Tag: Robert Blaha

Colorado U.S. Rep. Jared Polis' amendment to strip $25 million in subsidies for oil shale passed the House today on a 208-207 vote. The money will be redirected to deficit reduction. The measure failed earlier in the day by a 192-222 vote but went to a second vote when a member whose vote hadn't been counted asked for a new vote, a source told The Colorado Independent.

Colorado Democratic Senator Mark Udall has led an effort over the last two years to "bridge the divide" that has marked presidential State of the Union addresses by seeking to institute bipartisan seating. Udall's plan to make progress on Capitol Hill by any means possible including symbolic gesture has met with mixed success. Colorado Republican Congressman Doug Lamborn, for example, one of the most conservative members of Congress, has announced not only that he's not mixing this year but also that he plans to not attend the speech at all as a way to send his own symbolic message.