The Colorado Independent

Friday, February 10th, 2012

Government Accountability/Reform

Colorado Rep. Polis leads House effort to reform No Child Left Behind

By | 02.09.12 | 11:59 am

On the heels of news that the Obama administration has granted Colorado and 10 other states a waiver from the controversial requirements of the federal No Child Left Behind education law, Colorado Democratic Congressman Jared Polis introduced a House version of the Growth to Excellence Act (H.R. 3845) written by Colorado U.S. Senators Michael Bennet and Mark Udall. The bill would rework No Child Left Behind by granting greater authority to the states to develop student achievement and school accountability policies.

Ahead of caucuses, major Colorado tea party group promotes Ron Paul

By | 02.07.12 | 11:19 am

In advance of the Colorado Republican caucuses tonight, the Northern Colorado Tea Party– perhaps the most influential of the state’s many tea party groups– isn’t backing away from its constitutional conservative mission. Far from recommending members warm up to presidential frontrunner Mitt Romney, the group has unofficially thrown its support behind libertarian Congressman Ron Paul.

Pro-marijuana Montana legislator investigated by DEA

By | 02.06.12 | 5:02 am

In a case that has implications for Colorado and other medical marijuana states, Montana legislator Diane Sands has come under investigation by the federal Drug Enforcement Administration, but she doesn’t know why. She suspects the investigation is related to her advocacy of liberalized marijuana laws.

Colorado’s Udall, Bennet weigh response to evolving Komen-Planned Parenthood funding clash

By | 02.02.12 | 3:06 pm

Colorado U.S. Senators Mark Udall and Michael Bennet are penning a joint letter on the evolving relationship between the Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation and Planned Parenthood to reflect the unique situation developing between the organizations in Colorado, staffers told the Colorado Independent.

Colorado Legislature tightens campaign finance rules

By | 01.30.12 | 3:46 pm

The Colorado Legislature acted quickly and in bipartisan fashion today to require biweekly campaign finance disclosures in advance of this year’s primary elections in June.

Mitch Daniels, the State of the Union address and deficit realities

By | 01.24.12 | 12:03 pm

Popular Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels has been chosen to deliver the Republican response to President Obama’s State of the Union address tonight. Ideas about how best the government might respond to the limping economy and tackle the enormous federal budget deficit are sure to feature prominently in both speeches. Daniels comes to such a discussion with baggage, however, having head the Office of Management and Budget under George W. Bush from 2001 to 2003, when the projected budget surplus of $236 billion ran down the sink hole to become a $400 billion deficit.

Colorado lawmakers won’t push ‘proof of citizenship’ bill this session

By | 01.23.12 | 5:00 am

Colorado lawmakers who last year introduced legislation to address claims that perhaps thousands of undocumented residents had voted in the state will not re-introduce the legislation this year. Secretary of State Scott Gessler reportedly waved off the lawmakers, saying he felt he could address the issue outside the halls of the capitol with means available to him through his office.

Senate internet piracy bill shelved; Udall thanks protesters for support

By | 01.20.12 | 10:30 am

The U.S. Senate has postponed voting on the controversial anti-online piracy Protect IP Act (PIPA), the upper chamber’s version of the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), which was pushed hard by entertainment corporations over the last two years but shelved in the House this week after a massive opposition movement saw top internet sites shutdown in protest and citizen emails swamp Capitol Hill servers.

VIDEO: Job claims tied to Keystone pipeline expanded like hot-air balloon

By | 01.19.12 | 4:12 pm

Republican lawmakers, conservative media outlets and energy industry lobbyists and spokespeople decried President Obama’s decision yesterday to deny a permit for the proposed Keystone XL 1,700-mile pipeline that would have carried tar sands oil from Canada across the Great Plains to refineries on the Gulf Coast. They made much of the jobs the project would have created in the U.S. Was it a thousand jobs? Ten thousand? A hundred thousand? Maybe a million? The estimates seemed to jump every hour the proposal was on the table. Media Matters has released a video tracking the wildly rising estimates, a cautionary note at a time when every potential campaign donor pet project is touted for the alleged jobs would create.

Coffman opposes SOPA as potentially restricting and burdensome

By | 01.18.12 | 4:23 pm

Republican U.S. Rep. Mike Coffman has come out in opposition to the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), explaining that he sees how the legislation could act to tamp down free expression and business innovation.

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