State

Garbo: Fear Is Not a Strategy And It’s Killing the Republican Party

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There’s a growing tone in parts of the Republican Party – loud, bitter, and angry. It presents itself as strength, as boldness, as “fighting back.” But listen closely, and you’ll hear something else beneath it: fear.

You see it in the endless purity tests.

In the public shaming of fellow Republicans.

In the weaponized use of the word “RINO.”

In the obsession with rooting people out instead of bringing people in.

This isn’t what strength looks like. It’s what fear looks like when it’s dressed in patriotism and broadcast through a megaphone.

Garbo: Fear Is Not a Strategy And It’s Killing the Republican Party Read More »

Two CVRs, one pattern: Arapahoe County rewrote its election record, critics say–and no one’s accountable

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Arapahoe County quietly replaced its 2020 general election cast vote record (CVR) in early 2025 – years after the election was certified. The change came without public notice, audit, or oversight. The reason? A Yale professor raised concerns about a strange pattern in the data.

That pattern, according to a growing number of analysts and lawmakers, was more than just strange. It was statistically impossible.

“This is like flipping a coin 3,500 times and getting heads every time,” said Dr. Walter Daugherity, a Harvard-trained computer scientist who presented forensic findings at a press conference held Tuesday on the west steps of the Colorado Capitol. RMV covered the lead-up to the event in a story titled Analyst to reveal altered Arapahoe 2020 CVR at Tuesday Capitol press conference.

Two CVRs, one pattern: Arapahoe County rewrote its election record, critics say–and no one’s accountable Read More »

Gabel: State land board pick once cheered eco-terrorism—now she could control 2.8M acres

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Much of the land around Vail that is now developed as resorts, ski slopes, and golf courses first belonged to sheep ranchers with Greek roots. By the 1960s, development was pushing them out of the valley and activists were bemoaning the negative effect on wildlife that took place when livestock grazing was replaced by progress.

In 1998, Vail Resorts was on the cusp of developing 2,2oo acres of backcountry. The plan riled activists, especially those devoted to preserving the habitats of elk and Canada Lynx that thrived before development came to town.

Members of the radical Earth Liberation Front (ELF) and the now-defunct Rocky Mountain Animal Defense (RMAD) marched and chanted through Vail with police on their tails, wielding decibel meters. According to 1998 reporting by Alex Markels, RMAD activists spotted a woman emerging from a fur salon wearing a mink coat, and an altercation ensued. An RMAD member told the woman, “You’d look a lot sexier without 65 dead animals on your back!”

Gabel: State land board pick once cheered eco-terrorism—now she could control 2.8M acres Read More »

Activism over science? Proposed ballot measure #82 would gut CPW authority, opponents say

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Critics across Colorado’s hunting, ranching, and wildlife management communities are sounding the alarm over a 2026 ballot measure they say could upend science-based conservation and rural land rights.

Initiative #82, called the Colorado Wildlife and Biodiversity Protection Act, would create a new regulatory body, the Wildlife and Ecosystem Conservation Commission (WECC). The commission would hold far-reaching powers over endangered species protections, wildlife corridors, land use, and even Colorado Parks and Wildlife itself.

Activism over science? Proposed ballot measure #82 would gut CPW authority, opponents say Read More »

SB276 would fine deputies $50K for helping ICE—Sheriff Mikesell says enough is enough

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Teller County Sheriff Jason Mikesell is so concerned about the effects of Colorado Senate Bill #276 he appealed in a letter to Immigration and Customs Enforcement last week.

The bill, if signed by Gov. Jared Polis, prohibits law enforcement from sharing information with the federal government about illegal immigrants who have committed crimes.

At issue is the bill’s interference with Mikesell’s 287(g) agreement with ICE.

SB276 would fine deputies $50K for helping ICE—Sheriff Mikesell says enough is enough Read More »

Gazette editorial board: Colorado’s green agenda is pricing out homeowners

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Colorado’s governor and Legislature may claim they want more affordable housing — but they aren’t about to let it stand in the way of their headlong rush toward green energy. Their zero-emissions-at-any-cost dogma seems to trump all other policy priorities.

Which helps explain why the state’s Energy Code Board is poised to impose extreme energy standards — even more stringent than those already in effect — on new home construction. The pending rules would turn the screws on wide-ranging aspects of the building code — and are projected to add tens of thousands of dollars to the cost of a new home in Colorado.

Gazette editorial board: Colorado’s green agenda is pricing out homeowners Read More »

Montrose Commissioner Pond: The Constitution isn’t a suggestion—it’s a line in the sand

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Something is happening in Colorado. You can feel it.

Not on the surface, but beneath it. Beneath the silence. Beneath the carefully packaged language of equity, sustainability, and progress. We are being conditioned. Slowly, quietly, and deliberately.

Conditioned to comply. Conditioned to accept change without question. Conditioned to believe that liberty is negotiable, that tradition is outdated, and that resistance is somehow wrong.

But here’s the truth they don’t want you to hear.

The Constitution doesn’t need to evolve. It needs to be defended.

Montrose Commissioner Pond: The Constitution isn’t a suggestion—it’s a line in the sand Read More »

O’Donnell: Behind the headlines, Colorado’s job growth tells a different story

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Last week, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released April 2025 job creation numbers by state.

The national numbers were released earlier in the month and for the nation as a whole 177,000 new jobs were created in April, and this was considered a “solid” number by those who consider themselves experts. Colorado’s share of that total was 8,400 and those same experts consider that an “exceptionally solid” month for Colorado. Somewhere, champagne corks were likely popped.

Nonetheless, behind every number is a story and that story for Colorado is quite revealing.

O’Donnell: Behind the headlines, Colorado’s job growth tells a different story Read More »

Tech industry outcry stalls Colorado’s AI law as Congress weighs ban on state regulations

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DENVER — U.S. Congress is considering banning states from regulating artificial intelligence for the next 10 years, adding uncertainty to the future of Colorado’s AI law.

In 2024, Colorado became the first state to pass a comprehensive law regulating artificial intelligence.

“A.I. in general is just changing so rapidly all the time,” said State Rep. Brianna Titone, one of the prime sponsors of Senate Bill 24-205.

Tech industry outcry stalls Colorado’s AI law as Congress weighs ban on state regulations Read More »

Gaines: Colorado Public Radio takes a swing at ‘climate realism’—and misses

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Have you heard of climate realism?  It varies depending on who uses it, but in general the term refers to acknowledging that while fossil fuels are contributing to climate change, it’s not an existential threat demanding immediate, drastic action.  It describes a view that the proper response to climate change is mitigating the downside while understanding that reliable, abundant and affordable energy from fossil fuels prevents a whole host of problems we could have if we simply left them in the ground.

Gaines: Colorado Public Radio takes a swing at ‘climate realism’—and misses Read More »