Get More Smarter on Wednesday (May 31)

We’re one day away from Game 1 of the NBA Finals — in Denver! The Denver Nuggets and Miami Heat tip things off at 6:30 pm on Thursday. Let’s Get More Smarter. 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 an audio learner, check out The Get More Smarter Podcast. And don’t forget to find us on Facebook and Twitter.

 

FIRST UP…

 

The House of Representatives will vote today on a deal to raise the debt limit and prevent a catastrophic global financial collapse. As The Washington Post reports:

House Democratic leaders are preparing their members to provide votes to push a bill to suspend the debt ceiling and limit federal spending past a critical procedural hurdle Wednesday afternoon, as lawmakers work toward enacting a deal to avert a U.S. government default.

Democratic leaders have telegraphed to several lawmakers in the last several hours that they anticipate that House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) will ask House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) for support to ensure that a vote on the rule governing the bill on the floor passes, according to six people familiar with the conversations, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss private deliberations among the Democratic caucus. The bill can only move toward consideration for final passage after that vote.

Opposition to the deal between the House GOP and the White House is building among conservative Republicans and liberal Democrats, but leaders in both parties expect it to pass later Wednesday. GOP leadership aides say they believe the final vote will receive “a majority of the majority,” satisfying an informal Republican guideline against passing legislation mostly on the strength of Democratic support.

Colorado Republican Reps. Lauren Boebert and Ken Buck say they will vote ‘NO’ on the bill. Fellow Republican Rep. Doug Lamborn is still reportedly undecided but is being pressured by the Colorado Republican Party — and 2022 GOP Primary opponent Dave Williams — to oppose any deal.

Both Buck and Lamborn are in fairly safe Republican districts, so they can vote without worrying too much about whether it might cost them in 2024 (Buck always votes against raising the debt ceiling, though his ideas for spending cuts are ludicrous).

Boebert, however, is in a different situation; opposing a deal that will prevent massive cuts for constituents in her district would be a significant blow to her re-election hopes. But when it comes to a choice between doing right be her constituents and doing what MAGA Republicans expect of her, the people of CO-03 are always going to lose out:

 

 

Colorado Newsline has more on the Colorado industries that are particularly nervous about the outcome of the debt ceiling debate.

 

In other debt ceiling news, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy may face a challenge for the Speaker’s gavel because MAGA Republicans and Freedom Caucus members are salty about the deal McCarthy made with the White House. Florida Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz is mad at a bunch of Republicans in McCarthy’s orbit:

 

Give your eyes a break and put your ears to work with this week’s episode of the Get More Smarter Podcast, featuring an interview with Rob Boston of Americans United for Separation of Church and State:

 

 

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Christian Nationalism is Coming for You (feat. Rob Boston)

This week on the Get More Smarter Podcast, the Colorado Republican Party isn’t just morally bankrupt! No, the Grand Old Party may actually be financially bankrupt as well, and the national party may bankrupt the entire nation! Yay, fiscal responsibility! Yet another fiscally conservative Republican who lit 5 million dollars of his own money on fire in 2022 losing to Michael Bennet may be talked into lighting another pile of his own money on fire in losing to another Colorado Democrat in 2024. Ron DeSantis made a DeSasterous entrance into a now-very-crowded GOP presidential field and seemingly DeStroyed DeServers at Twitter. And we check in on the Denver mayor’s race with just one week to go.

But first, as Christian nationalism goes from a theoretical threat to a really real oh-crap-here-it-is threat, we check in with Rob Boston, senior adviser at Americans United for Separation of Church and State, to see what kinda Constitution these conservatives are reading. Make sure to also sign the pledge to protect the separation of church and state at au.org/pledge.

Listen to previous episodes of The Get More Smarter Podcast at GetMoreSmarter.com.

Questions? Comments? Complaints? Let us have it at AngryRants@getmoresmarter.com.

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Everybody Gets a New Mayor! (feat. Alan Salazar)

This week on the Get More Smarter Podcast, your hosts Jason Bane and Ian Silverii talk again with legendary Colorado politico Alan Salazar to preview the June 6 Denver Mayoral election and discuss his final days as Chief of Staff to Denver Mayor Michael Hancock.

Later, we discuss how and why Republicans are losing municipal races across the country — including a shocking upset in Colorado Springs by Yemi Mobolade. Senator John Hickenlooper, seems to share our ranking for our 8th favorite member of Congress from Colorado — and he has a banger of an OpEd in the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel to prove it. State Rep. Scott “There is No” Bottoms, who is either our 18th or 19th favorite Republican in the Colorado House, gives up the game on GOP obstruction. And someone with a podcast less popular than ours is lying to his audience, himself, or more likely…both.

Listen to previous episodes of The Get More Smarter Podcast at GetMoreSmarter.com.

Questions? Comments? Complaints? Let us have it at AngryRants@getmoresmarter.com. Or send emails to jason@getmoresmarter.com or ian@getmoresmarter.com.

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Get More Smarter on Friday (May 19)

The Denver Nuggets are two wins away from advancing to the NBA Finals for the first time after defeating the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday. Game 3 is Saturday in Los Angeles. Let’s Get More Smarter. 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 an audio learner, check out The Get More Smarter Podcast. And don’t forget to find us on Facebook and Twitter.

 

FIRST UP…

 

With the United States roughly two weeks away from a potentially catastrophic debt default, Congressional Republicans are playing a game of “chicken” with the White House. From The Associated Press:

A top debt ceiling negotiator for House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said Friday it’s time to “press pause” on talks as negotiations with the White House came to an abrupt standstill at the Capitol.

Rep. Garret Graves, R-La., tapped by McCarthy, R-Calif., to lead the talks, emerged from an hourlong session and said gaps remained between House Republicans and the Democratic administration.

“It’s time to press pause because it’s just not productive,” Graves told reporters.

He added that the negotiations have become “just unreasonable” and that it was unclear when talks would resume.

Wall Street turned lower as talks on raising the nation’s debt limit came to a sudden halt, raising worries that the country could edge closer to risking a highly damaging default on U.S. government debt.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is claiming that a legislative deal needs to be in place by this weekend. But as POLITICO reports, that’s not really true:

Even though timing may seem extremely tight, both chambers have their own escape hatches that could allow them to vote on a bill more quickly, sometimes dramatically so. Plus, lawmakers aren’t all convinced that June 1 is a hard deadline, given the Treasury Department’s uncertainty about when it would truly run out of cash. Congress could potentially have until June 8, according to one estimate, giving lawmakers a crucial extra week to tie up loose ends.

