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A lot of people want to run for office in Colorado this year. Here’s what it takes to actually get on the ballot.
Approved, State, The Colorado Sun

A lot of people want to run for office in Colorado this year. Here’s what it takes to actually get on the ballot.

By Sandra Fish, Colorado Sun The 2024 general election is less than 11 months away and a wave of candidates are filing paperwork to run in Colorado’s eight congressional districts, 16 state Senate districts and 65 House districts. But jumping into a race doesn’t guarantee someone a spot on the ballot for the June 25 primary, let alone the Nov. 5 general election. Candidates must spend big money to qualify for the contest, or they can try to pick up enough support from members of their political party through what’s called the caucus and assembly process. The mad dash to make the ballot is underway, as the primary ballot must be set by April 26.  READ FULL ARTICLE ON COLORADOSUN.COM
Denver mayor bemoans potential $180 million impact of immigrant influx
Approved, denvergazette.com, Downtown Denver, Local

Denver mayor bemoans potential $180 million impact of immigrant influx

By Jenny Goldsberry, Washington Examiner | SOURCE: THE GAZETTE Colorado Mayor Mike Johnston warned that without federal intervention, it could cost the sanctuary city of Denver $180 million to care for the recent influx of immigrants. Johnson, who is in Washington attending the U.S. Conference of Mayors, said his visit also included a meeting with President Joe Biden. The Democratic mayor said over 36,000 immigrants have arrived in his city since December 2022. "There are heartbreaking stories every day, but we also know without federal support and without federal action, the impact on a city like Denver, this would be $180 million impact on our budget in 2024," Johnston told MSNBC's José Díaz-Balart Reports Friday. "That’s more than 10% of our entire city...
How Obama repaid Biden in 2020 after anointing Clinton as his successor in 2016: Book
Approved, denvergazette.com, National

How Obama repaid Biden in 2020 after anointing Clinton as his successor in 2016: Book

By Rachel Schilke, Washington Examiner | SOURCE: THE GAZETTE A new book exploring the future of the Democratic Party details how former President Barack Obama helped President Joe Biden secure the 2020 nomination after backing Hillary Clinton in 2016. Hunter Walker and Luppe B. Luppen, authors of The Truce: Progressives, Centrists, and the Future of the Democratic Party, said sources told them Biden called Obama after it became clear Clinton would lose to Donald Trump in 2016 to say, “Boss, I told you. People just don’t like her.”  The book, which will be released on Tuesday, claims Obama told Biden to stand down in the 2016 election but pushed Democrats out of the 2020 primary to pave the way for Biden to become the...
Former President Trump Challenges Supreme Court Decision in Colorado Ballot Case, Warns of ‘Chaos and Bedlam’
Approved, National, thelobby-co.com

Former President Trump Challenges Supreme Court Decision in Colorado Ballot Case, Warns of ‘Chaos and Bedlam’

SOURCE: THELOBBY-CO.COM Former President Trump filed a brief with the Supreme Court on Thursday, challenging a decision by Colorado's highest court to remove him from the state's 2024 ballot. Trump urged the justices to swiftly and decisively end efforts to disqualify him from the presidential ballot in Colorado. Trump argues that these efforts not only threaten to disenfranchise tens of millions of Americans but also have the potential to unleash ‘chaos and bedlam’ across the nation. In his main filing to the court ahead of the oral arguments on February 8, Trump seeks to overturn a bombshell decision by a Colorado court that could keep him off the state's ballot due to his alleged connection to the violence at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. Despite the upcoming argu...
Tim Scott will endorse Donald Trump in blow to Nikki Haley
Approved, denvergazette.com, National

Tim Scott will endorse Donald Trump in blow to Nikki Haley

By Julia Johnson, Washington Examiner | SOURCE: THE GAZETTE Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) will endorse former President Donald Trump for the Republican presidential nomination on Friday in a blow to his fellow South Carolinian, former Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley. Scott, who ended his own presidential bid in the fall, plans to endorse Trump at a rally in New Hampshire, just days before the state's first-in-the-nation primary, a source familiar confirmed to the Washington Examiner. The choice to back Trump rather than Haley is particularly significant, given Haley and Scott's history. When Haley was governor of South Carolina, she appointed Scott to the Senate in 2012 to replace former Sen. Jim DeMint. READ FULL ARTICLE ON GAZETTE.COM
GAO: USDA needs to improve tracking of foreign farmland ownership
Approved, Local, Rural Colorado, thefencepost.com

GAO: USDA needs to improve tracking of foreign farmland ownership

Hagstrom Report  | SOURCE: THE FENCE POST The Agriculture Department needs to collect, track, and better share data on foreign farmland ownership, but needs more money from Congress to do that, the Government Accountability Office said in a report released Thursday. GAO complained that USDA annually compiles its data from paper forms filed with headquarters or county offices, but Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has said that to make the system more accurate counties across the country would need to develop detailed systems to report to USDA. READ FULL ARTICLE ON THEFENCEPOST.COM
Colorado’s Flawed Vacancy Committee System Raises Concerns Over Representation As Democrats Choose New Representative For HD31 By Just 9 Votes
Approved, Denver Metro, Local, thelobby-co.com

Colorado’s Flawed Vacancy Committee System Raises Concerns Over Representation As Democrats Choose New Representative For HD31 By Just 9 Votes

SOURCE: THELOBBY-CO.COM Once again showing the flaws in Colorado's vacancy committee system, former Thornton City Council member Julia Marvin has been chosen to represent Colorado House District 31 by just nine votes. This Thursday night tiny election highlights the undemocratic nature of a system that allows just a few political party insiders to handpick a representative for hundreds of thousands of Coloradans. Colorado State House Representative-select Julia Marvin Marvin, who currently serves on the Thornton City Council, won with a 9-7 vote over Jacque Phillips. The decision by just nine votes that she will now “represent” such a large district demonstrates the flaws in Colorado’s vacancy committee system. Marvin is the 29th member of the current Legislature initial...
EDITORIAL: Pot stores close as problems mount
Approved, El Paso County, gazette.com, Local

EDITORIAL: Pot stores close as problems mount

By Wayne Laugesen | SOURCE: THE GAZETTE Colorado Springs’ elected leaders and voters have been wise to reject marijuana, an increasingly unpopular “recreation” option. They did not fall for the false buzz of Big Marijuana, which promised reductions in crime, less illicit drug use and tax manna for the common good. Consequently, Colorado Springs appears progressive and alive as so many other large cities go to pot with homelessness, crime and open-air drug use. By rejecting recreational sales, Springs voters put themselves ahead of the curve. Pot is no longer the next big thing. It could become the next bad fad of the past, lingering in the margins with gangsta rap and skinny jeans. Springs voters most recently said “no” to commercial drug sales in November 2022 by a margin of n...