August 10, 2016 10:27 AM UTC

Get More Smarter on Wednesday (August 10)

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• by: Colorado Pols

Never look a bear in the eyes…or Michael Phelps. 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). If you are more of a visual learner, check out The Get More Smarter Show.

TOP OF MIND TODAY…

► Critics across the country are aghast at Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump’s latest controversy. Speaking at a campaign event in North Carolina, Trump all but suggested that someone should assassinate Hillary Clinton or potential Supreme Court nominees if Clinton ends up winning the race for President. As the Washington Post reports, Trump’s increasingly-controversial rhetoric is starting to wear on the American public:

But Trump’s rhetorical asides appear to be taking a toll among the electorate overall. Many voters find his remarks distasteful, even given his explanations. The possibility that he was joking or being sarcastic, or that he meant something other than what some people heard, doesn’t alter the growing view that Trump is reckless with his words.

Each day brings new polls showing the Republican nominee lagging Clinton nationally and in several key battleground states. The surveys show widespread uncertainty about whether Trump has the temperament to serve as president — a doubt that his ever-replenishing supply of rhetoric continues to feed.

“Don’t treat this as a political misstep,” tweeted Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), a Clinton supporter and a staunch gun-control advocate. “It’s an assassination threat, seriously upping the possibility of a national tragedy & crisis.”

ProgressNow Colorado wonders what Trump would need to do to finally convince Colorado Republicans to say they will not vote for him this fall. You probably won’t be too surprised to learn that NO COLORADO REPUBLICAN POLITICIAN has responded to Trump’s suggestions of violence. Around the country, Republican officials are struggling to explain Trump’s latest — and most dangerous — rhetorical bomb.

Elsewhere, The New York Daily News calls on Trump to drop out of the Presidential race in a front-page story. Former Republican Congressman and TV personality Joe Scarborough says its time for the GOP to drop Trump. One former Republican Senator is pushing for Trump to be removed from the GOP ticket through formal Party channels.

► CNN is keeping track of Republican elected officials who have disavowed Trump and indicated they will not vote for His Hairness this fall. The list is at 87 names and growing.

► According to Kimberly Railey of the National Journal, an internal memo from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) shows polling numbers that have Democrat Hillary Clinton beating Donald Trump by 14 points in CO-6. If these numbers are anywhere close to accurate, it means that Rep. Mike Coffman (R-Aurora) probably cannot win re-election in CO-6.

Get even more smarter after the jump…

IN CASE YOU ARE STANDING NEAR A WATER COOLER…

► Senate Republicans are clinging to hope in the form of new poll numbers that at least hint to the idea that they might be able to keep their majority intact. From the Washington Post:

There’s a magic number – different in each state – at which the Republican incumbent can afford for Trump to lose his or her state. If Trump loses by any more than that, the senator will lose too. If The Donald’s support proves as durable as The Post’s latest national poll suggests (see Monday’s 202) then some vulnerable members could probably find a way to survive.

The downside of this equation is the fact that American voters don’t normally split their tickets in the manner in which Republicans might hope:

In only one presidential election since 1960 have more than 10 percent of voters cast votes for the Democrat in the presidential race and the Republican in the congressional race. That was 1996, when many Republicans ditched Bob Dole in the final weeks and said their Democratic rivals would give Bill Clinton “a blank check.” Even then, only 13 percent supported Clinton and a Republican.

Republican operatives love to talk about how Dean Heller won in Nevada even as Mitt Romney lost the state by 6.5 points. That really is the exception more than the rule, and Heller – appointed to the seat — won by just 12,000 votes against a deeply-flawed Democrat.

► As Politico reports today, the Republican National Committee is having a hard time holding on to staffers who are fed up with the GOP’s support of Trump.

► Remember when Donald Trump was trapped in a Colorado Springs elevator earlier this month? As Denver7 reports, Trump’s own campaign was to blame:

Internal emails obtained by Denver7 reveal how Republican Presidential nominee Donald Trump got stuck in an elevator during his visit to Colorado Springs.

The emails also show the fire department spelled out the capacity limits in a memo, days before Trump took a jab at the fire department for keeping some supporters out of his campaign event at the University of Colorado – Colorado Springs (UCCS.)…

…When Trump arrived at the rally, he criticized the Fire Marshal for limiting the number of people inside the rally.

“We have thousands of beautiful, wonderful, great people outside, and we have in the room next door over 1,000 people. They won’t let them in. And the reason they won’t let them in is because they don’t know what the hell they’re doing,” said Trump at the rally.

The emails we reviewed tell a different story.

The entire story is worth a read, if nothing else so you can get the full background explaining this final paragraph:

A Trump spokesperson said they had no comment on this aspect either, saying the campaign is not interested in keeping this story alive.

There are plenty of lessons to be learned here. First and foremost: Don’t yell at fire marshals.

► Republican Senate candidate Darryl Glenn is taking criticism for his opposition to wind and solar tax credits that have helped to create significant job growth in Colorado.

► House Speaker Paul Ryan had no trouble winning a Primary in Wisconsin, despite boisterous claims from Donald Trump supporters (and Sarah Palin) that Ryan was going to lose to political newcomer Paul Nehlen. Ryan captured 84% of the vote in Tuesday’s Primary.

► Several new laws take effect in Colorado today, including rain barrels! Joey Bunch has more for the Denver Post:

Colorado House Democrats are touting a number of the caucus’ bills that take effect Wednesday that promote getting a job, doing a job while pregnant and buying a first home.

In all, 155 Colorado laws take effect Wednesday, which is the 90th day after the end of the legislative session on May 11.

► Were you among those Colorado voters who didn’t have much to choose from in the June Primary? You won’t have that problem this fall, when as many as 11 statewide initiatives could appear on your General Election ballot.

► The Colorado Springs Independent examines the strangely-predictable voting patterns in HD-17 in Southeast Colorado Springs.

OTHER LINKS YOU SHOULD CLICK

► Still not convinced that Climate Change and Global Warming are real? Perhaps you should take a trip to the Middle East, where it’s so hot you could fry an egg on top of another egg.

► Perhaps the most ambitious company investigating oil shale extraction in Western Colorado is throwing in the towel. American Shale Oil has finally realized that squeezing oil out of rocks isn’t particularly feasible.

ICYMI

► Once again, Colorado Springs residents learn the hard way that cutting taxes and spending doesn’t actually work all that well in practice.

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