McCarthy faces another potential problem of his own creation:

Next week, the spotlight is on the House, since the Senate is in recess. There, McCarthy believes it would take about four days to pass any potential legislation due to commitments he made back in January, including his promise to give lawmakers 72 hours to review bills before a vote.

He could theoretically ignore that rule if the timeline gets squeezed, but he’d risk the wrath of his right flank.

“I don’t think our members would tolerate it,” said Rep. Tom Cole (R-Okla.), a senior Republican appropriator, adding that he didn’t think McCarthy would abandon the rule. “I don’t think we want to look like our members didn’t have the time to read and consider the legislation.”

The House is scheduled to depart for recess the week of May 29, but Cole said he wouldn’t be surprised if members are called back to pass a debt limit deal, should a vote fall through next week.

 

In other debt ceiling news, Colorado Rep. Ken Buck (R-Greeley) is still playing his ridiculous game of pretending to be involved in debt ceiling talks even though he has voted against any such proposal going back to the Obama administration:

 

Buck is making no serious effort to contribute to a solution here; he was one of just four Republicans to vote against a GOP proposal passed a few weeks ago, and has suggested RAISING THE RETIREMENT AGE to 72 or 73 years of age as a way to cut spending. It’s important to remember here that the debt ceiling discussions are about paying for things that Congress has already approved in previous years.

 

Congressperson Lauren Boebert (R-ifle) first made her name in politics by yelling at a Member of Congress. Now that she is in Congress herself, that sort of dissent from a member of the public is apparently not tolerated.

It shouldn’t be lost in the coverage that the topic of the press conference itself was completely bonkers. As Erik Maulbetsch reports for the Colorado Times Recorder:

…lawmakers, including Boebert, made numerous unsubstantiated claims, from the World Health Organization being controlled by China, to blaming it for the COVID pandemic, to claiming it is the vehicle for a plot to force all nations under a single worldwide government.

Among other things, Boebert claimed that the United States is surrendering its sovereignty to the WHO, an organization that she and other Republican legislators claim is controlled by “Communist China.”

 

In other Boebert-related news, Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-Denver) has reached the end of his rope when it comes to Boebert’s habit of taking credit for things she voted against.

 

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The Get More Smarter Podcast Legislative Wrap Up

This week on the Get More Smarter Podcast, the First Regular Session of the 74th General Assembly has adjourned Sine Die and it was a despicable failure, or a resounding success, or somewhere in between, depending entirely on how much time you spend putting money into Elon Musk’s pocket. Your hosts Jason Bane and Ian Silverii break down the results.

To wrap up the session in style, Christy Powell returns to play “Legislating with Crayons,” and we check in on our 6th and 8th favorite members of congress from Colorado to see what in the hell they’re up to (spoiler alert: nothing good).

Listen to previous episodes of The Get More Smarter Podcast at GetMoreSmarter.com.

Questions? Comments? Complaints? Let us have it at AngryRants@getmoresmarter.com.

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The Get More Smarter Podcast: Episode 150!

This week on the 150th EPISODE of the Get More Smarter Podcast, Sine Die is Nigh! Hosts Jason Bane and Ian Silverii celebrate the end of the 2023 Colorado legislative session; with so many outstanding items we ask the question every reporter has asked this week since 1876: “How will they get it all done?”

The Supreme Court of the United States is an ethical disaster, but really only the Justices appointed by Republican Presidents; Heidi Ganahl, the last statewide elected Republican in Colorado (and possibly the worst candidate in state history) may be planning on Unleashing herself onto the state. Again. We take bets on how big her margin of defeat will be next time.

With one month to go in the Denver Mayoral Election, two dudes from Lakewood will discuss how the hell it got like this; our 8th favorite congressperson from Colorado clearly, badly needs attention, and we’ll give her a little more! And finally, Tucker Carlson may be off the airwaves, but his inexcusably racist influence on the GOP will remain for a long, long time.

Listen to previous episodes of The Get More Smarter Podcast at GetMoreSmarter.com.

Questions? Comments? Complaints? Let us have it at AngryRants@getmoresmarter.com.

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Get More Smarter on Wednesday (May 3)

May the Third be with you. Let’s Get More Smarter. 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 an audio learner, check out The Get More Smarter Podcast. And don’t forget to find us on Facebook and Twitter.

 

FIRST UP…

 

Congressional Democrats are pushing for ethics reforms to the U.S. Supreme Court. As Ashley Murray explains for Colorado Newsline:

U.S. Supreme Court justices should follow a strict code of ethics when receiving gifts and travel or doing business with political funders and attorneys, argued Democratic senators Tuesday at a hearing that Chief Justice John Roberts declined to attend. [Pols emphasis]

After a spate of investigative articles detailing Justice Clarence Thomas’ luxury travel and real estate transactions with a GOP donor, and a property sale by a limited liability company partly owned by Justice Neil Gorsuch to a law firm head, Democratic leaders on the Senate Committee on the Judiciary maintained the highest court in the land cannot be trusted to police itself.

GOP members of the panel dismissed the hearing as “selective outrage” — as ranking member Lindsey Graham of South Carolina put it — against the court’s conservative majority that recently handed down controversial high-profile decisions, including overturning Roe v. Wade and striking down New York’s concealed carry law.

In declining the invitation to testify in front of the committee, Roberts asserted that the court must remain independent and that it adheres to its own set of principles.

In a follow-up letter Monday, Roberts wrote that there are “no set rules” for the court’s adoption of such principles or guidelines. [Pols emphasis]

From Clarence Thomas to Neil Gorsuch, it’s hard to argue that SCOTUS does NOT need new ethical guidelines that Justices might actually feel compelled to follow.

 

Colorado Public Radio reports on the latest news regarding a controversial land use/affordable housing proposal in the state legislature:

A Colorado House committee partially restored the most controversial part of a land use reform bill before it advanced the measure late Tuesday night.

The bill, SB23-213, was initially a sweeping measure that would’ve forced many local governments to allow varying degrees of denser homes in all residential neighborhoods. The state Senate gradually trimmed those mandatory upzoning requirements before eliminating them entirely last week.

