August 11, 2016 10:12 AM UTC

Get More Smarter on Thursday (August 11)

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• by: Colorado Pols

Is it possible that Donald Trump and Darryl Glenn joined forces to create the ZIKA virus? Some people might be saying that. 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…

► Crickets.

This has been the standard response from Colorado Republicans to anything Donald Trump says, and the Colorado media is starting to really pay attention to the silence. From Brandon Rittiman at 9News:

Ranking members of the GOP in Colorado stayed largely silent on Donald Trump’s latest controversial statement, which some have taken as an incitement of violence against Democratic rival Hillary Clinton.

“Hillary wants to abolish, essentially abolish the Second Amendment,” Trump said at a Tuesday rally. “By the way, and if she gets to pick her judges, nothing you can do, folks. Although the Second Amendment, people, maybe there is, I don’t know.”

Republican U.S. Senate Candidate Darryl Glenn declined to comment, his campaign staff told 9NEWS.

GOP Congressmen Mike Coffman, Scott Tipton, and Ken Buck did not respond to 9NEWS after numerous requests for comment.

Ernest Luning of the Colorado Statesman did manage to track down Rep. Mike Coffman (R-Aurora) for comment. Coffman called Trump’s statement “reckless,” but once again refused to go any further in condemning the Republican Presidential nominee. This is sort of like a “Profiles in Courage” story…except, you know, the exact opposite.

► So, um, yeah. How best to put this? Colorado Republican Senate candidate Darryl Glenn is crazier than than a bag of cats. As the Huffington Post reports:

An overlooked debate exchange may give a clue about why Republicans reportedly are writing off their Senate contender in Colorado: He can sound as conspiratorial as Donald Trump.

At a pre-primary forum in late June, El Paso County Commissioner Darryl Glenn was asked what the FBI could do to better address cases like that of Orlando massacre shooter Omar Mateen, who had for a time attracted the attention of the bureau before he killed 49 people in the Pulse nightclub…

…“I think we need to have hearings on this. I think people need to be held accountable,” Glenn said. “I want to know whether or not our FBI personnel were personally directed to look the other way. Don’t you want to know that?” Glenn said. “The president should be held to account for that if he gave direction that limited the FBI.” [Pols emphasis]

Glenn is indeed channeling his inner Trump by suggesting that President Obama is somehow connected to the mass shooting at an Orlando nightclub earlier this summer. This “I’m just sayin'” crap is small-minded and irresponsible — particularly coming from a guy who is the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate in Colorado.

► Demonstrating once again that he can’t let a news cycle pass without saying something ridiculous, Donald Trump boldly declared that President Obama is “the founder of ISIS.” From Politico:

Donald Trump on Thursday escalated his attack on President Barack Obama, doubling down on his accusation that he’s a founder of the Islamic State and claiming that both Obama and Hillary Clinton remain the terrorist group’s most valuable players.

The inflammatory accusation comes as Trump has set off another round of hand-wringing within the Republican Party, returning to his freewheeling ways after the GOP convention with overtures for Russia to hack Clinton’s emails, attacks on the Muslim-American family of a fallen war hero, and a suggestion that “Second Amendment people” are the only ones who can stop Clinton.

In short, we’ve now “learned” that President Obama is both the “founder of ISIS” and was probably somehow involved in the Orlando nightclub shooting massacre. He sounds like a busy guy.

Oh, nevermind. Apparently Obama is not really the founder of ISIS. Also, he is not connected with the Orlando shooting massacre.

Get even more smarter after the jump…

IN CASE YOU ARE STANDING NEAR A WATER COOLER…

► The federal government is still not ready to legalize marijuana for medicinal purposes. As the Washington Post reports:

In an announcement in the Federal Register and a letter to petitioners, the Drug Enforcement Administration turned down requests to remove marijuana from “Schedule I,” which classifies it as a drug with “no currently accepted medical use” in the United States and precludes doctors from prescribing it.

The decision keeps the federal government at odds with 25 states and the District of Columbia, which have passed laws allowing medical use of marijuana to some degree. Members of  Congress have called for its reclassification and on Wednesday, the National Conference of State Legislatures adopted a resolution asking the federal government to remove marijuana from Schedule I…

…The agency announced one policy change that could increase the amount of research conducted on marijuana: the DEA will expand the number of places allowed to grow marijuana for studies of its value in chronic pain relief, as a treatment for epilepsy and for other purposes. Currently, only the University of Mississippi,which holds an exclusive contract with the National Institute on Drug Abuse, is federally licensed to grow marijuana for research purposes.

► Donald Trump continues to say that he believes the 2016 election will be “rigged,” largely because it is a convenient ready-made excuse to explain why he was crushed on Election Night by Hillary Clinton. As CBS4 Denver reports, a “rigged” election is not something you really need to worry about:

Symantec experts said votes cast in direct-recording electronic (DRE) voting machines are not encrypted and can be vulnerable to hacking. Yet Colorado Election Director Judd Choate said a rigged election is next to impossible in Colorado.

“It would be a conspiracy of extraordinary proportions,” Choate said.

Choate said voting systems in Colorado are heavily regulated and tested before and after Election Day…

…Staff at voting locations also do a reconciliation every day of an election, according to Choate.

“They reconcile how many people came in and were logged into the poll book and how many votes were cast in those machines,” he said. “So they would know right away if they suddenly had an additional number of votes.” [Pols emphasis]

Sorry, Mr. Trump. You’re going to need another excuse for losing this election.

► Petrified Republicans are hoping and praying that 2016 brings a resurgence in “split-ticket voting” — something that we haven’t really seen in a U.S. Presidential election since Bill Clinton was pummeling Bob Dole in 1992.

► As Joey Bunch reports for the Denver Post, Colorado House Democrats are celebrating several new laws that they say will have a significant impact on conservation efforts in Colorado.

► The city of Ft. Collins might have a strong case against TABOR, writes Kevin Duggan of the Ft. Collins Coloradoan.

► The American Cancer Society supports a proposed ballot measure in Colorado to increase the tax on cigarettes.

► State Sen. Laura Waters Woods (R-Arvada) apparently thinks it would be a good idea for the United States to send billionaire George Soros to Russia because of some sort of arrest warrant, or something.

OTHER LINKS YOU SHOULD CLICK

► A church in Denver may be the recipient of an “Historic Landmark Designation” for its role in advancing LGBT rights. From 9News:

The First Unitarian Society of Denver building, located at 1400 Lafayette Street in Denver, is being considered for a local historic landmark designation by the Denver City County in August.

The building has served as a gathering place in the advancement of social justice issues in Colorado, including the LGBT rights movement, the City of Denver says.

This would make the building the first in Colorado to be recognized for its role in the LGBT rights movement.

If you thought right-wing conservatives were upset about transgender bathroom laws, just wait until they find out that Denver has a gay building.

► If you’ve always wanted to eat a marijuana-infused peach from the town of Palisade…well, you’re out of luck for now.

ICYMI

► The DEFENDING SUPER BOWL CHAMPION Denver Broncos begin their post-Peyton era with their first preseason game of 2016 tonight in Chicago. Sanchize!

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