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Tag: Commentary

York: Jack Smith, the prosecutor who would never admit what he was doing
Commentary, Washington Examiner

York: Jack Smith, the prosecutor who would never admit what he was doing

By Byron York | Commentary, Washington Examiner JACK SMITH, THE PROSECUTOR WHO WOULD NEVER ADMIT WHAT HE WAS DOING. Just before 1 a.m. Tuesday, the Biden Justice Department’s hand-picked Trump prosecutor, Jack Smith, released a report on the investigation that resulted in the indictment of Donald Trump on four counts involving the 2020 election and the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. The report did not have a lot of new information in it — Smith has poured out his evidence in filing after filing for more than a year — but it did contain Smith’s assessment that he could have convicted Trump had Trump not won the presidency and is thus no longer subject to federal prosecution. What else could Smith say? That he had spent all that time and money, and stirred up the country so m...
Azani: Hostage deal shows Hamas took Trump’s ‘hell to pay’ threat seriously
Commentary, Fox News

Azani: Hostage deal shows Hamas took Trump’s ‘hell to pay’ threat seriously

By Shahar Azani  | Commentary, Fox News Incoming President Donald Trump has repeatedly issued stern warnings to Hamas in the past few weeks, saying that there will be "hell to pay" if Israeli hostages are not released by the time he returns to office on Jan. 20. Wednesday's announcement that an agreement between Israel and Hamas was near, providing for a temporary cease-fire and the release of 33 Israeli hostages, made clear that the "Trump Factor" played a pivotal role in pushing this deal forward. These 33 Israeli hostages lates to be freed under the deal, along with 65 others still held by Hamas in Gaza in sub-human conditions for the past 466 days, were snatched from their homes and their beds on a Saturday morning of the Jewish holiday of Simchat on October 7, 202...
Gaines: You paid about $24.5 million in tax dollars to Denver to address the city’s homelessness
Colorado Accountability Project, Commentary

Gaines: You paid about $24.5 million in tax dollars to Denver to address the city’s homelessness

By Cory Gaines | Commentary, Colorado Accountability Project A CORA request came back recently (part of digging into a reader question) that illustrates the importance of paying attention to what your legislature is doing — in particular, paying attention to those seemingly-unimportant, unsexy bills. The reader had asked how much money Denver has spent on homelessness. I'm not even going to pretend that I can find or relate a full accounting to you. Not only are there different streams of money, how you do the counting matters. I've seen headlines that put the number at $155 million spent by Denver. Okay. Personal experience, making repeated requests to Denver officials for information on the topic have gone unanswered. Let's go with that number, though I wonder whether the lack o...
Walcher: The unproud Western legacy of Jimmy Carter
Commentary, Greg Walcher

Walcher: The unproud Western legacy of Jimmy Carter

By Greg Walcher | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice Alaska comprises nearly 20 percent of the entire U.S. at more than 665,000 square-miles, and is the richest state in natural resources. Yet it remains the most sparsely populated state, partly because of its isolation and weather, but largely because the federal government owns most of it: 406,000 square-miles. The U.S. purchased Alaska in 1867 specifically because of its vast resources, especially energy, which benefited the state and country for decades. But in the late 1970s, just after completion of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline, the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act was passed, with the goal of preventing further development of those resources. It set aside 245,312.5 square-miles (157 million acres) for specia...
McMahon: Mayor Johnston, the ‘reality’ of downtown Denver is it is not safe
Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice

McMahon: Mayor Johnston, the ‘reality’ of downtown Denver is it is not safe

By Patricia McMahon | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice I don’t typically speak out about issues like this, because I’ve always believed that complaints without solutions don’t accomplish much. But after watching Mayor Mike Johnston’s press conference on Monday, I felt compelled to respond. His comment about the recent stabbings on the 16th Street Mall struck a nerve. He said, “I think there is a question of the difference between perception and reality, and that is part of what we have to address. I have folks who say, ‘I don’t like to come downtown. I don’t feel safe.’ And I say, ‘Really, when did you come downtown last?’ And they say 2021. I say, ‘Okay, well, it is a very different downtown than what you saw three years ago.’” Mayor Johnston, I work downtown at 17th and...
Lundberg: Should we expect more of the same in 75th legislative session?
Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice

Lundberg: Should we expect more of the same in 75th legislative session?