But the House Transportation, Housing & Local Government Committee has brought back some of those provisions, as previewed Monday by CPR News.

The bill would have to make it back through the State Senate in order to see its passage before the end of the 2023 legislative session on Monday.

 

In other news from under the gold dome at the State Capitol, Democrats are working on last-minute legislation to provide property tax relief for Coloradans while also protecting school funding mechanisms.

There are lots of bills that still need to be finalized before Monday’s end of session. Legislative Republicans, however, are doing everything they can to slow discussion to a crawl. Their entire strategy is just to get in the way of whatever Democrats want to accomplish. Republicans don’t have ideas of their own.

 

There are too many people with too many guns. Period.

 

 

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Get More Smarter on Tuesday (May 2)

The Denver Nuggets took a 2-0 series lead on Monday night by beating the Phoenix Suns in Game 2 of their Western Conference semifinals matchup; Game 3 is in Phoenix on Friday. Let’s Get More Smarter. 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 an audio learner, check out The Get More Smarter Podcast. And don’t forget to find us on Facebook and Twitter.

 

FIRST UP…

 

The Colorado legislature is scheduled to wrap up its 2023 session on Monday, but there is still much work to be done. Jesse Paul of The Colorado Sun has more on one late — but very important — proposal:

Colorado voters would be asked in November to approve a 10-year plan aimed at preventing property taxes from rising at a historic clip under an eleventh-hour proposal unveiled Monday by Gov. Jared Polis and Democrats in the state legislature.

The effort, which would reduce Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights refunds in order to make up for the cuts, is aimed at combating a dizzying rise in property values that will cause a corresponding jump in homeowners’ and businesses’ tax burden. Property tax bills are in large part determined by property values, and home values increased statewide by an average of 40% over the past two years.

Proponents of the measure say it would cut the projected property tax increase for the average Colorado homeowner by 62% in the 2023 tax year for which taxes are due in April 2024…

…To get the measure on the November ballot, the proposal only needs the support of a simple majority in the legislature. The measure was introduced Monday as Senate Bill 303 and state lawmakers will have to act quickly, as the 2023 legislative session in Colorado ends on May 8.

You can read more on this proposal from Colorado Public Radio, The Denver Post, and 9News.

 

In other news from under the gold dome at the State Capitol, House Republicans saw three stupid ideas get canned in a committee room on Monday. Meanwhile, Democrats continue to work on real ideas:

Marianne Goodland of the publication formerly known as the Colorado Statesman takes a big-picture look at the work left to be done in the final week of session.

♦ House Democrats will try to paste some lost pieces of a land use/affordable housing bill favored by Gov. Jared Polis that were cut by the State Senate. Seth Klamann of The Denver Post has more on changes to SB23-213.

♦ Legislation that seeks to lower the threshold for workplace harassment claims is still moving along, as is a bill that would increase regulations for no-knock warrants.

♦ A bill to extend Medicaid and child health care access is headed to the desk of Gov. Polis.

♦ Halfway houses will be audited for the first time in decades.

♦ Legislation to implement a new magic mushroom industry in Colorado has been finalized.

 

State Republican Party Chair and former lawmaker Dave Williams finally showed up at the State Capitol for his other job as a legislative aide.

 

 Give your eyes a break and put your ears to work with this week’s episode of the Get More Smarter Podcast:


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Podcast: Just Do Your Job! (feat. Andrew Baumann)

Andrew Baumann

This week on the Get More Smarter Podcast, your hosts Jason Bane and Ian Silverii talk once again with Andrew Baumann, Partner at Global Strategy Group and the lead pollster for the quarterly “Rocky Mountaineer” poll in Colorado. Baumann takes us through the latest numbers in CO-03, where Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert is running neck-and-neck with Democrat Adam Frisch despite what should be an overwhelming Republican advantage.

Later…the new chairman of the Colorado Republican Party, Dave Williams, is hopefully “not just milking big government” by drawing a taxpayer funded salary at 40 hours a week while also allegedly running the party for 40 hours a week…and this is according to the Republican House Minority Leader. As the scourge of gun violence continues to plague the nation one Republican state Representative says the quiet part out loud — like really, really loud. A right wing dark money group wins an appeal on a campaign finance case in which they were absolutely, clearly guilty; we ask why bother having laws? And DARK BRANDON RISES to run for re-election.

For more details on this week’s episode, head over to our free substack page.

Listen to previous episodes of The Get More Smarter Podcast at GetMoreSmarter.com.

Questions? Comments? Complaints? Let us have it at AngryRants@getmoresmarter.com. Or send emails to jason@getmoresmarter.com or ian@getmoresmarter.com.

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Get More Smarter on Wednesday (April 19)

Get outside and enjoy the weather before it cools off over the next couple of days. Let’s Get More Smarter. 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 an audio learner, check out The Get More Smarter Podcast. And don’t forget to find us on Facebook and Twitter.

 

FIRST UP…

 

Legislation to ban assault weapons in Colorado appears to be running out of steam but may be changed to address bump stocks instead:

 

Overall, Democrats have been successful this legislative session when it comes to gun violence prevention bills. As Jesse Bedayn writes for The Associated Press:

The proposals include strengthening red flag laws, raising the firearm purchasing age to 21, opening the gun industry up to legal liability and installing a three-day waiting period after buying a gun.

A measure set to be debated Wednesday that would implement a sweeping ban on semi-automatic firearms faces much stiffer odds and illustrates that even Democratic-controlled statehouses don’t have free rein on overhauling laws rooted deep in American culture.

Hundreds of people have signed up to testify at the proposal’s first hearing in what is expected to be a passionate hearing with a mix of gun owners opposing the measure and supporters campaigning to reduce gun violence that plagues the country.

 

In other state legislative news, Seth Klamann of The Denver Post reports on a watered-down land use bill backed by Gov. Jared Polis:

Colorado legislators advanced a marquee land-use reform bill Tuesday night, but not before making changes to it that carve out resort communities from some parts of the proposal, scale back zoning reforms in the state’s larger cities and enact a 10-year sunset on the entire policy as supporters sought to shepherd the bill through a contentious first hearing.

The bill — SB23-213 — advanced out of the Senate’s Local Government and Housing committee on a party-line 4-3 vote Tuesday night, after more than three hours of debate on more than a dozen amendments. The meeting came fewer than two weeks after legislators heard 12 hours of testimony for and against the proposal, which broadly seeks to encourage density, faster building and better planning by significantly reshaping the state’s single-family zoning policies.

