The Pueblo Chieftain's Charles Ashby on Tuesday became the latest Colorado Capitol reporter to be laid off.
Ashby was the de facto dean of the Statehouse press corps and a member of the Colorado Capitol Press Association Executive Board. He had covered Colorado politics and government for several years with the Chieftain and the Durango Herald.
He was laid off on Tuesday morning prior to President Barack Obama's inaugural address.
Ashby was better-sourced and was more well-known in state government than perhaps any other Statehouse reporter. He broke several major stories last year alone, including a explosive statement from Republican presidential nominee John McCain that he wanted to renegotiate the 1922 Colorado River Compact.
Ashby is only the latest Colorado political reporter to be laid off. Since the 2008 general election, reporters at the Colorado Independent and PolitickerCO.com have also been laid off. The Rocky Mountain News is also in danger of closing its doors altogether.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Charles Ashby latest Statehouse press corps casualty
Monday, January 19, 2009
Chambers, Gholston in running for state GOP vice-chair
While Dick Wadhams seems assured to be re-elected Colorado Republican Party chair during party elections next month, the election for vice-chair appears to be competitive.
Republican activist Leondray Gholston and Arapahoe County GOP Chair Nathan Chambers are both seeking to be elected vice-chair, according to state GOP general counsel Ryan Call.
Chambers, a Denver attorney, is well-known among Front Range Republicans as Arapahoe County GOP chair. He's married to 18th Judicial District Attorney Carole Chambers.
By comparison, Gholston is a relative unknown, though he turned some heads last summer at the state GOP convention when he delivered a rousing speech as a candidate for RNC committeeman. Gholston came in second in that race to former interim state treasurer Mark Hillman, though he shocked many by winning more votes than state Sen. Dave Schultheis (R-Colorado Springs).
Colorado Republican Party elections will be held in March.
Mile High Politics is back!
My deepest apologies for the three-week hiatus from Mile High Politics. A number of factors -- holiday vacation, lack of Internet, and the job search, among other things -- kept me away from this blog until now.
I'm sure I've lost a significant portion of my readership because of the downtime, but I'll be posting on Colorado politics from now on (at least until I'm again paid to cover Colorado politics).
Thanks, as always, for reading! Don't forget to keep those comments and tips coming!
Jeremy
Call officially in the running for Denver GOP chair
Colorado Republican Party general counsel Ryan Call officially announced to Mile High Politics on Monday that he's running for chair of the Denver Republican Party.
Call said in talking with precinct captains, he didn't hear of anyone planning to run against him during Denver GOP elections on Feb. 7. But he added that he couldn't count out a last-minute challenge "from left field" by a Ron Paul supporter or another candidate.
The Denver Republicans will elect party officers Feb. 7 at Hill Middle School, 451 Clermont St. Registration will start at 9 a.m., he said; the meeting will convene at 10 a.m.
In addition to party chair, the Denver GOP will also elect three vice-chairs and a secretary. Until now, the Denver GOP has only elected a single vice-chair.
Two candidates for vice-chair will be blogger/2008 HD-6 GOP nominee Joshua Sharf and Restaurant Kevin Taylor general manager Toby Hurd, according to Call.
Call said a member of a local college Republicans group will likely be tabbed for a vice-chairmanship or party secretary.
Call, 33, said the number of young people seeking party leadership positions was not a coincidence.
"We recognize that if we don’t reach out to and don’t provide leadership positions to that next generation, the party will struggle," Call said.
As chair, Call said he wants the party to focus on increasing voter turnout in Denver for the 2010 Republican candidates for U.S. Senate and governor.
Call also said he wants to challenge every Denver state legislative race in 2010, and said that Republicans could pick up a couple victories in the traditionally Democratic city.
"We want to make the Democrats work for it," Call said. "With the right kind of candidate, right kind of message, we can pick up one and maybe even a couple of seats in Denver."
Call said he'll remain state party counsel if he's elected Denver GOP chair.
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
DeGette withdraws from U.S. Senate consideration
U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Denver) told Gov. Bill Ritter on Tuesday that she's withdrawing her name Tuesday from consideration for Ken Salazar's U.S. Senate seat.
“After serious deliberation and consultation with my family, supporters, and colleagues in Congress, I have concluded I can best serve the citizens of the First Congressional District and Colorado from my current leadership positions in the House of Representatives," DeGette said in a statement.
When Salazar was appointed U.S. Secretary of the Interior earlier this month, DeGette -- with the help of some allies -- drew attention to herself as a possible successor. But DeGette never was a frontrunner for the position.
Monday, December 22, 2008
MHP on Christmas break
I'll be headed to Chicago for Christmas, so Mile High Politics will be on hiatus until Friday. Hopefully I won't miss out on too much political news, though rumor has it that Illinois has had some political issues of its own to deal with as of late.
Thanks, as always, for reading. Have a wonderful holiday!
Jeremy
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Peña says he doesn't want U.S. Senate appointment
"Many names, including mine, have been mentioned as possible candidates to fill the United States Senate seat being vacated by my friend Ken Salazar. I am enormously proud that Ken has been appointed to serve as our nation’s next Interior Secretary, a position I am certain he will carry out with distinction," Peña said in the release.