By Kevin Lundberg | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice As Colorado’s 2025 legislative session began, the governor and leaders in both houses laid out their agendas. The legislators’ remarks were somewhat predictable, talking about unity and cooperation — a good place to start, but more lip service than reality.  The Republican minority leaders, to their credit, also spoke up for the people of Colorado. They emphasized the government policies that have driven up the cost of living to impossible levels for far too many families. Under Polis and one party rule in the legislature, intrusive and far too expensive fees and regulations have ratcheted up costs and made it harder to run a business, buy a home or even drive a car. Every year, more laws compound the complexities of lif...
Dickerson: Fighting off the ‘Black Pill’ burnout to make a difference in legislation
Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice

Dickerson: Fighting off the ‘Black Pill’ burnout to make a difference in legislation

By Mike Dickerson | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice On the heels of a contentious presidential election in 2024, Colorado has transitioned into a state legislative session filled to the brim with bills all but guaranteed to further the divide between the political Left and Right. Instead of addressing the near billion-dollar budget deficit, the Democrat majority began the session with Senate Bill 25-003, a draconian firearms bill by Sen. Tom Sullivan. It will not stand up to constitutional scrutiny, and whispers of later bills that will attack TABOR protections (Rep. Sean Camacho, we’re watching you). It’s no wonder many, myself included, are dealing with the dreaded Black Pill burn out. There has been no break, seemingly for ages, to the overwhelming number of governmental...
Garbo: Senate Bill 25-003 is a blatant assault on the 2nd Amendment and small business
Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice

Garbo: Senate Bill 25-003 is a blatant assault on the 2nd Amendment and small business

By C. J. Garbo | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice The introduction of Colorado’s Senate Bill 25-003, which seeks to prohibit the manufacture, distribution, transfer, sale and purchase of "specified semiautomatic firearms" and "rapid-fire devices," is nothing short of a direct assault on the 2nd Amendment. This misguided bill not only undermines the constitutional rights of law-abiding citizens, but also threatens the economic livelihoods of small businesses across Colorado. At its core, this legislation represents a dangerous precedent — the government deciding which constitutionally protected items are deemed permissible for public ownership. The language in the bill is alarmingly broad, targeting semiautomatic rifles, shotguns and even gas-operated semiautomatic handg...
Devotional: Putting on the armor of belief, truth and trust as leaders
Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice

Devotional: Putting on the armor of belief, truth and trust as leaders

By Drake Hunter | Devotional, Rocky Mountain Voice Leadership is a calling each of us lives out, whether consciously or not. Every choice we make and every step we take reflects our internal compass and reveals what we value. Leadership isn’t about titles or offices; it’s about influence guided by belief, truth and trust. The Apostle Paul reminds us in Ephesians 6:10-18 that true leadership is rooted in spiritual readiness, equipped with the full Armor of God. Our beliefs are the foundation of leadership. They shape how we view the world and influence the decisions we make. Paul describes the Belt of Truth as an essential piece of the Armor of God, saying, “Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist” (Ephesians 6:14). The Belt of Truth grounds us in God’s re...
Gaines: A legislative directory to reach anyone in the 75th session
Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice

Gaines: A legislative directory to reach anyone in the 75th session

By Cory Gaines | Commentary, Colorado Accountability Project A reader was kind enough to make a directory of legislators in an Excel Spreadsheet. It's linked below and feel free to make a local copy (and share). Sheet 1 is senators, sheet 2 is representatives. It lists phones, emails, committee memberships, party affiliation, and district. The other quite helpful thing here is that you can copy and paste the emails. I have more than once used this spreadsheet to email every. single. legislator. It's even got some "hidden tabs" with voting machine passwords!** A great big thanks to the person — what must have been a lot of time to produce this and share it! **It doesn't. I don't have the kind of political juice to avoid any sort of legal entanglement that comes with tha...