The bill’s received the backing of Gov. Jared Polis and a coalition of housing, business and environmental groups who say the measure is vital to kickstart housing, but it’s opposed by local government officials who castigate it as an intrusion on their authority. But supporters say state intervention is needed, given the scale of the housing problem — both in terms of supply and affordability — facing Coloradans.

Colorado Public Radio and Colorado Newsline have more on the fate of SB23-213.

 

 House Speaker Kevin McCarthy says he will release his plan today for avoiding the debt limit, with a proposed vote as soon as next week. McCarthy’s Republican caucus is not believed to be on board with his plan, however.

 

 Give your eyes a break and put your ears to work with this week’s episode of the Get More Smarter Podcast:

 

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Get More Smarter on Tuesday (April 18)

Comedian Conan O’Brien turns 60 years old today. Let’s Get More Smarter. 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 an audio learner, check out The Get More Smarter Podcast. And don’t forget to find us on Facebook and Twitter.

 

FIRST UP…

 

A trial for the $1.6 billion defamation case between Denver-based Dominion Voting Services and Fox News Corp. got underway today after last-minute efforts to reach a settlement agreement failed to bear fruit. Jury selection took up most of the morning in a Delaware courtroom.

 

A controversial land-use policy bill backed by Gov. Jared Polis will get its first hearing in a Senate committee today. Senate Bill 213 is intended to help increase the availability of affordable housing by, among other things, limiting the ability of local municipalities to enact growth gaps.

 

Democrat Adam Frisch is having a good week in his bid to unseat Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert in CO-03. New polling suggests that Frisch and Boebert are running neck-and-neck in their rematch of a 2022 election that Boebert won by just 546 votes. Meanwhile, Frisch outraised Boebert by nearly $1 million in the first quarter of this year.

 

Last week Republicans marked 100 days in control of the House of Representatives. The first three months of a GOP majority under House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has been underwhelming at best. McCarthy spoke at the New York Stock Exchange on Monday about his demands for a deal on increasing the debt limit; Wall Street has thus far tempered its panic about a potential government default.

As POLITICO reports, McCarthy is already dealing with dissension in the Republican ranks:

During House Republicans’ first private meeting in weeks, McCarthy and his leadership team laid out the basics of an opening strategy to relieve the nation’s looming debt crisis — a proposal the speaker previewed at a high-profile Monday speech on Wall Street. But while GOP leaders still hope to turn that plan into a formal bill within days, a handful of disgruntled members made clear inside the morning meeting that achieving unity would take more time…

…House Republicans’ internal frustrations go beyond their long-stalled debt limit talks with President Joe Biden. The conference is near its breaking point over a contentious border bill that has exposed divisions between hardline conservatives and politically vulnerable purple-district members. Then there are the simmering tensions that no GOP lawmaker wants to talk about — the evident disconnect between the speaker and his budget chief, as well as chatter over the elevation of a new McCarthy lieutenant with a vast portfolio.

Gee, who coulda seen this coming? Besides, you know, EVERYBODY. Also, maybe not the best idea to push for a vote on something that doesn’t even exist yet.

 

 Give your eyes a break and put your ears to work with this week’s episode of the Get More Smarter Podcast:

 

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The Get More Smarter Podcast: The Politics of Nothing

This week on the Get More Smarter Podcast, House Republicans continue to filibuster without wanting anything; will they do it for the next 15 days or so? Your hosts Jason Bane and Ian Silverii ponder the point of doing nothing when you should be doing anything.

The title of this show, the Get More Smarter Podcast, is intentionally bad grammar (for those of you who have emailed us about it), but someone out there in the world is showing why we can’t even joke about it anymore. While more mass shootings happen every single day in this country, Democrats in the Colorado Legislature have passed more bills to address gun violence prevention. And there’s a new poll out about our 8th favorite member of congress from Colorado; Rep. Lauren Boebert is in deep, deep cow dung.

Listen to previous episodes of The Get More Smarter Podcast at GetMoreSmarter.com.

Questions? Comments? Complaints? Let us have it at AngryRants@getmoresmarter.com. Or send emails to jason@getmoresmarter.com or ian@getmoresmarter.com.

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Get More Smarter on Wednesday (April 12)

Happy Birthday to David Letterman. Let’s Get More Smarter. 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 an audio learner, check out The Get More Smarter Podcast. And don’t forget to find us on Facebook and Twitter.

 

FIRST UP…

 

The abortion pill mifepristone will remain available — for now — to women in Colorado. As Colorado Public Radio reports:

The abortion drug mifepristone will remain available in Colorado and many other states, according to state Attorney General Phil Weiser.

A pair of conflicting rulings created uncertainty about the drug’s approval status with the Food and Drug Administration, but neither will immediately impact access in Colorado and many other states.

In Washington, U.S. District Judge Thomas Rice, ruled last week that the FDA cannot alter access to the drug while a lawsuit against the agency, brought by a coalition of 17 state governments and the District of Columbia, moves forward. The coalition of attorneys general, which includes Weiser, wanted to force the FDA to lift regulations that they said restrict access to mifepristone.

Rice’s decision means mifepristone will be accessible in states that are party to that suit, even if an appeals court upholds a decision by U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, a federal judge in Texas, to invalidate the drug’s FDA approval.

Kacsmaryk’s ruling has been widely panned, both for legal reasons and because of the curious amount of partisan language included in the decision.

 

Congressperson Lauren “Q*Bert” Boebert (R-ifle) represents a district (CO-03) that should be safe for a Republican (Donald Trump carried CO-03 by 9 points in 2020). But Boebert’s constituents have bored of her social media addiction and her persistent yelling at Democrats while she accomplishes nothing for her district…which is how she ends up beginning the 2024 election cycle in a dead heat with Democrat Adam Frisch.

Colorado Newsline has more on the “Mountaineer” poll from ProgressNow Colorado and Global Strategy Group. Boebert, meanwhile, remains clueless about the downsides of her right-wing angertainment celebrity; bringing Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz to Colorado for a fundraising event isn’t going to help.

