Like a demolition team swinging a sledgehammer, legislators intent on purging Native American mascots from Colorado schools smashed their opposition with little consideration of the wreckage they were creating.  So certain of the righteousness of their cause, they denied even mere consideration to the communities upon which they imposed their will.

Two of Colorado’s smallest districts – Arickaree (103 students) and Mountain Valley (153 students) – are being severely harmed by this legislation which isn’t just about mascots but instead prohibits any sort of Native American imagery “used as a mascot, nickname, logo, letterhead or team name” by a school.

Surrounded by prairie and farmland on the plains of Washington County, Arickaree School is one of Colorado’s few remaining country schools, located between Cope (population 230) and Anton (155).

Arickaree derives its name from the Arikaree River, which begins near Cope and was named for the Arikara tribe.  Given its location and history, it’s hardly surprising that the community selected “Indians” as the name for school teams.  Critics could just as easily argue that ignoring the area’s Indian heritage – by changing the name to, say, Arickaree Guardians – would be disrespectful, too. (more…)

Republicans must confront the “elephant in the room” – former President Trump’s persistent claims that the 2020 election was stolen.  Many Republicans believe him.  Most Americans do not.

Trump recently said Republicans “will not be voting in ’22 or ‘24” unless the “Election Fraud of 2020” is “solved.”  Democrats laughed and cheered!  They know the one thing that can rescue them from the growing anti-Biden backlash is Republicans foolishly sitting out elections.

All election complaints are not created equal, so let’s consider them on their own merits. (more…)

On Sept. 11, 2001, Islamic terrorists on a murder-suicide mission flew commercial airliners into the two World Trade Center towers in New York City and the Pentagon in Washington.  A fourth crashed in a Pennsylvania field.

The attacks against our country unified Americans in a sense that’s almost inconceivable today.  Together, we mourned the 2,600 people killed in the collapse of the twin towers and were horrified to watch many leap to their deaths to escape the inferno.

We celebrated the courage of the emergency workers who rushed into the burning towers to save lives, and we grieved for 400 who died while bravely working to save others.

We admired the selfless courage of the passengers on United Flight 93 who, having learned that other planes had been crashed into buildings, confronted their hijackers, resulting in their plane ultimately crashing in a Pennsylvania field killing those on board but not killing hundreds more at the U.S. Capitol, its intended target.

Today, nearly one in three Americans has only a textbook knowledge of that day.  Either they were not yet born or were too young to remember it.  They should learn from us that  9/11 was a tragedy that pulled Americans together and often brought out the best in us. (more…)

Elections are about addition.

In Colorado, neither Republicans nor Democrats can win an election purely by turning out their own base.  To win, each party must add to its own turnout by persuading voters who are unaffiliated, members of “minor” parties or disaffected members of the rival major party.

Consider the share of ballots cast by Republicans and Democrats in the past three general elections:

• In 2016, Republicans cast 33.4% of all ballots to Democrats’ 32.7%.
• In 2018, Republicans trailed 31%-33%.
• In 2020, Republicans trailed 29%-31%.

In the last two elections, Republicans running statewide have started with a turnout deficit, so they needed to persuade more unaffiliated voters than did their Democrat opponents.  But instead of improving their strategy to win the hearts and minds of unaffiliated votes (UAVs), Republicans have been falling further behind.  Barack Obama won 60% of UAVs in 2012; Hillary Clinton won 62% in 2016; Jared Polis won 65% of UAVs in 2018; and Joe Biden won 65% of UAVs in 2020. (more…)

Governor Jared Polis and Progressive Democrat majorities at the State Capitol have spent the past three years ignoring clearly-expressed voices of Colorado voters on tax and economic issues.  In fact, Progressive Democrats’ disregard for many of the same voters who elected them has become so brazen that they seem to be daring voters to hold them accountable.

With commanding majorities of 41-24 in the House of Representatives and 20-15 in the state Senate, it’s understandable that Democrats are developing a sense of invincibility.

However, it remains to be seen if the Democrats’ recent surge – in 2017, they held a 34-31 margin in the House, while Republicans had an 18-17 majority in the Senate – is due to their own popularity or because Donald Trump irritated many Colorado voters. (more…)

As we observe the anniversary of the Declaration of Independence this Fourth of July, we should consider the unique form of government for which our Founding Fathers chose to risk “their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor” against the seemingly-invincible British.

The definitive passage in the Declaration reads:  “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these rights are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.  That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.”

In these 57 words, the Founders established that:

• Our rights — better understood as “freedoms” — are given to us by a power higher than government. No matter what you believe about the origins of life, it is undeniable that government did not give us life.
• Government’s legitimate purpose is to protect the rights of the people. Just as government did not give us life, it did not give us our rights.
• Because freedom is ours as individuals, government’s only legitimate powers are those which the people choose to allow.

(more…)

Reporters who cover the State Capitol recently learned that the House Republicans’ media office keeps a list of which media outlets are considered “unfriendly.”  To some in media, this was newsworthy.

To anyone on the center-right, this is entirely unremarkable.  It is remarkable that any astute reporter could be truly surprised.

Republicans still hold to the quaint notion that a reporter’s job is to lay out facts and responsibly present arguments by both sides.  Increasingly, however, reporters seem uninterested in the work of examining both sides, especially if doing so puts Democrats in a bad light. (more…)

Horses on our farm didn’t get the memo about COVID-19 so in the past year we’ve traveled with them through blue and red states where an inescapable pattern distinguishes rural communities from suburban or urban ones.

Near large cities, people reacted to the pandemic with purposeful social distancing and meticulous wearing of masks.  But in rural towns, evidence of a pandemic was typically two-fold: food-service and store clerks wore masks as directed by employers and advisory mask signs were both ubiquitously posted and frequently ignored.

This isn’t to argue that either approach is better but rather that people and communities can be trusted to adapt to our own unique situations.

This spring, rural Coloradans are increasingly fed up with the onslaught of top-down directives that impose Denver-Boulder “solutions” on every community.  These mandates disregard Coloradans’ competency to govern ourselves.  Even though some have been derailed, the Legislature’s relentless drumbeat of paternalism is creating a swelling tide of resentment.

The assault on agriculture by lawmakers and activists with no stake in our business is especially infuriating. (more…)