"I have, however, advised Gov. Ritter that I do not wish to be considered as a candidate for the critical Colorado United States Senate position," Peña continued in the release. "It is my desire to remain in Colorado and to continue to advise and assist President-Elect Obama in any way I can from my home in Denver. I wish to thank the many friends and supporters who have expressed their support for my candidacy."
Salazar is resigning from the Senate to become Obama's U.S. Secretary of the Interior.
Friday, December 19, 2008
Penry says Salazar departure offers "real opportunity" for GOP to take Senate seat
Colorado Senate Minority Leader Josh Penry (R-Fruita) told Mile High Politics on Friday that U.S. Sen. Ken Salazar's departure from the U.S. Senate to become U.S. Secretary of the Interior will "clearly" open up the 2010 senate race.
"I think (Salazar) would've withstood a serious challenge one way or the other, because in this political environment you never write off a Senate seat in a competitive state," Penry said. "Having said that, running against any one of the names that have been batted around -- I think that's a real opportunity."
Salazar's successor, appointed by Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter, will likely be the Democratic U.S. Senate nominee in 2010. Names being talked about as possible appointees include Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper, U.S. Rep. Ed Perlmutter (D-Golden), U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Denver), and U.S. Rep. John Salazar (D-Manassa).
Penry's often been talked about as a candidate for statewide office -- especially for governor and the 3rd Congressional District if John Salazar leaves.
Asked how he thought Salazar would do as U.S. Secretary of the Interior, Penry said the Denver Democrat is "incredibly capable.
"He's very smart, he's a policy wonk, and he has a keen nose for sort of the center of public opinion. He tries to position himself there," Penry said. "(But) on natural resource issues in Colorado, he hasn't always been in the middle. On natural gas drilling, for example, I think he's too often sort of fallen in line with the no-drill crowd. I just hope that that energy independence, the importance of energy jobs in rural western states will play prominently in his mind as he heads into the new position."
Penry also said Ritter made "a good choice" in appointing outgoing state Rep. Bernie Buescher (D-Grand Junction) as Colorado secretary of state over outgoing House Speaker Andrew Romanoff (D-Denver) and outgoing state Sen. Ken Gordon (D-Denver).
"I knew all three of the finalists very well, but Bernie had attributes that made him an excellent choice for this governor," Penry said. "So congratulations to him."
Where things stand now with the legislative complaints
A legislative complaint filed against a lobbyist for allegedly attempting to influence the election for House minority leader will move forward, a legislative committee announced Friday.
Meanwhile, a second complaint filed by House Minority Leader Mike May (R-Parker) against a Republican House member is in limbo, as the House Speaker, the House majority leader and the House minority leader must decide whether to convene a special committee to hear the complaint.
The complaint against the lobbyist, announced by the executive committee of the Legislative Council on Friday morning, involves concerns that the lobbyist offered campaign contributions to House GOP members in connection with supporting Assistant House Minority Leader David Balmer (R-Centennial) for minority leader.
The Colorado Chiropractic Association and its lobbyist, Erik Groves, have been named in the media and by insiders as being involved with that complaint.
Balmer and state Rep. Frank McNulty (R-Highlands Ranch) were set to face off for House minority leader after May announced earlier this month that he was resigning to tend to his hotel business. But May said Friday that he’ll postpone his resignation “indefinitely” to deal with the ethics complaints and state budget concerns.
Now, that lobbyist complaint will be heard by a special committee consisting of one member appointed by the House Speaker, one member appointed by the Senate President, and one member selected by the two appointees.
May said penalties for the complaint against the lobbyist -- who he didn’t name -- could be as severe as revoking the lobbyist’s registration.
Legislative Legal Services said Friday that the lobbyist complaint would be made public as soon as Friday afternoon after procedural formalities -- such as notifying everyone named in the complaint -- were completed.
A separate but related complaint filed by May seeks to find whether a House GOP member was involved with or coordinated that lobbying, May said to reporters Friday.
That complaint, under legislative rules, goes to House Speaker Andrew Romanoff (D-Denver), House Majority Leader Alice Madden (D-Boulder) and Minority Leader May to consider. If two of the three approve it -– or, rather, one of the two besides May, who filed the complaint –- a special committee will be convened to consider the charges.
Romanoff’s office declined to comment on whether a special committee has been approved or not.
Sources told Mile High Politics that a third complaint had been filed against former state GOP legal counsel John Zakhem for offering campaign contributions in connection with electing Balmer House minority leader. But no mention was made of that complaint by the Legislative Council's executive committee Friday.
May postpones resignation "indefinitely"
State House Minority Leader Mike May said Friday that he's postponing his resignation "indefinitely" because of budget concerns and two ethics complaints against a GOP legislator and a lobbyist.
May didn't say how long he would stay in the legislature, but he said he'd be around for the 2009 legislative session "unless a magic wand is waved and all these things are resolved."
May had planned to resign this week to tend to his hotel business.
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