 

As The Washington Post explains, there are signs that inflation is finally on the wane in the United States:

New data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics released Wednesday showed that prices rose 5 percent in the year ending in March, the smallest 12-month increase since May 2021, and down from the 6 percent rate notched in February. Compared to February prices, March prices rose 0.1 percent, driven by steep rent costs. The data seemed to cement expectations that the Federal Reserve will soon pause its 14-month long campaign to raise interest rates.

But economists emphasized the need to stay cautious and not to treat all sources of inflation as equal.

 

Republican State Rep. Richard Holtorf — never one to shy away from making racist and tone-deaf statements — was at it again on Tuesday. As Kyle Clark reports for 9News, Holtorf compared disabled people to folks who get hurt participating in the annual “Running of the Bulls” in Pamplona, Spain.

 

 

The Colorado Sun reports on changes to legislation making it easier to sue firearm manufacturers:

Major sections of a Democratic measure making it easier to sue the firearm industry in Colorado were removed from the bill last week in an early-morning committee meeting at the behest of Gov. Jared Polis.

Rules intended to further require gun sellers to block children and criminals from obtaining weapons were stripped from the legislation, as was a provision forcing the industry to take steps to prevent people intent on harming themselves or others from buying weapons. Instead, the bill would govern the industry under the same laws that apply to all other businesses in the state.

The amendments to Senate Bill 168, part of a package of gun bills brought by Democrats this year, were made by an ad hoc panel of three senators and three representatives, called a conference committee, that was created to reconcile amendments made in the House and Senate to the measure. But instead, the legislation was changed in a more significant way, including to remove a section requiring the gun industry to adhere to a so-called code of conduct specific to firearms sellers and manufacturers.

Three more gun safety related bills are on their way to the desk of Gov. Polis: 1) Raising the minimum age for gun purchases; 2) Expanding Colorado’s red-flag laws; and 3) Creating a three-day waiting period for gun purchases.

 

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The GMS Podcast: Mayoral Madness with City Cast Denver

This week on the Get More Smarter Podcast, Colorado House Democrats invoke Rule 14 to stop the 19 Republicans from filibustering a package of gun safety laws while yet another mass shooting unnecessarily takes the lives of more American children. The GOP is the party of insurrection, gun violence, and coddling criminals, and our 8th favorite member of Congress from Colorado is leading the charge.

BUT FIRST, in our efforts to cover the Denver Mayor’s race without covering the Denver Mayor’s race… it’s a crossover episode! We’ve got Bree Davies and Paul Karolyi from City Cast Denver on the show to discuss their efforts to interview all 17 candidates who were at least at some point running for Mayor of that big smoldering crater in the ground to the east of Lakewood.

Listen to previous episodes of The Get More Smarter Podcast at GetMoreSmarter.com.

Questions? Comments? Complaints? Let us have it at AngryRants@getmoresmarter.com. Or send emails to jason@getmoresmarter.com or ian@getmoresmarter.com.

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Get More Smarter on Friday (March 31)

It’s more blustery outside than the guy inside that paper sack. Let’s Get More Smarter. 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 an audio learner, check out The Get More Smarter Podcast. And don’t forget to find us on Facebook and Twitter.

 

FIRST UP…

 

Votes are still trickling in at a snail’s pace in Denver, with just 12% of ballots returned as of this writing ahead of Election Day on Tuesday (April 4).

If you are a registered voter in Denver but have not yet cast your ballot — remember that it is TOO LATE to drop it in the mail. Ballots must be RECEIVED by the Denver Clerk and Recorder by 7:00 on Tuesday. CLICK HERE for information on what to do with your ballot or where to find a polling place.

 

Former President Donald Trump set a neat record late on Thursday, becoming the first ex-president in American history to be charged with a crime. So, that’s neat.

Trump is likely to be arraigned in New York on Tuesday over criminal charges related to a hush money payment to a porn star. Trump is freaking out as you would expect, though his rhetoric is kind of all over the place. Check out this amusing subject line from an email to supporters:

 

As Dana Milbank writes for The Washington Post, the response from Republicans to Trump’s indictment was expected, but was nevertheless weirdly compatible with the Big Orange Guy’s screeching:

It’s no surprise that House Republicans leaped to Donald Trump’s defense after news of his indictment broke late Thursday. What was striking, though, was how many elected GOP officials now sound like Trump.

“Political Persecution,” Trump alleged in his statement.

“Political persecution,” parroted Reps. Diana Harshbarger (Tenn.), Josh Brecheen (Okla.), Claudia Tenney (N.Y.), and Paul Gosar (Ariz.).

“Blatant Election Interference,” Trump announced.

“This is unprecedented election interference,” echoed GOP conference chair Elise Stefanik (N.Y.).

“An attempt to interfere in our Presidential election,” echoed House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (Calif.).

“Witch hunt,” complained Trump.

“Witch hunt,” repeated Reps. George Santos (N.Y.), Lauren Boebert (Colo.), Ralph Norman (S.C.), Matt Gaetz (Fla.) and more, including House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (Minn.).

A few months ago, Republicans seemed almost able to finally pull away from Trump once and for all. But after escaping Trump’s demolition derby, Republicans have instead just hopped back in the car for another round.

In a separate story, The Washington Post answers your questions about what happens next.

 

Colorado Public Radio has more on reaction to Trump’s indictment from Colorado elected officials:

Via Colorado Public Radio

 

 

As Colorado Newsline reports, Colorado officials are sounding more hopeful about the state holding on to Space Command HQ after new information about the former President’s decision-making on a move to Alabama:

Many officials, including outgoing Republican Colorado Springs Mayor John Suthers, expressed concern that Trump’s decision to relocate Space Command to Alabama, which voted for Trump in 2020, was politically motivated. Suthers wrote a letter this month to Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall detailing conversations Suthers had with Trump about how he planned to make the decision after he saw the results of the 2020 election.

“When I once again made my pitch to President Trump, he asked me if I was a Republican mayor,” Suthers wrote in the letter. “When I replied that I was, he asked what his chances were of carrying Colorado in the November election. When I said they were ‘uncertain’ he seemed perturbed.”

Suthers said Trump then asked a high-ranking Space Force officer if Colorado Springs is where the headquarters should be, to which the officer replied, “Absolutely, Mr. President.” Trump then reiterated that he wanted to see how the elections turned out before deciding, according to Suthers’ letter.

