gremlins. Perhaps one of them will figure out how to talk about immigration without falling on their face. From “The Fix“:

But for me, the lowest moment for Romney — and one that signaled the broader problems facing the Republican party in that election and the one to come — was his awkward and politically tone-deaf answer when asked during a Florida debate to explain his immigration position.

“The answer is self deportation, which is people decide they can do better by going home than they can do here,” Romney said, a comment that — even in the moment — drew laughs from the crowd.  It was clear what Romney was up to: Afraid of being labeled a moderate on immigration (and other) issues, he adopted an entirely indefensible position that not only didn’t help him in the primary but, without question, hurt him in the general election.

Now, one of the senior staffers on Romney’s race, deputy campaign manager Katie Packer Gage, is telling Republicans that to repeat the mistakes of her candidate could have disastrous implications in the 2016 general election.

► A bipartisan group of politicos are trying to figure out how to improve the Presidential debates — or get rid of them altogether. 

► The Mayor of South Bend, Indiana is coming out as a gay man. Yeah, in Indiana.

► Colorado Secretary of State Wayne Williams is continuing a tradition pushed by previous Republicans who held that office: He wants to solve a voting problem that doesn’t exist. From the Grand Junction Sentinel:

Although there was never any evidence that it happened, the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office is considering a new rule designed to prevent so-called ballot harvesting in future elections.

The proposed rule calls for county clerks to include a new line on the envelopes voters use to return their mail ballots, one that would ask for the name and address of any person collecting them to be turned in…

…Mesa County Clerk Sheila Reiner, however, says the whole idea is completely unenforceable and should be dropped from the proposed rule changes.

Reiner said the proposed rule could place unnecessary costs on county clerks, all for something that isn’t happening anyway.

Why you’re at it, Wayne, you should investigate rumors that Bigfoot voted in the 2014 election.

► Rich famous person Donald Trump says he’s running for President. This is terrible news for Republicans.

OTHER LINKS YOU SHOULD CLICK

► State Rep. Jessie Danielson (D-Wheat Ridge) is getting married on Saturday to political consultant Andy Kabza. House Speaker Dickie Lee Hullinghorst will officiate.

► There goes that talking point. A new study shows that legalizing marijuana does not lead to increased marijuana consumption among teenagers.

► The Colorado Springs Independent takes a closer look at the decision by the Colorado Springs City Council to move forward with an ethics complaint against Council Member Helen Collins:

Helen Collins is accused by the City Attorney’s Office of “waste, fraud, abuse and corruption in government,” creating the appearance she violated the law or ethical standards, and creating the appearance of impropriety.

The charges stem from Collins’ agreeing in December to accept temporary ownership of a condominium owned by Douglas Bruce, helping him dodge a $7,600 city lien, though the lien had not yet been filed when the transfer occurred. Collins then sold the property to a third-party buyer and gave Bruce the proceeds.

Although five other city elected officials have been accused of ethics breaches since an ethics code and procedures were enacted in 2007, Collins is the first to be charged.

Collins apparently made one of the most preventable mistakes in Colorado politics: Getting involved with Doug Bruce.

ICYMI

► The Golden State Warriors are the 2014-15 NBA champions, the first franchise title in 40 years. Cleveland is still Cleveland.

► Pope fight!

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