“He gave me a clue early on that he was probably going to wait until after the election, and made it very clear in my February conversation with him that he wanted to see how the election turned out before he made the decision,” Suthers told Newsline. “I don’t think anything could have been more indicative of the fact that it was a political decision.”

Suthers said Hickenlooper was the one who encouraged him to write the letter after hearing about their conversations.

Donald Trump making decisions based solely on how they could help him politically? Get out of town!

 

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Podcast: Republicans “Don’t Care” About Gun Violence Concerns

This week on the Get More Smarter Podcast, there have been two shootings in or near East High School in Denver in less than 40 days, and Colorado Republicans are just flat-out saying that they really don’t care about your feelings on the subject. This is what happens when the people who think more guns are the answer and the current situation is just fine take full control of the Colorado Republican Party.

In addition to being the party of endless gun deaths, the GOP is also now the party of…weakening child labor laws? The Affordable Care Act is old enough to be bar-mitzvah’d; we ask if it’s memorized its Torah portion yet. Twice impeached former President and current GOP nomination frontrunner Donald Trump is about to be arrested and/or indicted for paying hush money to a porn star; after all these years, will the leader of the party of Law and Order finally see some?

And the unofficial third host of the Get More Smarter Podcast is back with a new stack of horribles from listening to the state legislature so we don’t have to! Christy Powell joins us once again to play our confusing Republican legislative, “Legislating With Crayons.”

Listen to previous episodes of The Get More Smarter Podcast at GetMoreSmarter.com.

Questions? Comments? Complaints? Let us have it at AngryRants@getmoresmarter.com. Or send emails to jason@getmoresmarter.com or ian@getmoresmarter.com.

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Get More Smarter on Friday (March 24)

Welcome to Spring; enjoy the allergies! Let’s Get More Smarter. 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 an audio learner, check out The Get More Smarter Podcast. And don’t forget to find us on Facebook and Twitter.

 

FIRST UP…

 

If you are a registered voter in Denver but have not yet cast your ballot ahead of the April 4th election — headlined by the first open race for Denver Mayor in 12 years — then welcome to the club! Less than 5% of Denver voters have cast a ballot as of today.

Recent shootings at East High School in Denver may help voters make a decision among the 16 candidates running for Mayor.

 

Former President Donald Trump won’t likely be indicted for hush money payments to a porn star until at least next week. In the meantime, Trump is handling the wait with his typical subtlety and grace:

 

As The Denver Post reports, students from several local high schools visited the State Capitol on Thursday to plead with lawmakers to take more action on gun safety:

Hundreds of students from at least five Denver high schools, reeling from another school shooting, filled lawmakers’ offices and surrounded them in the hallways of the Capitol on Thursday to demand safer schools.

The rally was in response to the second shooting at East High School in as many weeks, but violence at any school affects every school, students said. They chanted slogans like “protect schools, not guns” from the Capitol steps.

“This should have stopped with Luis,” Jasmine Brown, a junior at West High School, said. “This should have stopped with Columbine.”

Luis Garcia, a junior and varsity soccer player at East High School, was shot last month while sitting in his car outside of school. He died of his injuries.

The response from Republican lawmakers was…not good:

In a series of Tweets today, Colorado House Republicans cast the blame for shootings at East High School squarely on the Denver School Board.

As Westword reports, the Denver School Board completed quite the flip on its policy of armed police officers in public schools. Following the Black Lives Matter protests of 2020, the school board pulled armed police out of schools over concerns about officers potentially targeting minority students for extra scrutiny.

 

 Governor Jared Polis unveiled a sweeping new affordable housing proposal that supporters say will also have huge benefits for the environment.

 

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More Podcast: All Truth, No Lies (feat. Rep. Joe Neguse)

Rep. Joe Neguse (D-Boulderish)

In our second episode of the week, the Get More Smarter Podcast sits down with Congressman Joe Neguse (D-Boulderish) for another visit to discuss being named the most effective lawmaker of the last Congress; his role leading the messaging arm of the House Democratic Caucus; and how his job is different now that Democrats are in the minority in the House of Representatives.

Later, we check back on two of our recurring segments, “That’s Bull***” and “The Boebert Report,” including the news from Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-ifle) that she’s about to be a 36-year-old grandmother. Colorado Republicans are fleeing the party after the selection of Dave Williams as State Party Chair; we’ll discuss this as well as why the GOP’s insistence on talking about Denver as a crime-infested hellhole is doing them no favors. Also, former gubernatorial candidate Heidi Ganahl has a new podcast/lecture series about why you’re wrong; how one candidate for Denver Mayor might now be in the driver’s seat for the runoff election; and remembering former Congresswoman Pat Schroeder, who died at the age of 82.

Listen to previous episodes of The Get More Smarter Podcast at GetMoreSmarter.com.

Questions? Comments? Complaints? Let us have it at AngryRants@getmoresmarter.com. Or send emails to jason@getmoresmarter.com or ian@getmoresmarter.com.

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Podcast: Speaker Julie McCluskie Gets More Smarter

Colorado House Speaker Julie McCluskie (D).

This week on the Get More Smarter Podcast, the Colorado Republican Party has a new chair — can he possibly be worse than the last one? Colorado has an ongoing gun violence problem, and Democrats in the state legislature are doing something about it. We’ll tell you which Republicans have been named the rightiest of them all; and ballots are in the mail for the Denver Mayor’s race, so who better than two dudes who live in Lakewood to break down the final few weeks!

But first, Colorado House Speaker Julie McCluskie joins the podcast to discuss her first few months on the job and to preview some upcoming legislation. Speaker McCluskie also gives us an honest response to the news that former State Rep. Dave Williams is now the leader of the Colorado Republican Party.

Listen to previous episodes of The Get More Smarter Podcast at GetMoreSmarter.com.

Questions? Comments? Complaints? Let us have it at AngryRants@getmoresmarter.com. Or send emails to jason@getmoresmarter.com or ian@getmoresmarter.com.

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Get More Smarter on Wednesday (March 8)

Happy International Women’s Day. Please celebrate responsibly. Let’s Get More Smarter. 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 an audio learner, check out The Get More Smarter Podcast. And don’t forget to find us on Facebook and Twitter.

 

FIRST UP…

 

Colorado Republicans and their micro-minority in the state legislature are promising a big battle over some very common sense gun safety regulations, mostly because when Rocky Mountain Gun Owners (RMGO) tells Republicans to dance

As Seth Klamann reports for The Denver Post:

Republicans have promised to do whatever they can to fight the proposals — which include a ban on the sale of assault weapons, age limits and an expansion of the state’s red flag law — and cast them as ineffective solutions to complex problems.

The first of those bills — to institute a minimum three-day waiting period between a would-be gun buyer initiating a background check and taking ownership of the weapon — came before the House’s State, Civic, Military, & Veterans Affairs committee Monday. Three other gun reform measures will be in committee Wednesday. All are expected to pass committees controlled by Democrats, but they’re also certain to attract hours of testimony from opponents and supporters alike.

Fighting that and other bills, Republican minority leader Rep. Mike Lynch has said, is a top priority for his caucus…

…Lynch said the party is likely to launch hours of filibuster delays — akin to the 24-hour filibuster they undertook last year to fight a marquee abortion bill — to stall the gun legislation.

“It’s a bright, shiny thing that’s easier to approach than attacking the harder issues,” Lynch said of the gun reform bills. “We’re not talking about mental health because we’re going to waste the next three weeks dealing with guns. I’m not sure it’s an effort in the right direction.”

Ah yes, the old “why aren’t we talking about mental health legislation” canard. But here’s the thing: When Democrats propose legislation dealing with mental health as it relates to gun violence, Republicans back away from that, too. Monday’s bill to create a waiting period for firearms passed through a committee hearing despite RMGO’s limp protest.

Regardless, State Sen. Tom Sullivan (D-Aurora), whose son, Alex, was killed in the Aurora Theater Shootings, isn’t backing down:

The discussion over several gun safety bills is expected to last for hours today in committee hearings. Republicans are making it very clear who they are and who they represent.

 

Meanwhile, Republican lawmakers in Colorado are puffing out their chests in order to be declared the most right-wing of them all!

 

Senator Michael Bennet (D-Denver) has joined the legislative battle to ban Tik Tok — and potentially other foreign-based technology platforms — because of security concerns. From Colorado Public Radio:

The RESTRICT Act would give the Commerce Secretary new authority to identify and mitigate threats posed by foreign technology products and services in the United States.

“What we’re trying to deal with here is insecure information and communication technology,” explained Virginia Democratic Sen. Mark Warner, the chair of the chamber’s intelligence panel. “These risks are not going away and unfortunately, our tools to date have been relatively limited.”

Warner said the secretary’s new powers would extend “up to and including the opportunity to ban.” He added such decisions would be risk-based, informed by intelligence, and follow a clear process, instead of the current ad hoc approach. The bill would also allow for the declassification of information on how a certain foreign tech might pose undue or unacceptable risks.

Bennet and others noted that while the popular social media app TikTok is the concern now, the threat around foreign tech goes back years, ranging from Russia’s Kaspersky Labs, which produced an antivirus software, to Huawei’s 5G system.

 

Vox.com digs into Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who is hoping to boost his likely Presidential campaign by staging an all-out assault on the First Amendment. 

DeSantis wants to eliminate the First Amendment safeguards that prevent lawsuits seeking to strong-arm the press into silence.

He’s been very clear about this goal: In February, DeSantis led a roundtable discussion brainstorming ideas to weaken the press’s First Amendment protections. Flanked by a panel dominated by defamation plaintiffs and lawyers, the Orbánesque governor attacked the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in New York Times v. Sullivan (1964) for, in his words, empowering a media that will “find a way to smear you.”

Sullivan was a historic decision establishing that the government (and, in many cases, private litigants) may not censor the media, political advocates, and the public at large through defamation suits intended to shut down dissenting voices. The case arose out of a Jim Crow-era official’s attempt to silence civil rights protesters. It established that someone accused of making false claims about a public figure regarding a matter of public concern may not be held liable for defamation, unless the statement was made “with knowledge that it was false or with reckless disregard of whether it was false or not.”

Without Sullivan, government officials could potentially use defamation suits to impose financially devastating liability on their political enemies — which is what an Alabama official tried to do in Sullivan itself. And a wealthy individual who disagrees with a newspaper’s coverage could potentially fund lawsuits targeting any false statement made by that newspaper, no matter how minor, until the sheer cost of defending against these suits bankrupts the paper.

New York Times v. Sullivan is a very important ruling that also protects blogs like ours.

 

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Get More Smarter on Wednesday (March 1)

If it’s true that the month of March will come in like a lamb and out like a lion (or vice-versa), what do you make of today? Sort of a lamb/lion hybrid? Let’s Get More Smarter. 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 an audio learner, check out The Get More Smarter Podcast. And don’t forget to find us on Facebook and Twitter.

 

FIRST UP…

 

Here’s a quick look at what’s happening in the Colorado legislature:

♦ House Bill 1215 is targeting excessive and opaque hospital facility fees.

♦ Lawmakers are working on strengthening “Equal Pay for Equal Work” legislation originally passed in 2019.

♦ Legislation to increase auto theft penalties advanced out of a State Senate committee.

♦ 9News reports on proposed legislation to help alleviate a teacher shortage in Colorado that educators say is worse than it has ever been.

 

 As The Denver Post reports, Colorado food banks are bracing for a rush in demand as some pandemic-era benefits come to an end:

Since March 2020, people who qualify for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as food stamps, have received the maximum legal allotment for their household size. Starting Wednesday, the program will revert back to its previous formula, based on household income and certain expenses, such as rent and utilities.

The Colorado Department of Human Services estimated the average person receiving SNAP benefits in the state will lose about $90 in assistance per month, for a roughly $53 million monthly reduction overall. In January, monthly payments averaged about $538 per household in Colorado, and about 553,000 people in more than 291,000 households received food assistance.

The “emergency allotments” were supposed to expire when the federal public health emergency ends in May, but Congress opted to end them early. Nearly 30 million people nationwide will see their food assistance reduced this month. Eighteen states already reduced benefits, affecting about 10 million people.

It sure would have been nice if Congress had renewed Sen. Michael Bennet’schild tax credit” program.

 

Senator John Hickenlooper (D-Denver) today introduced Phil Washington at a confirmation hearing to become the next head of the Federal Aviation Administration. Washington is currently the CEO of Denver International Airport. Click here to view Hickenlooper’s full remarks. 

Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz is doing his best to get in the way.

 

Check out the latest episode of the Get More Smarter Podcast with hosts Jason Bane and Ian Silverii:


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Get More Smarter on Wednesday (Feb. 22)

It’s cold and snowy in much of Colorado, but a massive winter storm sweeping across the United States will focus most of its wrath on the northernmost states. Let’s Get More Smarter. 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 an audio learner, check out The Get More Smarter Podcast. And don’t forget to find us on Facebook and Twitter.

 

FIRST UP…

 

School districts across the state are dealing today with multiple “swatting” incidents. As The Denver Post explains:

Four more unconfirmed incidents are being reported at Colorado high schools after an unconfirmed report of an active shooter was made at Boulder High School and an “unknown incident” happened near Aspen Schools.

So far, police have not found any victims at any of the schools, and almost all the schools have been cleared of any threat.

Schools in Brighton, Canon City, and Alamosa were among those dealing with “swatting” calls today. “Swatting” is the act of making a “prank” call to emergency services in an attempt to force the dispatch of a large number of armed police officers to a particular address.

 

A handful of local elections across the country are making political pundits wonder if a strong performance by Democrats in 2022 is a trend that could continue into 2024:

 

The Washington Post reports on perhaps the most important of these races: The battle for a Supreme Court seat in Wisconsin:

In a race that will determine whether liberals or conservatives control the Wisconsin Supreme Court when it considers the future of the state’s abortion ban, voters narrowed the field to two candidates in a Tuesday primary.

The winners now begin a 42-day sprint to an April 4 general election that is sure to see record spending. If liberals take over the court for the first time in 14 years, they are expected to reverse some GOP policies and could revisit election maps that have given Republicans huge margins in the state legislature.

Milwaukee County Judge Janet Protasiewicz will represent the Democrats in the runoff election, while a bitter fight on the Republican side saw Daniel Kelly emerge as the Republican choice. The election is technically “nonpartisan,” but that doesn’t make it any less of a partisan fight. Democrats are optimistic about winning the runoff election given that the Democrats in the race combined to collect more than 50% of the total votes cast.

For more on all of  these races, check out 270toWin.com.

 

The reason that Democrats appear to be continuing their 2022 success is twofold: Democratic candidates and campaigns are pretty good, and Republican candidates and campaigns are really awful. 

 

Colorado Democrats have unveiled a couple of gun safety proposals. First, as Nick Coltrain reports for The Denver Post:

A proposal to limit all firearm purchases and possession to people 21 and older — including rifles and shotguns — will be the first in a slate of bills Democrats hope will curb gun violence in the state…

…According to the Giffords Law Center, there was a 61% increase in gun suicides among minors between 2011 and 2020 and 18- to 20-year-olds being 17% of known homicide offenders despite being 4% of the general population chief among them. The Giffords Law Center advocates for more stringent gun laws and is named for former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords, who was shot in the head at an event.

The Colorado Sun, meanwhile, reports on legislation to enact a three-day waiting period for gun purchases.

This week Democrats will introduce a bill that would enact a three-day waiting period between when someone purchases a gun and when they can access the weapon, mirroring policies that have been adopted in other states.

“It’s giving people the opportunity to take a breath,” said Sen. Tom Sullivan, a Centennial Democrat whose son, Alex, was murdered in the 2012 Aurora theater shooting and who will be a lead sponsor of the legislation. “We know that when people decide to kill themselves with a firearm, sometimes they spend less than 20 minutes making that decision.

 

Check out the latest episode of the Get More Smarter Podcast, featuring an interview with former Fox 31 reporters and current POLITICO White House Correspondent Eli Stokols:

 

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Podcast: Why Biden and Trump are Still Linked (feat. Eli Stokols)

This week on the Get More Smarter Podcast, POLITICO White House Correspondent Eli Stokols returns to the show to talk with hosts Jason Bane and Ian Silverii about the differences between covering the Trump and Biden administrations; how the White House is dealing with a Republican majority in the House of Representatives; and whether or not President Biden will seek re-election in 2024.

Later, Jason and Ian dig into the disastrous results from the El Paso County Republican Party elections and what it means for the future of the Colorado GOP. We also talk about efforts by Republicans to get others to clean up their mess; and a very strange first television ad in the race for Denver Mayor.

Listen to previous episodes of The Get More Smarter Podcast at GetMoreSmarter.com.

Questions? Comments? Complaints? Let us have it at AngryRants@getmoresmarter.com. Or send emails to jason@getmoresmarter.com or ian@getmoresmarter.com.

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Podcast: Please Stop Yelling at the SOTU (feat. Christy Powell)

It’s her.

This week on the Get More Smarter Podcast, the State of our Union is….WEIRD. Ian Silverii back from the worst seats in the House Gallery because Jason Bane wasn’t invited.

Later, the great Christy Powell joins us with a new game where we try and explain the inexplicable, for prizes (metaphorical ones). Overtly racist pro-claymore mine lobby Rocky Mountain Gun Owners flies its overtly-racist flag. There is still no bottom with Representative Scott Bottoms. And our 8th favorite member of Congress from Colorado, Lauren Boebert, has some loud thoughts about WHO TURNED OFF MY TWITTER MACHINE???

Listen to previous episodes of The Get More Smarter Podcast at GetMoreSmarter.com.

Questions? Comments? Complaints? Let us have it at AngryRants@getmoresmarter.com. Or send emails to jason@getmoresmarter.com or ian@getmoresmarter.com.

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Kyle Clark Gets More Smarter on the GMS Podcast

This week on the Get More Smarter Podcast, 9News anchor/reporter/producer Kyle Clark (“Next With Kyle Clark”) joins the podcast to talk about how to cover a jam-packed Denver Mayoral race; calling a lie a lie (and a liar a liar); and the disservice that journalists do for a community when they “both sides” a story into oblivion.

Later, your hosts Jason Bane and Ian Silverii discuss the amazing ability of Republican Rep. Scott “There is No” Bottoms to find new (and old) ways to cripple the State GOP; and we dive into another segment of “What the Buck?!” as Republican Congressman Ken Buck manages once again to take every position possible within a matter of days.

Listen to previous episodes of The Get More Smarter Podcast at GetMoreSmarter.com.

Questions? Comments? Complaints? Let us have it at AngryRants@getmoresmarter.com. Or send emails to jason@getmoresmarter.com or ian@getmoresmarter.com.

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